Germination of palms

[petquack77]

Hey guys ,

 I'm very new to this forum and am new in germinating seeds. I'm currently germinating a few palms tree seeds. A few of them are windmill palms and the rest are Washingtonia Robustas.  I'm on week 2 of germination as we speak and have seen some sprouting.  The sprouting of my palms I've see are very questionable though. I have been seeing weird white very thin mushroom looking plants growing from the dirt and was wondering what they are exactly? These little things also stay alive for a day and end up just dying later during the day. Is this normal process of germination? Anything helps.

Thanks guys  

[SilverDragon]

Mushrooms, mold, or fungus of any kind mean that the soil is too wet/ too much organic matter in it. Make sure you are using a fast drying soil with pearlite and peat moss, as well as keeping the soil damp, not soaking wet. Are you keeping them on a heat source?

[jimmyt]

Just like SilverDragon stated:  Your medium is staying too wet.  These are fungi and eventually will rot your palm seeds or seedling.  Let the mix dry out more before watering.  Better yet if the seeds have not yet sprouted take them out and start with fresh media, or sterilize the media you have.  You can even water it with a liquid or water soluble anti-fungal mixture before hand. 

jimmyt

[PalmatierMeg]

Looks like seeds are sprouting. That shallow tray won't work for palm seeds. You need a pot at least 10 cm deep. Repot seeds in a deep pot with adequate drainage holes. Discard fungi- contaminated wet soil. Use a well draining mix of quality potting soil with extra added perlite or pumice. Keep soil moist but never soggy. Never let pot sit in a tray of water. Water only when soil is dry at the top 2 cm. Allow adequate airflow around seedlings.

[Rickybobby]

Agree with above and it’s weird that your seedlings look brown?

[PalmatierMeg]

1 minute ago, Rickybobby said:

Agree with above and it’s weird that your seedlings look brown?

Brown is never a good sign. He might want to rinse off seeds/seedlings, then give them a quick spritz of copper fungicide before repotting. Also I suggest potting up Washies & Trachies in separate pots. Neither is a tropical palm a la coconuts and shouldn't be treated as such, i.e., sky high heat/humidity. Trachies esp. are temperate climate palms.