Plum seeds and stratification

[Arborowen]

I once collected seed from a nice Psuedotsuga mensesii at bedgbury pinetum. Like allot of pines stratification was required in order to get them to germinate. I did this by planing them then putting in the fridge for a few weeks.

 

I have these

Collected from a garden escapee of Prunus cerasifera 'nigra'

 

(I'm making cherry plum crumble tonight).

 

My question is what sort of treatment does the seed require to get them to germinate? Many sites are saying stratify, some say no need, just plant. To my mind looking at the hard seed shell some combination of scarification tjthen stratification may be necesarry.

 

Your fruit thoughts are welcome.

 

Thanks

[slack ma girdle]

Mix the seeds with equall parts of compost and bark or chip. Leave in a bucket over winter with drainage holes in it. The mix needs to be kept damp but not wet, and in a cool out house or next to a north wall. Make sure that the bucket has a wire cover to stop the pesky mice from having a party.

Tip out the bucket in late spring to see if any have germinated (probably not). Pot on any that have, and return the rest for another winter.

I have tried a couple of times with only limited success.

Hope you have better luck.

[agg221]

Plums used to be germinated for use as rootstocks, and my edition of "The Grafters' Handbook" by RJ Garner has the following in respect of Prunus:

 

"The treatment begins some eight weeks before sowing. Air-dried seed is mixed with rather more than its own volume of a mixture of one part sand to three parts pulverised peat and placed in small sacks, so that the sacks are never more than half-filled. A large vessel of water is heated to 74degC (165degF). Each sack of seed is submerged and moved about in this heated water for ten seconds, then the sack of seed is removed and laid flat on slats to cool for thirty minutes, when the dipping process is repeated. On taking out of the heated water the second time the sacks are plunged, and moved about, in a tank of cold water and then put into a cold chamber maintained at about 2degC (36degF). The sacks of seed must remain wet, yet aerated. he bags should be turned and shaken every day or so and watered thoroughly as required. After about three months the seeds begin to germinate and a close watch must then be kept on samples taken every three or four days and sown in warmth. The appearance of roots in these samples in four days indicates that the bulk of the seed is ready for sowing outdoors. At no time from the beginning of the treatment until they are sown must the seeds become dry."

 

Looks like a lot of the same principles apply as in the above answer. If you can get away with using the fridge for such things, and maybe turning it down a bit colder than normal, this would probably do the trick for the cold treatment, the weather being somewhat unreliable.

 

Alec

[Arborowen]

Thanks for your replies I'm going to dry them and try a few different experememts.

 

Got to love old gardening books that outline every detail as if some kind of ritual.

 

One of the experements ill be trying involves wearing g a fresh goat skin and dancing around the planted seeds with my elbows on fire on a Wednesday eating g some hair of a cat.....

 

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