I'll be glad to update you all. Here's an update. I got the seeds several weeks later (no idea the seller was in China). Sprinkled them onto the medium consisting of granite grit and fine pine bark. They sprouted pretty fast, but I think the mix was too heavy because the shoots did not seem to be able to go in at all - they just grew above the medium. Some mold appeared soon after, not much, just here and there in the mix. I did nothing about it and it did not grow much. I watered by misting a few times into each hole, then I'd let it stand and percolate down, then judging by the mix color would often mist a few times more, wait again to percolate. The goal was to have the mix moist but not soggy at all times - it was difficult as expected, I needed to check more than once a day for sure because the lights would dry the small quantity of mix pretty fast. Even if the watering part was OK, without penetrating the mix the germinated seeds were doomed. And indeed the shoots dried up. Even though the mix would be slightly moist, the air right above may have been too dry under lights and the shoots desiccated. Small pockets of mold did survive. :-) So, the other day I emptied it all into the garbage. Lesson learned - need a lighter mix next time if doing something similar. Hey, here's an idea. Pirate Girl, you suggested rooting hoya cutting in water in these. While I am not a fan of water rooting because of the need to regrow soil roots later, BUT I do want to try semi-hydro method for rooting and growing, and I just thought maybe this container can be used. I'll need to use smaller particles than hydroton because I do not think it'll fit through the narrow openings. I'd fill the three globes completely, not partially, with the hydro medium and stick some compact small leaf hoya cuttings in there, defoliated in the mix but of course with leaves above it. To keep the water (fertilizer solution really) fresh, I'd hold the cuttings/plants with my fingers, turn the whole thing over to drain all the water, then refill just a bit or fertilizer solution to stand at the bottom for wicking. What do you all think?

Unbelievable! Tuning in four months later (I registered on GardenWeb with an email account I now rarely use), I discover these thoughtful replies. Thank you you to all that posted to help me. UPDATE: I ended up purchasing two bare root Steuben grape plants (http://www.bunchgrapes.com/steuben_grapes.html). I got them in the ground in February, and they have really taken off. Against all recommendations, I planted them on the west side of a block wall. It's not that I'm a rebel, rather I had no good options on the remaining walls. However, the wall is close enough to the house that the plants are in shade by 3:30 PM or so. If needed, I'll strategically place some shade cloth to get them shaded by 2:00 PM or so. As to why I want seeded grapes: nutrition. I've read that 90% of the nutritional benefit of a grape is in the seeds and skin. As a kid, I ate seeded grapes exclusively, and as an adult I still prefer them that way. This may be a hard sell to my kids, so I'll probably end up starting them on pulped whole grapes as a drink to ensure they get the truly good part of the grapes. At any rate, so far so good with the grapes. Oh! We have a vine that sprang to life this spring and now has a few bunches of grapes on it. I thought for sure this big, old vine was dead. The trunk is about four inches across, but is located in nearly complete shade. It is located between a block wall and a large shed (located two feet from the wall. It receives about an hour of direct sun a day. The house was empty for about a year before we bought it. I'm amazed this grape survived last summer with only natural rainfall. I hope the fruit survives the birds! Take care everyone, and thank you again for all your advice! qwerty

You think I am a joker? hahaha It rained almost 8 inches in a week in Arizona. The usually dry river that runs through out town had almost 30 feet of water in it. It was the 2nd worst flood in the history of the town(at least the white people's history anyways). My point being that everyone always talks about Cali and how bad it was there and crap and yet like some people have said its a huge state. The el nino effect is going full tilt so we can expect to get lots of rain here in Arizona and in Cali as well. Deal with it people. WE have in my town, they are already rebuilding the bridges that got washed out and moving the silt outta the trailer parks. I saw some of the damages up close today and all manner of trees/cactus/everything else you could imagine was swept down the river and deposited everywhere. Only lucky thing is I didnt see any saguaros that got washed out, but there might have been some in those huge log jams.

Hey Marine, Thanks for the info. I really am curious where they were grown. I, like you think they are probably from either Hawaii or South Florida, but less likely from South Florida though, since there is the ban on sprouted coconut palms leaving the state due to lethal yellowing. I have heard that there is a way to pay a couple of hundred dollars and get a certificate to get them shipped out of South Florida from nurseries certified to do this. It might be a good idea for me to do this sometime in the near future, since coconut palms are fairly popular but hard to get in the Rio Grande Valley and since many of the South Florida growers are selling their palms at a HUGE discount due to the really bad economy there. By the way, I read a post on Palm Talk.org (the palm forum of the International Palm Society) last night that there are producing coconut palms in Guaymas, Mexico, and some even as far north as Bahia Kino and Puerto Penasco, which is only about 50 miles south of the Arizona border on the Gulf of California. If there truly are producing coconut palms that far north, then I would like to find a way to get some good ripe viable coconuts from there. I think they would be slightly more cold hardy and cool winter tolerant than those from other parts of Mexico, Hawaii, and South Florida. John