Bonsai tree seed germination.

Mick55

Hi all,

Recently bought a grow yourself Bonsai tree kit. I had to germinate the seeds my self, 6 weeks in the fridge and 4 weeks in the hot press. The seeds sprouted on the fourth week, five or six little shoots with two tiny leaves at the top, about 5MM tall.

Here's where I ran into problems, the instructions are translated from Chinese and appear more in the form on Haiku then of concise instructions!

I don't know if at that stage should I have relocated the saplings into the light, it was hard to tell from the instructions. A day later when watering them ( I was careful not to over water ) I noticed they were wilting. I moved them into work where they have a very bright window sill directly over a heater but despite this they all died.

Does anyone know where I went wrong?

Are these seeds completely useless now or can they be re-germinated?

Thanks!

kylith

If they're dead they're dead, I'm afraid. If your very lucky there might be one or two late germinaters in there.

Mick55

kylith wrote: »

If they're dead they're dead, I'm afraid. If your very lucky there might be one or two late germinaters in there.

Tis what I feared! ah well new batch and try again it is!

looksee

I think it was the 'directly over a heater' bit that probably killed them. Bonsai are usually outdoor trees, and while heat is good to get them started they do not need a lot of heat (or indeed any) once they have sprouted. As soon as you have a couple of trees germinated (grown the way yours were) take them out of the hot press and leave them on a windowsill where they will get plenty of light, so they do not grow spindly.

I would be inclined to put yours back in a slightly warm place (not above the heater) and leave them for a week or so, some more may germinate. If there is a plastic cover, cover them, otherwise put the whole pot into a plastic bag and tie the top. They should not need much watering. If anything shows, put the pot in a bright place ( I would tend to open the bag but not remove it, fold the top down a bit so it 'stands up' for a day or two.

Mick55

looksee wrote: »

I think it was the 'directly over a heater' bit that probably killed them. Bonsai are usually outdoor trees, and while heat is good to get them started they do not need a lot of heat (or indeed any) once they have sprouted. As soon as you have a couple of trees germinated (grown the way yours were) take them out of the hot press and leave them on a windowsill where they will get plenty of light, so they do not grow spindly.

I would be inclined to put yours back in a slightly warm place (not above the heater) and leave them for a week or so, some more may germinate. If there is a plastic cover, cover them, otherwise put the whole pot into a plastic bag and tie the top. They should not need much watering. If anything shows, put the pot in a bright place ( I would tend to open the bag but not remove it, fold the top down a bit so it 'stands up' for a day or two.

Thanks for the info. Even if they don't sprout again that is good advice for the next batch!