Rose Seed Scarification

10 years ago

Hi guys,

I want to plant blue roses, but I can't find the plant in my region...so I decided to buy the seeds from ebay...

What I read all this time is rose germination rate from seeds are always poor. From 2 months time it will sprout, but it's a long time to wait, moreover who knows it will sprout or not...

Is there a smart way to scarify the seed so I won't have to wait for 2 months without certainty?
e.g If I nick the seed, make a "small hole" so water can come inside it, will it germinate directly?
Or can I peel the whole seed coat (this technique is well applied to sunflower) ?

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Comments (9)

seil zone 6b MI
10 years ago
I'm sorry to say that if you bought "blue rose" seeds on ebay you wasted your money. There is no such thing as a blue rose. The seeds you purchased could possibly be rose seeds or may be radish seeds for that matter. If you still wish to try them your best bet is to wrap them in damp paper towel in a baggy and put them in your fridge and wait the 4 to 8 weeks they need to germinate. Once germinated you can pot them up and see what they grow into.
bluegirl_gw
10 years ago
Also, you HAVE to stratify them. The embryo is immature & has to go through the cold treatment to finish development.

Get some mature hips from neighborhood plants (orangish color) to practice with this year. Pick the seeds out, wrap them in a SLIGHTLY damp paper towel, put in a baggie, LABEL & DATE, & hold them in the refrigerator at least 2 months, then start warming them up at room temp a few days at a time.

Some sprout well right away after cool treatment, some take FOREVER or never do. But it's fun to experiment because of the satisfaction of getting sprouts after all that trouble.

(And yeah, sorry, but those "blue rose seeds" are a rip-off. Many roses don't breed true from seeds anyway & there is no true blue rose).
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User
10 years ago
Sadly, you have thrown your money away. Those seeds won't result in a blue rose, not by any stretch of the imagination. Those eBay sellers are a fraud.
Kippy
10 years ago
Does it violate the law to import the seeds? (noticing the ads are mostly from China)
seil zone 6b MI
10 years ago
I'm not sure about the regulations on seeds, Kippy, but it is a plant material so my guess is that it is illegal.
rainbow_catz
Original Author
10 years ago
@Seil
Is that so? :(
But I ever saw fresh blue roses from a flower shop...it has dark blue color. How they make them into that color?

@bluegirl
So you do stratification and it is the only way? Do you often see them germinate after that?

@trospero
I see that many ebay sellers are fraud..and fortunately I haven't bought it ;-)... I just still thinking of buying it and will buy if anyone has succeeded in making the seeds germinate faster

@kippy the hippy
Many people doubt so, but they (the buyers) say that they have no problem and receive the seed safely...many people have done this without problem ;)
seil zone 6b MI
10 years ago
The blue roses you see in shops are dyed that color and do not grow that way naturally. I've also seen "rainbow" roses advertised. Those are many different colors on one bloom and are dyed that way as well.

Yes, the only way to grow rose seeds is to stratify them as far as I know.
overdrive
10 years ago
Henry Kuska is the man when it comes to germinating rose seeds, use google search for Henry Kuska and he will show you how to do it. you have to pre treat with enzymes, then cold stratify, then sow them then wait. it will happen if you do it right. is is similar to the seed gets eaten by a bird, it goes through the digestive tract, then comes out the other end with a little bit of bird poop which will act like fertilizer, then overwinters, then the spring rains will come and a plant happens. same thing when cows eat the hips -
henry_kuska
10 years ago
See:

http://home.roadrunner.com/~kuska/rosepublicationsindex.htm

Here is a link that might be useful: My rose seed info