Personally the boiling water method is unnecessary to me...I achieve max results by doing your first step hold them with pliers and sanding with a file or other means then I drop them in a jar of collected rain water. Next I observe a few days when the white nub appears I take it out and examine it further and if the skin flexes I peal the outer layer off then...and if not I put it back in the water until it is peal able. .but that step is also unnecessary cause all you really need is to see is growth (the embryo starting to emerge) and plant it as is and it will grow...All other steps are just us being impatient lol

Brian, There are several books on tissue culture that give more details on zygotic embryo culture than the In Vitro Plant Breeding book that I referenced. I mentioned it first because it is introductory, and I happen to have a copy of it. I think "zygotic embryo culture" is the technical term for the subject of your inquiry. Many of the books in this subject area are relatively expensive, so you will benefit from learning to use Amazon's Search Inside! feature. You can find more detail in the book, Introduction to Plant Tissue Culture by M. K. Razdan, in Chapter 11 (beginning on page 128) titled "Zygotic Embryo Culture". Apparently you can't link directly to specific pages within a book. At least, I don't know how to do it. But this link, Search Inside! Introduction to Plant Tissue Culture should get you inside where you can enter the search string "129" in the Search box and press the red Go button to get a list of hits for that string. At the top of the list is hit 1. "on page 129" and clicking on that will link you to page 129, which is the second page in Chapter 11. Just use the left arrow in the margin of page 129 to go to the beginning of Chapter 11 on what would be page 128 if it had a page number, which it doesn't. At $49.50, that book is fairly affordable, but it is temporarily out of stock at Amazon. Another good book, Plant Tissue Culture: Theory and Practice by Bhojwani and Razdan costs $370, so there is motivation to use Amazon's Read Inside on it. Once you get into the Read Inside your target is Chapter 11, titled Zygotic Embryo Culture, beginning on page 297. Entering "297" in the Search box is the quickest way to find a link to that page, because it does have a page number. There are a bunch of good books on tissue culture, and tissue culture techniques can be used to culture embryos that otherwise wouldn't develop into viable seeds. That makes it possible to grow interspecific and even intergeneric hybrids that wouldn't grow without using zygotic embryo culture techniques. You might be interested in the Kitchen Culture Kits, Inc. website. Dr. Carol M. Stiff is the proprietor, and she might be able to put together a kit specifically adapted to your zygotic embryo culture needs. MM

I wouldn't use anything without drainage holes. Even if you make a space for the excess water to collect it will probably stagnate. Maybe you could try using some activated charcoal in the bottom if you are going to try it. You do want air circulation with seedlings to prevent mold, fungus gnats and other problems. Even in the greenhouse I use an exhaust fan. I would repot your adenium in a well draining potting mix. I personally don't care for MG, especially the moisture control type. Good luck. BTW plant your adenium seeds asap. The fresher they are the better the germination. They seem to be viable for a very limited time, much shorter then plumeria seeds. Karyn

After the rose fades and the petals fall off, the base will swell. These are called hips or heps. They are the seedpods that have resulted from your rose flowers. When they turn orange (or red or yellow, etc), you pull the hips from the plant, and I just use a butter knife to split them open. Inside them you will find the seeds and also some hair-like fuzz. Remove the seeds, making sure that all the hip tissue is removed (It has a hormone in it that slows germination). What you'll need to do to grow your seeds. Rose seeds: They should be as fresh as possible. Containers: jars, plastic bags, etc. I use baby food jars. Sterile soil mix. Bake soil in a pan at 250 degrees for 30 minutes, or use peat which naturally resists bacteria. I use jiffy peat pellets or good potting soil. Some people even use moistened paper towels, or sand. Whatever works for you. Hydrogen peroxide. It prevents damp-off, a condition where your seedlings rot at the soil line. Water 1-cup measuring cup and tablespoon Seed starter soil mix - In a 1-cup measuring cup, add 1 tablespoon of hydrogen peroxide. Fill cup the rest of the way with water. This will be a 1:15 ratio. - Gradually add this mixture to your soil until it has the same moisture content as fresh-turned soil. If it's too wet it will rot the seeds. If it's too dry it will inhibit germination. If you get it too wet, you can either try squeezing it out or leaving it out overnight. Add the mixture to your jar and refrigerate. - Soak seeds in water/hydrogen peroxide solution for 6-12 hours. Place them in the chilled jar and return to refrigerator. - Wait three months. -It helps to vary the temperature a little during the last month in the fridge. Do NOT freeze! At the end of the three months, remove and find a warm spot (70-75 degrees) to place them in overnight. Check for germination of seeds, and then place back in the fridge overnight. Temps of 80 degrees will stop germination. - When looking for germination, you will see a single root-tip breaking through the seed. If you see lots of fuzzy little roots, it's mold (don't worry). There's a distinct difference. - If you need to add water to your planting mix, use the water-hydrogen peroxide mix. - Plant your germinated seedling. Make sure that it's covered by soil or the root will curl around the seed like a snail. Don't plant too deep, either; try for about 1/4 inch deep. - Water the seedling with the water-hydrogen peroxide mixture; don't over/under water. - You can lightly fertilize with a weak (about 25%) water-soluble fertilizer (like Miracle Gro) when they get their second leaves. - Repeat-blooming roses bloom after about 2 months. Once-blooming roses bloom after about two to three years. - If your rose seedlings wilt or die at the top, just below the first leaves, this may be due to an injury to the plant or because of a lack of humidity. If you think it's because of a lack of humidity, try to make a green house for it by using a pop bottle with the base cut off, but the top and sides left on, (used also for rooting cuttings). Open the top of the bottle to let air circulate a couple of days before removing the bottle. Replace bottle if plant begins to wilt. Milk bottles work too, so would even an aquarium, or whatever you can think of that will do the job.