Germination
Experiments to determine what it takes to grow a rare plant from seed:
If we know nothing about a certain plant's needs, we place a small number of seeds in different conditions to see which works best.
- Waking the Seeds - Thawing
Frozen seeds are removed from the seed bank and placed on moistened paper in small plastic Petri dishes. Once moistened, some seeds will readily germinate if kept at a constant 20°C (68°F).
- Special Treatments - Scarification, Cold Stratification
Sometimes, special treatments are required to coax a seed into growing. These may include soaking seeds in acid or using sandpaper or a razor blade to damage the seed coat and let moisture inside (this is called "scarification"). Other seeds are placed in a refrigerator for 8-16 weeks, referred to as cold stratification.
- Special Growing Conditions - Controlling Day Length and Temperature
We have two different germination chambers. Both have 8 hours of daylight, and 16 hours of darkness, though one germination chamber is set at a constant 20°C temperature, and the second germination chamber mimics day-night changes in temperatures: during the light cycle it is 20°C (68°oF) and during the dark cycle it is 10°C (50°F).
We examine the seeds weekly and record how many have germinated. This tells us both the number and rate (timing) of germination.