How to germinate Bismarkia Nobilis seeds with best result.

[Raj Chauhan]

How to prepare Bismarckia nobilis seeds with good results. Last time I sowed 40 seeds in garden soil, I got only 2 plants and I lost 38 seeds...

Now I have about 1000 pieces of Bismarkia Nobilis fruit, perlite, vermiculite, and garden soil. And now I've had about 5 months (June to October) with temperatures near 100°F.

Now I don't want to lose more, so please suggest me how to germitate with good result? What is best potting mix for this?(peat moss not avilable) . If peat moss is compulsory then what is alternative for this?

Thanks to all of you

[Mr. Clark]

maybe this will help - I started a big batch June 30th, roughly 600 - split into groups with about 200 each.   These were all fresh seeds which I fermented in water, then pressure washed a few times to get all the pulp off, then left to soak a few days before breaking up as follows:

1. Group 1:  into 1020 trays filled with a 1” layer of sphagnum, seeds placed in a single layer on top of the moss.  I then covered with a damp paper towel layer, and humidity dome.  Sprayed with water when the paper towel dried out, but after a week I removed the paper towel as it was a little too humid and just sprayed the seeds morning and night as needed.  13 have germinated after 15 days.

2. Group 2 into baggies with a damp rag.  Zero have germinated so far.  Not really expecting a lot from this group, I was out of media and had a ton of seeds so figured instead of throwing them out I would try with what I had on hand.

3. Group 3 big community pot, 1/2 perlite and coir.  Tossed some extra moss on top, and put a lid on the bin.  The lid is not air tight so I spray it every 2-3 days if needed.  2 have germinated.

I mostly did this as an experiment, and I am not saying this is the best way, but group 1 has a strong lead and I plan to use that method going forward, unless the longer term results change.  I will update results as I go.  Also, soon as I see signs of germination, I pot the seed into 14” citrus cones with a fast draining mix that is mostly fibrous palm mulch, with a bit of sand.

[Scott W]

Regardless of how you germinate them, the emerging radicle will need a very deep pot, the deeper the better.  Also, they don't transplant well in the seedling stage, so get them deep right away.

[aztropic]

17 minutes ago, Scott W said:

Regardless of how you germinate them, the emerging radicle will need a very deep pot, the deeper the better.  Also, they don't transplant well in the seedling stage, so get them deep right away.

Upon germinating,mine go DIRECTLY into 5 gallon pots. Grow them for another 4 or 5 years and sell them off for $80 each;which beats every other sellers price for a similar size bismarck palm in my area. Since big box stores started bringing these in for sale,people have become more familiar with the species, and Bismarcks are now in demand in Arizona! 

 

aztropic 

Mesa, Arizona 

[andrebazhen]

On 7/16/2024 at 3:32 AM, aztropic said:

Upon germinating,mine go DIRECTLY into 5 gallon pots. Grow them for another 4 or 5 years and sell them off for $80 each;which beats every other sellers price for a similar size bismarck palm in my area. Since big box stores started bringing these in for sale,people have become more familiar with the species, and Bismarcks are now in demand in Arizona! 

 

aztropic 

Mesa, Arizona 

Is it 4-5 years old? Grown in Arizona full sun?

[aztropic]

8 hours ago, andrebazhen said:

Is it 4-5 years old? Grown in Arizona full sun?

Yes

[Mr. Clark]

Update:   and they are really going now, have 50 germinated.  The early lead of group 1 has been eliminated, that group seems to have slowed down now that nothing is covering them.   Group 3, where everything is just tossed in like a salad, is popping in the last 3 days, 6-8 per day have opened .   Group 2 finally got it’s first, but at this point I am calling that a wrap as the other two groups are way higher counts.  I added the group 2 seeds to community bin.  If group 3 continues to accelerate and group 1 does not keep pace, I will call this experiment a wrap and just use that method going forward for Biz.

Agreed Scott, as they pop I am potting them right into citrus cones, 14” deep @ 1 gallon.

[Mr. Clark]

Adding a final update:  45 days after starting, germination has slowed down considerably.  Sprouting seemed to peak about 2 weeks ago when 8-10 we opening per day.  At this point,  I check them every 3-4 days, and get a 5-6 more sprouted.  It seems like these seeds do not like to be moved around - every time I dug through the trays looking for sprouted seeds there would be a period of inactivity that followed - perhaps that is coincidental, as other seeds I have started don't seem to care, and some I think would even germinate in a tumbler .  

Yesterday, the first shoot popped up from the ground, so very excited by that.  The tap root is air pruning, but made it about 4 inches through the bottom of a 14" citrus cone, so they definitely want to run deep!