Thanks, Henry.

Is that a tropical? wow that is some awsome color !! beautiful!! Kelley

The ol' soaking-the-seed "sink or float test" is a prime case of pervasive pseudo-science which has become so deeply entrenched within the "common knowledge" preconception of the public, that even many PROFESSIONAL horticultural authors (those with academic training) continue to peddle this nonsense within their publications. (To paraphrase a personally-modified version of my favorite adages: "If you repeat a lie often enough without challenging it, it eventually becomes doctrinal truth.") Essentially, this long-standing horticultural myth goes like this: When you soak your seeds overnight in a jar filled with fresh water (a form of 'scarification', to help initiate the process of softening an otherwise hard external seed coat, before sowing the seed), those seeds which sink to the bottom of the jar are presumably "viable", while those which float on the top of the water are considered "duds" (dead or infertile). Let me say this, here, and now: This is utter hogwash, because it blatantly ignores the vast diversity of evolutionary adaptations to seed structures. That is to say - that not all seeds (from various plant families/genera/species) are created equal. Some plants have SPECIFICALLY evolved their embryonic progeny (their seeds) to VERY DELIBERATELY float on water (e.i. - to be carried away by swift current) as a way to expand their territorial distribution; a strategy to improve the prospect of their offspring's ongoing survival. But if such seeds were to sink right to the bottom of a stream, river, or creek, then the prospect of their territorial spread would be significantly hampered. In other adaptational models, some seeds have evolved to be carried aloft by air, through wind dispersal, by employing "parachute"-like protruding tufts of silky, thin fibers ('pappus', for the scientific term, or alternative, 'coma'), and these light, ultra-fine, hair-like fibers will also keep the seed afloat should it happen to drift into a body of water. The genus of Asclepias ("milkweed") is an excellent example of such specialized seed structures. Taraxacum ("dandelions") is another. Heck, even among some plants belonging to the very same genus, such as Rosa ("rose"), one species of roses can yield seeds that tend to float (such as R. rugosa, "Beach Rose"), and another species of roses can yield seeds which tend to sink (such as R. pimpinellifolia, "Burnet Rose.") Hence, demonstrating how dynamically-variable these evolutionary adaptions are from plant to plant. In summary, the pervasive "sink or float seed-soaking viability test" SHOULD have been debunked and laid to rest, a long time ago. Because the Plant Kingdom is highly diversified, and that includes seed structures and their inherently variable environmental interactions. The short of it: Some seeds were meant to sink, others were meant to float, and others still will RANDOMLY do both. And yet, they may ALL still be viable, just the same. This renders the "sink or float test" not only grossly unreliable, but purely fictitious (and also, sadly wasteful, because who knows how many billions of viable seeds have been wrongfully discarded through such a fallacious notion). Still, the BIGGEST embarrassment of all, by far, is that even some prominent members of the horticultural/botanical community continue to dispense this myth to the public, when they should otherwise be reliable sources of competent information. The take-home message: Pre-soak your seeds and sow *all* of them, regardless of which ones "sink" and which ones "float." Nature will know best on how to sort out the duds, not you. (NOTE: Short of using sophisticated low-power radiographic imaging apparatus to look deep into a seed's cross-section/internal structure, and non-destructively so, determining seed viable/fertility to 100% accuracy is virtually impossible.)

HERE is a link to Iseli Nursery's site. This page tells how some new plants are developed at their nursery, mostly conifers. It is worth noting that Iseli Nursery also has an INTERN PROGRAM. Are there any young posters here that could benefit from such a program??????