tree peony seeds

16 years ago

Hooray! Five of the rockii seeds that I put in a plastic bag with potting soil have sprouted little roots. There is no action yet in the bags with damp vermiculite even though those seeds came from earlier flowers.

I'm about to send the sprouted seeds off to spend a few months in the downstairs refrigerator, planning to bring them out and pot them up sometime in January or February.

None of the seeds I planted outside last summer turned up this year so I am trying the plastic bag and refrigerator route. If any of you who have done this successfully (or unsuccessfully) have any advice for me, I'd be grateful.

Comments (4)

daveinohio_2007
16 years ago
Rian,
Last year, some tp seeds grew well from the procedure that you describe: the root forms during the initial warm (60 deg F) moist stage; the sprouted seeds are then placed in frig where the top growth appears; plants were then grown under fluorescent light until last frost when they were planted outdoors. Growth outdoors last summer was very slow; supposedly 5 yrs is required for bloom.
This year, there are about two dozen seeds in basement, hopefully sprouting roots.
Good luck.
dave
rian
Original Author
16 years ago
Thanks Dave. Did the top growth appear while the plants were still in the refrigerator? What medium do you use to grow them?
daveinohio_2007
16 years ago
Rian,
Yes, the top growth first appears in the frig.
The medium is a moistened mix of equal parts of seed-starter and perlite; the containers are kept covered with Glad wrap or kept in baggies.

Your seeds are P. rockii; most tree peonies are (??) derived from P. suffruticosa; what is difference between the two?

dave
rian
Original Author
16 years ago
As I understand it P Rockii was once classified as a variety of P Suffruticosa. Now it is classified as its own species. The nomenclature is changing because so much more info is available with the opening of China to the world.