Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum

Seedy Subjects! => Grow From Seed => Topic started by: anita on July 25, 2015, 07:46:29 PM

Title: Autumn crocus and galanthus seeds
Post by: anita on July 25, 2015, 07:46:29 PM

Hi I've just collected seeds from autumn flowering crocus and galananthus.  I'm in South Australia in the Southern Hemisphere, so seeds are ripening now.  There are a range of crocus and Galanthus regiinae-olgae.
Should I sow immediately?
Night temps currently range between 1C (cold for us) and 7C (more typical) and days around  12 to 16C. However, as we head to August and September we'll start warming up.
Seeds of autumn flowering narcissus planted immediately after harvesting are already germinating.
Thanks Anita

Title: Re: Autumn crocus and galanthus seeds
Post by: Maggi Young on July 25, 2015, 08:00:42 PM

From an old Crocus Group Newsletter:
"Crocus seed has been shown to germinate best if sown during the higher temperatures of late summer before the lower temperatures of autumn and winter initiate germination. The best time for sowing is therefore at the same time as nature does it in the wild, that is when the ripe seed is expelled from the mature seedpod in late spring to early summer."

This Bulb Log of Ian Young may help too -
http://www.srgc.org.uk/bulblog/log2006/061206/log.html (http://www.srgc.org.uk/bulblog/log2006/061206/log.html)   - and Ian likes to sow all crocus seed as fresh as possible - so he would advise you to sow now.