Germination temperature
Tropical species germinate in warm conditions; temperate species usually germinate in spring after winter chilling.
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Preparation and early-care notes for broadleaf trees, shrubs and fruiting species grown from seed, from gulmohar and teak to silver birch.
This topic gathers broadleaf trees and shrubs raised from seed. Many are truly deciduous, dropping their leaves in winter or the dry season, such as silver birch, teak, gulmohar and red silk cotton. Others are evergreen tropical trees and shrubs filed here for convenience, such as mahogany, ixora, heliconia, cordyline and dracaena, and nagi is in fact a conifer relative. What they share is a long nursery stage: seedlings are raised in beds or bags for months before planting out. Germination depends mostly on breaking the seed's dormancy, which differs by species: a hard coat, a need for cold, or very short seed life.
Tropical species germinate in warm conditions; temperate species usually germinate in spring after winter chilling.
Common in legume trees: nicking, sanding or a hot-water soak. FAO examples range from 80 °C water for leucaena to 100 °C for 30 seconds for Acacia mangium.
Open the guide that matches the seed name on your packet.
Temperate seed is kept moist at about 1-5 °C, usually for 20-60 days, and sown when root tips start to show (FAO).
Recalcitrant seed such as mahogany cannot be dried and in the tropics stays alive only days or weeks.
Tropical: usually soon after collection, so seedlings are ready for planting at the start of the rains. Temperate: autumn outdoors or spring after chilling.
Check the species guide: hard coat, cold dormancy, fresh sowing, or none.
Overtreatment kills seed. Try hot water or nicking on a small batch first.
Sow into a free-draining mix in beds or deep bags; move seedlings before roots grow through into the ground.
Tiny seed (eucalyptus, kadamba, bottlebrush, peepal) is sown on the surface and kept evenly moist.
This topic contains species with very different dormancy and climate needs. Open the exact guide before choosing a treatment.
Some legumes may need scarification or a species-specific soaking treatment. Examples: royal poinciana (gulmohar), golden shower tree, Albizia, Acacia, red bead tree, umbrella thorn, Jerusalem thorn, Indian rosewood (shisham).
Some temperate tree seeds need a controlled moist chilling period. Examples: silver birch (Betula pendula), Chinese lilac (Syringa × chinensis), kharsu oak, pistachio.
Some seeds lose viability in storage and are best handled promptly. Examples: mahogany, kharsu oak acorns, santol, Spanish cherry (bakul).
Teak fruit is commonly given alternate wetting and drying before sowing; see the Teakwood guide.
Eucalyptus, kadamba, weeping bottlebrush, peepal and banyan, paper mulberry.
Heliconia, parrot heliconia, crepe ginger, ixora, duranta, yellow bells, lantana.
Hot water above the species' limit kills it; FAO cites leucaena germinating far better at 80 °C than at 100 °C.
Mahogany or oak acorns that dry out die; keep them cool and moist and sow quickly.
Temperate seed sown warm without stratification often lies dormant for a year.
Some species here, such as lantana, spread aggressively in many regions; check local rules. Seeds of physic nut and Strychnos nux-vomica are poisonous.
Find your species guide below and match the seed treatment to its dormancy.
Most likely untreated dormancy: a hard coat needing scarification or a cold period. Check the species guide; some seed is simply slow.
No. The right starting temperature differs by species, and too hot or too long kills the embryo. Test a few seeds first.