Just Suppose... An Hypothetical Seed Question.

[Lesley Cox]

Just suppose you had been sent 2 tiny packets of very precious seed, 2 species of the same genus.

Just suppose the seed, from the little that could be seen, was so small, as small as Pleione seed,  that you could barely distinguish it AS seed - e.g. smaller than Ramonda seed.

Just suppose 1 packet was so small it could hardly be handled, say 1cm x less than 1 cm and firmly sellotaped all over.

Just suppose that when you DID manage to open it there seemed to be nothing in it.

Just suppose the other packet, something larger, say 2cms x 2cms did appear to have some seed but just suppose that it was wrapped in a smidgeeon of clear cellophane, folded over just once and tightly sellotaped on every side and

Just suppose that in its journey to you, ALL the seed had found its way to the edges and was firmly stuck onto the sellotape.

Supposing all this to be so, what would you do to detach at least SOME of the seed from the sellotape and so be able to sow it? (supposing you had already tried your fingernail, a small fine soft brush and a rather stiffer brush, as well as "wiping" it with your finger tip, all to no avail?)

Also just suppose that this seed is SO precious that you will just about commit suicide if, in the end you can't dislodge and make use of any of it.

[arillady]

Sellotape should disintegrate with moisture and so would paper bags so I would sow them but I suppose being so small they would not want to be covered. you would have already tried a magnifying glass to see the seed??

[ranunculus]

I agree with Pat.  I would stake the sellotape to the compost with cocktail sticks (seed side up) and hope that the precious seeds either wash off or germinate through the decaying tape.  You have few other options, Lesley.  Continuous abrasion of the tiny seeds would surely do more harm than good.  I hope (for your continuing presence on this forum) that the suicide option has already been discounted.  Far too messy to contemplate!   

[David Pilling]

There are solvents of glue - baby oil can be used to remove sticking plasters. But getting big seed wet can make it difficult to handle, small seed might be a lot worse, perhaps you'd have to do the unsticking operation in a test tube and then use a pipette/eye dropper to sow the seed.

The glue on sticky tape separates on contact with water in my experience. Small seeds have small roots, and there is then the question of could they penetrate the microscopic holes in the tape.

Have a practice with some non-precious seed. Basic lab equipment available on ebay.

[Menai]

I feel for you Lesley. I was once sent some wild collected seed of of a 'true' Aeonium by a very serious gentleman. I never did see the seed but slit through the layers of tape enveloping the minute packet and sowed the whole thing. Nothing happened!

Good luck
Erle

[Lesley Cox]

Thanks everyone, some options to think about there. Yes, I have looked at it through a hand lens (x 10) and it is definitely seed in the larger packet so I'll try a few suggestions above and report in due course. Yes Cliff, I have already discounted the suicide option as I have been reminded that HE won't be cooking Christmas dinner.

[Martin Baxendale]

I'd sow the whatever the seed is stuck to, seeds side up and covered with a very thin scattering of compost, watered with a fine spray. Hopefully the seeds, if they germinate, will root sideways along plastic or sellotape.

[Diane Clement]

I'm sure I'm not the only one intrigued to know what this precious "hypothetical" seed is 

[maggiepie]

I'm sure I'm not the only one intrigued to know what this precious "hypothetical" seed is 

That's for sure.

[David Pilling]

I'm sure I'm not the only one intrigued to know what this precious "hypothetical" seed is 

Hypothetical seed can be anything you want it to be...

[Lesley Cox]

PMs to you both.