Skeleton Flowers - Ask Extension
I bought some Skeleton Flower seeds, but there were no directions on how to plant them. We live in Oakland County. Should I start them in the house ...
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Skeleton Flowers #864443
Asked April 13, 2024, 10:22 PM EDT
I bought some Skeleton Flower seeds, but there were no directions on how to plant them. We live in Oakland County. Should I start them in the house between damp paper towels? Do I sow them outdoors on top of the soil, or cover them with soil? How deep? I read that they do better when they have cold treatment. Is that important at this time of year? Any help you can give will be much appreciated. GO GREEN!
Oakland County Michigan
Expert Response
Hi Bonnie,
Check the botanical name, Diphylleia grayi, of the seeds you purchased. Several other plants have "skeleton" in their common name, and some, such as skeleton weed (Chondrilla juncea), are invasive.
Do you know if the seeds have been cold-stratified? If the seeds haven't been cold stratified follow the directions below.
To germinate skeleton flowers from seeds, cold-stratify them. The easiest way is to sow them in a suitable location in autumn and let winter weather do the work of dissolving the seed coat and breaking seed dormancy.
When sowing indoors, stratify the seeds in a refrigerator for two to three months. Plant them in a potting mix ¼ inch deep about six weeks before your last frost. Keep the soil mix moist but not soggy. Poor germination rates are the norm, so sow several times more seeds than you desire plants.
Hope this information helps. Thank you for using Ask Extension!
GO WHITE!
Pam V.
MSUE Master Gardener
Check the botanical name, Diphylleia grayi, of the seeds you purchased. Several other plants have "skeleton" in their common name, and some, such as skeleton weed (Chondrilla juncea), are invasive.
Do you know if the seeds have been cold-stratified? If the seeds haven't been cold stratified follow the directions below.
To germinate skeleton flowers from seeds, cold-stratify them. The easiest way is to sow them in a suitable location in autumn and let winter weather do the work of dissolving the seed coat and breaking seed dormancy.
When sowing indoors, stratify the seeds in a refrigerator for two to three months. Plant them in a potting mix ¼ inch deep about six weeks before your last frost. Keep the soil mix moist but not soggy. Poor germination rates are the norm, so sow several times more seeds than you desire plants.
Hope this information helps. Thank you for using Ask Extension!
GO WHITE!
Pam V.
MSUE Master Gardener
Thank you, Pam! That is the botanical name. I doubt the seeds were cold stratified -- everything in the packaging is in Japanese, so who knows?
We'll try the directions you sent next fall and see what happens.
Thanks again.
Bonnie
On 04/16/2024 7:49 PM EDT Ask Extension <<personal data hidden>> wrote:
You're welcome. Good Luck!
