Germinating Aloe polyphylla

dk

Germinating Aloe polyphylla

Post by dk »

I sowed my aloe polyphylla seeds in a basic cactus mix I got from the garden centres. The instructions said to keep the pot inside the fridge for up to 4 weeks before moving the pot into a heated prop. They've been in the fridge for 11 days now, and I'm a bit impatient and wanting to move them on now without haivng to wait another 20 days.

Would I reduce my chances of germinating them by moving them on so soon? Or will they need full 4 weeks in the fridge?
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redsquirrel
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Re: Germinating Aloe polyphylla

Post by redsquirrel »

i got 1 in 20 to germinate without the fridge treatment.however,as everywhere says cold stratification is needed,you are prob best off doing it properly. besides,the more you get,the better chance you have of growing a decent plant
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dk

Re: Germinating Aloe polyphylla

Post by dk »

Thanks red, I will try to be a bit more patient and do as advised icon_thumleft
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Re: Germinating Aloe polyphylla

Post by JoelR »

I've germinated Aloe polyphylla by simply soaking the seed in water. The first batch were wrapped in kitchen paper which was rolled up and held together with an elastic band and dropped in a large jar of water. This gave very good results with 5 seedlings from 8 seeds around 30 days later. A month later all my seedlings rotted off in the space of 48 hours. Being in a conservatory in late January and overwatering may have been the cause.
My second attempt, seeds soaked free floating/sinking in a small clear plastic container has been slightly more successful so far. 5 seedlings out of 7 seeds but only 3 are still alive. I think the problem is due to not having the right growing medium. It needs to be well drained but very open for the roots to develop so my usual 4mm alpine grit with JI no. 2 is probably too heavy. This link from the BCSS forum is useful. Sieved leaf mould if you can get it is a recommended component part.
http://www.bcss.org.uk/foruma/viewtopic ... 4&start=10
dk

Re: Germinating Aloe polyphylla

Post by dk »

Joel, interesting thread.

Mine are already sown in compast so will have to try that jar of water some other time if I'm not successful the first time.

I sowed some princeps seeds recently in a far too heavy soil with lots of grit, and most of them rotted within a week or two. Not making that mistake again. Now I just wish I had added some perlite to the mix when I sowed my aloes just to ensure the soil is loose and well drained....

Btw, are these fast growers?

How soon can I expect to have a reasonable plant I can plant out? I'm guessing not this year...
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Re: Germinating Aloe polyphylla

Post by redsquirrel »

my little 2 year old seedling is on its 4th leaf.very slow in this case but no others for comparison
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Re: Germinating Aloe polyphylla

Post by dk »

4 leaves in 2 years? :shock:

Surely you must be doing something wrong? Even my agaves grows faster than that.

I thought these were supposed to be relative fast growing. Do you keep it watered and cool in summer? I read it was extremely important not to let it dry out. Is yours grown exclusively outdoors/in the ground?

If this is true for everyone I just might not have the patience required :lol: :oops:
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Re: Germinating Aloe polyphylla

Post by JoelR »

dk wrote:I thought these were supposed to be relative fast growing
7 years from seed to flower and a three year old plant should be well on it's way to maturity. My oldest is 6 months but really very small. I'll get them outside in May (with slug protection) and I think that will bring them on. An interesting observation about aloes is their response to being given a free root run. Because they naturally root near the surface, their roots spread quite a distance and growth in one summer might double the size of an aloe.
Last edited by JoelR on Wed Dec 29, 2010 9:54 pm, edited 1 time in total.
dk

Re: Germinating Aloe polyphylla

Post by dk »

I think the wait will be worth it when you eventually do get a flower. icon_thumleft

I'll probably grow them on for a few years in pots before trying a few in the ground. When they grow too big for my indoor greenhouse I'll overwinter them in a mostly frost free shed.

If others are interested in aloe polyphylla I recommend checking out this site for inspiration! Truly amazing to have so many in flower at the same time!
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Re: Germinating Aloe polyphylla

Post by redsquirrel »

i have it in a tiny pot in the conservatory.im still waiting for a leaf that resembles an aloe leaf.i do wonder if the seed was correctly supplied sometimes
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Re: Germinating Aloe polyphylla

Post by dk »

If you get a chance take a picture and compare it with this one.

According to the link I posted above the seedlings had two full leaves and a third one on the way 5 weeks after germination.

Something smells fishy...
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redsquirrel
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Re: Germinating Aloe polyphylla

Post by redsquirrel »

my suspicions confirmed.nothing like it icon_thumright
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Re: Germinating Aloe polyphylla

Post by dk »

That's a shame red. Hope you didn't pay a fortune for the seeds, they are a bit pricey.

Any idea what it might be?
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JoelR
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Re: Germinating Aloe polyphylla

Post by JoelR »

The second time i ordered A. polyphylla from Silverhill Seeds they emailed me in advance to say don't worry about the seed being packaged as A. Zebrina which I presumed was to avoid problems exporting the seed. I would hope this seed came from cultivated plants but CITES might still make sale overseas difficult. Mine are still tiny plants and dk's pic could be any aloe seedlinsg but it does make me wonder. I'm sure Silverhill are honest but my seedlings do look quite feeble so far.
Clarke Brunte, the author of the link you attached dk has provided seed from his UK grown A. polyphyllas to the BCSS seed pool and they are available for sale with the Dec 10 journal. Sorry to say though this info will only be of use if you're a BCSS member. It's worth the £15 a year membership just for the seeds. They were all 30p a packet. I exercised restraint this time and only ordered 10 packets.
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Re: Germinating Aloe polyphylla

Post by redsquirrel »

well mine looks like an aloe but which one i havent a clue.
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