Bald Cypress From Cutting

ROBOKU

mmm radix2 i think u should let the cones dry out?ive heard of some people puting them in the oven until they open a little!!

i think generaly all seeds that sink are good seeds while soaking...

ROBOKU

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whidn

I second the motion about stinky balls.
Man i busted some open a few months ago (they were already cracked) and boy do they stink and are they sticky,,gees. I had to use alcahol to get it off.
The ones I collected were already brown, I think they been there for awhile. I havent tried to germinate any yet, I probaly will in the spring.
I will post the progress

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salix

From that last link:

"Mature, dry cones can be picked by hand from standing or felled trees and spread in a thin layer for air-drying. The dried cones should be broken apart by flailing or dry maceration. The resin in the cones presents a major problem in separation and cleaning because it causes seeds and cone fragments to stick together. The resin also gums up mechanical macerators. One possible solution is to place the dried seeds and cone
fragments in a freezer to harden the resin, then run them through a macerator again while the resin is still in a solid state. Resin can be removed from equipment with alcohol or other organic solvents."

Also,

"Germination. Baldcypress seeds exhibit a moderate amount of dormancy that can be overcome by cold stratification (table 2). For germination testing, moist stratification for 30 days at 3 to 5 (degrees)C is recommended, followed by a 28-day test at alternating temperatures of 20 (degrees) for 16 hours (dark) and 30 (degrees) C for 8 hours (light) (ISTA 1993). Studies with collections from the Gulf Coast region suggested that dormancy in both species is regulated by the seedcoat, and any treatment that softens or weakens the coats will increase rate of germination. A 4-hour soak in concentrated sulfuric acid was recommended as the easiest treatment (Murphy and Stanley 1975). An alternative method for nursery use has been to soak the seeds in water at 4 (degrees)C for 90 days or until ready to plant in the spring. Pondcypress seeds respond well to 60 to 90 days of stratification at 4 (degrees)C in peat moss, preceded by a 24- to 48-hour soak in 0.01% citric acid (Bonner 1974). In addition to the test conditions recommended in table 2, tetrazolium staining can be used to determine viability (ISTA 1993)."

ripsgreentree

Well salix that sounds very well researched and very educational. But what this ol boy does is to fill a five gallon bucket full of seeds and in late winter put about four inches of water in the bucket and let it sit out in the sun until the top looks like bean sprouts.
This never fails to produce several hundred seedlings per bucket. Also I spend some time each year cutting green cones to see if there is polinated seed in the cones. I do my bucket trick on years that the cones have good seed.
Nature does not have to be difficult.

Glenn

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ripsgreentree

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BonifaceVIII

Thank you all for the advice. I will try seeds, first I have to find em =). ANd maybe your right, maybe it takes a long time to root cypress, I guess I'm just used to Ficus cuttings. They root within the month.

salix

Glenn,

I always prefer the ol' boy approach to growing anything (once I find out what it is). I love it. Stick it in a bucket. Very scientific. You should write to the authors of that article and have them replace their germination instructions.

radix2

Thanks Glenn, nothing like the voice of experience

I don't really follow though - you say a five gal bucket full of seeds - this would be 10's of thousands, then you say 4 inches of water( a five gal bucket is like 2 feet tall)

what are we after here - are the seeds floating in the water out in the sun ?, are they just getting moist from the evaporation from below ?

I only have 5 or 6 cones worth to work with, what are the key ingredients of your method ?

ripsgreentree

Radix2; The Bald Cypress cones from my mature trees are never full of viable seed just one to five good seeds per cone. So when I collect I collect a bucket full all broken up. As usual the first time was an accident. I had collected a bucket of seed and then left it out, it rained and put a couple of inches of water into the bucket, in the mean time the sun came out and this created a hot humid atmosfere in the bucket and the seeds sprouted like bean sprouts. I have just continued to duplicate the accident. For a small number of cones and seeds I would put them in a flat with coars humis or bark and keep them wet and warm. You should have some success if the seed is viable. Cover them but not too deep just about 1/4 inch should be ok. Best of luck.

Glenn

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ripsgreentree

It requires an open hand to give and to recieve.

BonifaceVIII

How old (roughly of course) does a cypress have to be when it starts dropping its seed cones or what ever they are.