I am interested in someones else's view on this subject as well, I planted Musa velunita on December 2nd in Jiffy seedling mix, Keeping them moist, and warm I haven't seen anything yet, Of course it's only been two weeks (the directions said germination can take between 1 and 4 months). I am hoping they'll be done soon! If you're ordering seeds online, amazon has a nice selection of banana seeds, It's where I purchased Banana seeds.

I'd advise geting little tissue cultured plants instead. That way, you've got a little plant right from the start - no waiting for anything to germinate.

Musella lasiocarpa need cold stratification(in fridge for a month or so to break dormancy), after that who knows how long.
Musa sikkimensis needs greatly fluctuating temps(hot to cold), that's hard to reproduce on a heat mat,and they seem easier to sprout outside in spring.
There are some different types of sikkimensis you can get from seed that have alot more splashes of red than the type that is sold from tissue culture, so that's one plus of growing from seed. My pick is the Musa sikkimensis hybrid 'Daj Giant', awesome looking, faster growing and easier to sprout from seed.

There are many reports of successful Musella lasiocarpa seed germination. As well as tests to see what does or and doesn't work. Comparing the results, cold stratification eg 40 F for few weeks clearly is helpful as well as a period following it with warm moist growth conditions eg 85-90 F. Day night temperature cycles eg 85/60 are believed by some testers to help.

The one thing often overlooked in such testing looks like presoaking seeds before stratification, rather than doing it with dry seeds.

I don't see how a pre-soak it could hurt. A pre-soak could in fact more accurately mimmic a natural fall to winter to spring cycle. It theoretically could render the seed more alive/sensing and thus activatable by the cold. Cold to sustained elevated warm logically mimmics winter to summer transition and a safe time to germinate and grow if sustained water is present. Does anyone know if this plant sees arid or wet winter season in nature? I'd recommend to give it what it expects from nature.

Note some spores or seeds species are slow to germinate without extended time, water extraction or plant hormone addition, such as gibberelic acid. Seeds such as these are believed to have germination inhibitors to ensure that they have time to have be dispenced further away or seperated away from high concentrations of other seed, such as in a winter weather soaked seedpod not yet dispersed. Some of the germination triggers in these are by natural hormone production, which is why plant hormone addition may help.

Always look for cues in the natural habitat to devise germination methods for difficult seeds. For instance Fireweed seeds lay scattered in a field have been observed to germinate strongly after a field fire giving rapid recolonization. Thus, one would test heat shock to stimulate getmination. It would be a selective advantage for Fireweek in nature and makes great sense.

Seeds that need abraiding (scarification) of the seed coat to germinate are also logical. Thick waterproof coats would delay germination in nature, supporting further dispersion. And might better mimmic seeds dispersed birds or other animals i.e., eating and attempted digestion may nick or otherwise compromise the water resistance of the seed coat, letting water get in.

Gosh! Makes one wonder if poisonous seeds are trying to make the animal expel the seed after dispersion, before it is destroyed, maybe with free fertilizer? Or if there are any seeds that are trying to kill a weak or more susceptible animal to claim their body as fertilizer? Logically for poisonous larger seeds that won't germinate it wouldn't hurt to try adding ferilizers.

Very tiny dust like seeds such as orchids need nutrients to grow much at all. So with very small seeds, I'd try fertilizer at an eariler stage of growth than for big seeds with more stored nutrients. Many lily seeds grow underground in complex ways before they show and they like nutrient sufficient often called "rich" soil.

Age of the seeds and seed storage method can have a huge effect on viability and thus germination rate. For instance, any luck growing Giant Himalayan Lily (Cardiocrium giganteum) from seeds? I failed miserably until looking more into what other have found they (may) need. They don't follow standard perennial methods. There's many ways to fail!

Details: http://forums2.gardenweb.com/discussions/4414495/m=23/any-luck-growing-giant-himalayan-lily-seeds