Magnolia seeds moldy during stratification

11 years ago

Hello--

Late last summer, I collected some magnolia seeds from the tree in my front yard (a common, pink magnolia). I cleaned the waxy coating from the seeds, and wrapped them in a damp paper towel inside of a ziploc bag to store in the fridge until planting time next spring. I checked the seeds today, and most of them are (at least partly) covered in white, fuzzy mold. I assume this means the seeds are no longer viable, but I figured I would check just to make sure before I throw them out. Thanks for any help/advice!

--Jordan (WonderWeasel

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (8)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
11 years ago
hey weasel ...

quite a presumption there.. a 'leap' one might say..

you kept them this long.. why throw them out w/o trying to root them ...

the question for me would be.. how do you de-mold them.. so as to not contaminate your media ...

how many seeds do you have??? .. that would define the number of experiments you could try in cleaning them...

GIVE IT A GO!!!

ken
alabamatreehugger 8b SW Alabama
11 years ago
They may still be viable. Clean the mold off the best you can, then dip them in some bleach water (about 3 tablespoons of bleach per cup of water). This has worked for me.
Related Discussions
Is it me or the seeds? (long)
Q
Comments (10)
Andrea, I hope you will get a lot of different response...here's mine... This fall will be the fifth year for me starting seeds. I tend to start mine beginning Dec, so they've been refrigerated for quite a while. I don't do it as carefully as you, I use Promix in cups under lights, nothing fancy. However, prior to the last two years, I had virtually no problem with seeds...it made me a a bit confident, I'm afraid. The last two years, I have had seeds mold...seeds that I would take out of the refrigerator moldy... I'm picky about who I buy from now...also, I make more of my own seeds each year. One of the things that I've noticed this year...(from my own seeds) is that time matters. Some of my seeds appear to be maturing prematurely (I suspect the rust may push this) as the scapes are dying. Usually, those seeds are either too dry and crunch right in my fingers or they are mushy and damp. You can tell the difference, the more seeds you handle. I don't necessarily think the wrinkling matters as long as the seeds are viable. You will get a feel for the seeds. I toss out any that don't feel right...for any reason. What I was getting at is that it looks to me like six weeks or more (at least here) is required for good seeds. Some have dates from late June...which is pushing two months...and those seeds are usually always fine. I'm sort of at peak harvest right now...and I'm Zone 7... So, I don't know this...but I suspect some sellers may be harvesting their seeds too soon. After I pick my pods, I dry them in little cups for a few days and then bag them, list them on my spreadsheet and refrigerate them. It isn't just the money, (I've never asked for money back for purchased seeds that molded or rotted)...but, there's a lot of time, trouble, and work in bringing a seedling to bloom. My time and my money are valuable and I don't want to waste either. That said, it's always a bit of a gamble. Here are a few sellers that I've bought from for years and always get good seeds (Since I'm buying less, I don't have to worry about the competition...lol...but, it's the least I can do for good sellers, right): Jeffbard aka Jeffb, Boxcar, Spunky1, Sandlapper and Yardman. Of those, Yardman will sell later as he grows further north. I also bought from Dot here on gw (Ladylovingdove) last year (and this year!) and was happy with my seeds. And Shelly from GA, too. I don't think you'll go wrong with any of those sellers....if the seeds don't germinate well from them, well (laughing), then it probably is you (kidding)! *Disclaimer....just because I didn't mention someone doesn't mean they are or aren't good....those were just the first ones that came to mind. Good luck, Andrea....and don't give up. Just curious, are you planting these outside as it seems early to grow them indoors until next spring?
...See More
What's the latest on storing seeds?
Q
Comments (21)
All my seeds are stored in the frig once I gather them. I only gather once the pod just starts to crack so I do watch them pretty closely in the garden. The frig seems as good of a place as any to keep them to me. To germinate all that I do is place them between several layers of white paper towels. These I wet down, neatly fold, stick in a ziplock back (with the air squeezed out) and then put them someplace warm. Usually a south windowsill works for me. I check on them after 5 or 6 days to see if they are sprouting. Those that are sprouted are put in a sterile growing medium--carefully with tweezers. The ones not sprouted stay put in the papertowel and I mist the paper towels again with water. Then back into the ziplock and the south windowsill. I check again every few days or so and continue planting. My germination rate is between 90-95% overall. The ones that don't sprout are probably duds as far as I'm concerned. Last February I bought 5 seeds of Puffer Fish x Momentum from a nice lady on the auction and she generously sent me 7 of which all 7 sprouted with this method. I now have 7 very healthy, nice sized seedlings planted outside in the garden. Wouldn't be surprised if I might even get a little bloom next summer. Who knows! I'm totally looking forward to seeing this cross since I've mooned over Puffer Fish but it sells for well over $300 on the auction and I'm just not ready to get that carried away! And, also, needless to say, Olson's Momentum is a sweet daylily in my book. I think the reason for chilling is partly to keep them dormant and from sprouting before I'm ready to do something with them. I do know many trees, especially fruit and nut tree seed need to be chilled in order to sprout. Daylilies, at least some of them, may very well need the same treatment.
...See More
Stratifying conifer seeds...Mold!
Q
Comments (8)
What kind of seeds? I stratify outdoor plants outdoors. Sprinkle on a flat or raised bed and lightly cover with soil or light mulch......and walk away. Spring comes and up come the plants. I've done this with a lot of different trees and shrubs including rhododendrons and azaleas. My wife seems to be in charge of the refrigerator. ;-) Usually when done indoors, mold is not a problem unless it's the dreaded 'damping off' when the seedlings are grown indoors. . It's warm now. I'd go ahead and plant them outside. No damping off outside when they come up in late Feb. or March. Mike...with Tulips coming up.
...See More
trees from seed, continued
Q
Comments (66)
3 Toona sinensis seedlings - free to a good home. Best for zone 7 or higher. Parent tree survived for 15+ years north of Detroit with little to no dieback (I had been hopeful that the tree would prove to be zone 5b hardy), but after the winter of 2013-14 it suffered significant dieback. Regrowth was strong in the summer of 2014, but the property owner decided to remove the tree later that year. These were grown from seed started in the spring of 2013. Pots are too big to ship, so if you're from zone 7 and plan to travel to MI this summer and would like to pick them up, send me a message offline.
...See More
canadianplant
11 years ago
Ive had some pretty mouldy seeds germinate, including some Sabal palms.

