Rhys Ki Posted June 21, 2019 Report Share Posted June 21, 2019 Greetings,Your help or advice is greatly appreciated as this carnivorous plant parent is in pain. As I've begun my second set of carnivorous plants, I requested and received (with much difficulty during the process) over 200+ seeds of 6 different species from the Carnivorous Plant Society. Due to the sheer volume of seeds I received, I thought certainly by now at least some would have germinated in similar conditions as the other carnivorous plants I'd successfully grown first. However, it has been 7-10 weeks (depending on the species, plus some obviously required different stratification lengths and strategies, which add a few to several weeks onto that - I've even done a few as 1/2 and 1/2 stratified differently or some so & not at all to see if there are different results) and NONE of the seeds have germinated: NONE. I've done extensive research from many sites, including this one, and have done all as appropriate for stratification, germination, and prepared environments for their various needs after sprouting (hopefully.) What's more, I had inquired a few times with CPS to see how old these seeds were before they were sent to me, and there has not been any response since I inquired a few times during the shipment process and after receiving them...The seeds are temporarily (as I also have a greenhouse for grown plants & another growing area) in a germination tank near the top with 1/2 covers, keeping 76-82 F temperatures regularly night and day, 50-75% humidity within the enclosure, fan ventilation from top (not shown in picture due to distance& placement,) peat moss and perlite (mixed at various levels of each per species recommendations) rinsed many times over with R/O water until there was no dust or cloudiness in either, the seeds were sprinkled on top (most are almost impossible to see on the dark, wet medium) with a very, very light dusting of peat moss dust that I sifted through fabric sprinkled about, the water tray that is filled and cleaned (safely of course) weekly, soil mix is always moist but not water logged, they receive tons (about 16 hrs full cycle) of light from the plant spectrum Fluval nano LEDs (7500K 1000lm 6 band light with 24 hour changing light cycle) and the T8 Fluorescent Aqueon full spectrum FloraMax light (I have a different UFO red, blue, white, infrared, and uva/uvb LED light for the Greenhouse when not outdoors.) You can see photos of my germination setup at https://sites.google.com/view/jessica-teeters/vfts. There was for a short time some white fuzzy mold popping up randomly here or there, but that has stopped for quite some time now since I dabbed those areas of medium with a q-tip of neem oil. I've read here that this should not hurt the seeds in any way, so it shouldn't be that - nonetheless in such targeted, small doses. Here are the species I'm working with, so some had stratification methods applied to them. Again, I had so many that some species that had mixed results from stratifying or not were split up into 1/2 being stratified and 1/2 not just to see. Cephalotus Follicularis typicalD. Muscipula mixedD. anglicaD. Montana var tomentosa , Serra de CarracaS. Judith Hindle opStylidium macranthumThey were shipped to me twice: once toward late last year/early this year then again in late February due to shipment (Post Office) error. Then stratified (to those applicable) and sown onto their soil. They did come from the UK to here (Indiana) through the USDA, but the first time the label wasn't looked at correctly so it was sent back and then re-mailed to me again. Could it be because they were air mailed and then post mailed in colder climates back and forth so much for an extended period of time before I got them? Any advice, tips, help? I feel like I'm at a loss. It'd be greatly appreciated! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ada Posted June 21, 2019 Report Share Posted June 21, 2019 Cephalotus seed is notoriously difficult to germinate for some people(me included) it can take months to years! D.Muscipula should germinate in six weeks or so,i have had six year old seed germinate like cress,even my kids grew these from pollination to maturity without any help. D,anglica is the same,sarracenia seed if stratified should be the same. the only thing reading your post i would never do is , never cover any carnivorous plant seeds with anything! not even a light dusting as you say Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhys Ki Posted June 21, 2019 Author Report Share Posted June 21, 2019 4 hours ago, ada said: Cephalotus seed is notoriously difficult to germinate for some people(me included) it can take months to years! D.Muscipula should germinate in six weeks or so,i have had six year old seed germinate like cress,even my kids grew these from pollination to maturity without any help. D,anglica is the same,sarracenia seed if stratified should be the same. the only thing reading your post i would never do is , never cover any carnivorous plant seeds with anything! not even a light dusting as you say Thanks for the input! Yes, I've grown several of Dionaea the same way I started these out just fine with no problems in germinating... Plus, it wasn't until about 1 1/2 weeks ago that I added the light dusting as I read from other forum posts on a few different forums that it may be necessary to help them push their roots into the medium and to help maintain humidity near the seeds, but I see your point. Do you think if I dusted them off a bit that it would improve, though, knowing that they had been completely left undusted for several weeks beforehand? I do appreciate the response. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ada Posted June 21, 2019 Report Share Posted June 21, 2019 you could try and remove the covering compost a bit,what have you got to lose? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhys Ki Posted June 21, 2019 Author Report Share Posted June 21, 2019 25 minutes ago, ada said: you could try and remove the covering compost a bit,what have you got to lose? I might, though some seeds are so small I cannot even see them in the wet medium. I may lose a few seeds by removing the top layer, but if it's worth saving the rest I may just try that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Posted June 25, 2019 Report Share Posted June 25, 2019 (edited) I will say never give up on them. Some Sarracenia and Flytrap seeds I had back in September 2017, after stratification (some fridge and some cold greenhouse) refused point blank to germinate. Then they sprang to life this early spring (contrary little blighters). Growing strongly now. Edited June 25, 2019 by Keith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhys Ki Posted June 26, 2019 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2019 (edited) On 6/25/2019 at 7:38 AM, Keith said: I will say never give up on them. Some Sarracenia and Flytrap seeds I had back in September 2017, after stratification (some fridge and some cold greenhouse) refused point blank to germinate. Then they sprang to life this early spring (contrary little blighters). Growing strongly now. Oh, wow. I definitely don't plan on giving up, but will try to keep my patience (and keep in mind that my high electricity bill will pay off with seedlings soon.) Perhaps I'll put in a separate pot with some other plant that can grow in similar conditions just to have something green in there in the meantime.... maybe a bonsai? I'm not sure what else can co-habitate with them. Edited June 26, 2019 by Rhys Ki Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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