To answer Dylan's question about Paeonia cambessedesii: I grow a lot of this species, as well as other ones. I never scarify the seed, even the massive seeds of P. lutea, which self-sows in this area. Generally no leaf appears the first year after sowing, but a radicle is produced (known as hypogeal germination). The leaves appear the second spring. This seems to be a consistent pattern. Other species peonies also self-sow in gardens here, particularly P. daurica. Most of my P. camb. seeds come from two plants I keep in the bulb house (planted directly in the bed, not in pots), but some seed obtained under that name from the NARGS seedex germinated this spring and contained mixed species or hybrids; only one appeared to be true(ish). P. camb. is easily identified by its almost metallic blue-green leaves, very beautiful in early growth. It was not quite winter-hardy in my former garden (up in the hills), but I think I'll try some outdoors now that I'm at a lower elevation. It will certainly be a wonderful plant for California gardens, ornamental both in flower and in foliage. It goes dormant in late summer. In the bulb frames and bulb house it has survived about 20 degrees F when covered from rain. Jane McGary, Portland, Oregon, USA On 7/11/2018 8:40 AM, Hannon wrote: > When I worked at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden we had a crop of P. > californica. I remember the seeds germinated like kidney beans without any > treatment, but getting them through their leafless summer dormancy in pots > was challenging. Watering lightly about every two weeks helped during this > period; seedlings kept totally dry perished. The mix was well-drained with > plenty of sand and pumice and a low % of organic matter. Still, after a few > years we ended up with only one plant in a 1x1x1 foot wooden box. > > Recently I planted fresh seeds of P. cambessedesii with zero germination > over winter. The seeds appear to have a harder coat that the CA native > species. Maybe they need scarification as someone else mentioned? > > Dylan > > *"The greatest service which can be rendered any country is to add an > useful plant to its culture…" --**Thomas Jefferson* > _______________________________________________ > pbs mailing list > pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net > http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/… _______________________________________________ pbs mailing list pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/…