As long as the seeds havnt rooted yet, pick them out of the paper towel, and soak them in a 1:10 bleach:water solution for 5 minutes then wash them off.

Dont use paper towel for stratification Its not sterile, and holds too much water - the recipie for mould. Use a bag of fresh seed starting medioum, or use d 50/50 peat/perlite in a mix. If yo uuse a fresh bag of soil, it should be moist enough.
sam_md
11 years ago
Hi Jordan,
I also grow magnolias from seed, the one pictured here is Bigleaf Magnolia. Here is what works for me:
-collect seed when ripe and bright red in Mid-September.
-direct sow seed in 2 1/4" pots
-cover with sand
-overwinter somewhere that gets cold but not below freezing.
Magnolias are the last of my seeds to germinate, its like they are slow to wake up.
To determine if your seed is good or not, give it the cut test: ie. if you have 100 seeds cut 10 of them open with pruners. If they are watery and stink they are bad and discard. If they are firm, white and look good chances are that the balance will be good.
Also, get an accurate ID on your parent plant so you know what you have if you get some to germinate.
{{gwi:325106}}
Tn_Tree_Man
11 years ago
Sam-just a quick note regarding my luck with germinating magnolias; I like to "float test" my seeds. I like to soak my seeds in room temperature bowl of water overnight. Get rid of the floaters and keep the sinkers. The floaters generally are not viable while the sinkers germinate with great success. The overnight soak also aids in the removal of the outer fleshy pulp that sometimes inhibits germination. I have used this technique with Magnolia virginiana, M. grandiflora, M. fraserii and M. tripetala. This also works with Flowering dogwood (Cornus florida).

Weasel--soak 'em in water, float test, remove the pulp and plant them in a pot and see what happens. That fuzzy mold is probably just on the outer flesh and not on the seed itself.
jimbobfeeny
11 years ago
What I did with some Flowering dogwoods and Hobblebush viburnums was mash the fruit, let the slurry ferment for a week or two, and then wash in a screen. The fermenting makes the fruit easy to remove, and softens the seed coat. also, it removes the fungi spores, keeping the seeds clean.
treeguy_ny USDA z6a WNY
11 years ago
Weasel - I have had the same issue with mold on magnolia seeds in years past. I removed the mold as alabamatreehugger and canadianplant recommended and returned the seeds (in new media) to finish stratifying. I had good germination percentages in all instances.

sam md - nice bigleaf magnolia seedlings! Would you be willing to sell or trade one or two extra seedlings? E-mail me if so as I would love to add that one to my collection!
terrene
11 years ago
A friend gave me a big seedpod of Magnolia grandiflora from the Arnold Arboretum in Boston. It had some fuzzy mold on the outside, and some of the mold had penetrated a bit into the interior of the pod. I picked out and cleaned all the seed, then soaked them in a little container with water and a dash of hydrogen peroxide (this is something that daylily hybridizers do, so I thought it would be a good idea). All the seeds sunk to the bottom of the container, and when I cut one in half and it had a nice white embryo.

Just sowed them tonight, similar to Sam_md describes, however I am planning to put them outside (winter-sowing). Yes, this is considered north of their range, but it was collected from a tree growing successfully in zone 6b, and maybe one of the seedlings will have exceptional hardiness. Here's hoping...

Magnolia seeds moldy during stratification

Comments (8)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

alabamatreehugger 8b SW Alabama

Related Discussions

canadianplant

sam_md

Tn_Tree_Man

jimbobfeeny

treeguy_ny USDA z6a WNY

terrene

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US