Fussy Seeds

The last of this year's batch of TreeProject seeds were sown today. To answer earlier questions, I'm one of many volunteers who grow these trees in our backyards. They are going to be used in re-vegetation schemes in country areas of Victoria. In spring they will be ready to plant out, and will go to the land-holders who buy them for a small price from TreeProject. You can read all about how the scheme works on the TreeProject website.

Woolly Teatree (Leptospermum lanigerum) seeds are very tiny:

They are about 2mm long.

A pinch or so of seeds in each pot:

Then a sprinkle of smoke powder:

The smoke powder helps germination of species which come from bushfire-prone areas.

Then gravel mulch on top:

Normally the next step would be watering-in, but this species needs capillary watering, so the pots are sitting in tubs of water. I don't know if they need to be in water just until they germinate, or longer. I'll have to find out.

So now there are 672 potential trees and shrubs in my back yard; 96 each of 7 different species. Which will germinate first?