Seed Stratifying: one method
January 21, 2010 by Arnel
Filed under How to Guides
There are many different methods to stratifying seeds. Here is what works well for me for the seeds we grow at Prairie Moon:
First, I have my dry sand, water, plastic bag and a label:
I pour some sand into the bag and pour a little bit of water – just enough to barely moisten the sand. Try not to put too much water into the sand because the seed could mold. Then, I pour my seeds into the bag with the sand and mix it all together:
I seal it tightly with my garden tag (a ziplock bag would also work) with name on it – we like to keep track of genetic origin of the seed also. I’ll usually use this same garden tag then when I plant the seed outside in the garden bed:
Then I put it in the refrigerator for (usually) 60 days. I mark the calendar so I know when to pull it out of the fridge. I also check it once in a while in the fridge to make sure the sand is not drying out and to see if there are any seeds that have started to germinate. If so, you’ll want to plant the entire bag right away.
We would like to hear what method works well for you.
I prefer to mix my water and sand in a separate bowl, rather than pour the water over sand in a plastic bag. This way, if there is too much water I can pour off the excess, or even add a little more dry sand to get that “perfect” moist mixture….not too wet and not too dry. Then I use a spoon to scoop out an amount of damp sand and place that in a separate clean bowl. Add the seeds and mix everything around thoroughly. Now put this mix into a plastic bag, seal it well and label it before placing it in the fridge. This method can reduce the possibility of cross contamination between seed species because you can clean the containers before moving on to the next species.
I use vermiculite and sometimes a tiny pinch of sulfer. Then i just stick them in the fridge. I’ve had very good luck germinating indian paintbrush this way (now if i could only get the plants to survive for more than a few months).