Collecting seed from plants in the wild requires permission as indigenous plants are protected by law. Removing seed heads from a plant should be done with secateurs as snapping them off allows a greater opportunity for pathogen entry into the plant. No more than 10% should be taken from a plant and not more than 10% from a population to allow for...
In order to store all seeds for several months I use a “dead” fridge as an airtight cupboard and glass jars with a rubber gasket. After a year or so most seeds tend to start losing viability, so this storage is to span the gap between collecting and germination attempts. A paper packet does not restrict air and moisture and screw top plastic jars or zipper bags...
Ideally, sorted viable seeds should be soaked in 50 deg C plain water for 30 minutes in a vacuum flask to maintain that temperature. This is more of a sanitation than a dormancy break step. A further soak for 12 hours in 1% hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) as well as a drop of a gibberellin, these are an added extra, and not entirely needed. The seeds should be rinsed...
The sowing medium (peatmoss) should be a uniform dark colour and by not adding perlite/styrofoam/vermiculite it enables one to see the white radicle as it starts to emerge and at about 1 cm in length planted into cells or pots. Tweezers are perfect for scratching in the seed tray, picking out (carefully) the seed from the peatmoss, prodding a hole in the new...
Figure 4. Removal of protective coats on achene (seed) to aid germination The hard, nut-like seeds of leucospermums and mimeteses are not stored in the canopy of the plant, instead, they drop out of the flower when mature. The seeds are collected by the ants common to the fynbos and store them underground where they eat off the surrounding elaiosome – a soft...
Mimetes have the same ant helpers at seed drop, however some produce more and smaller seeds than the others. Mimetes hottentoticus, M. argenteus, M. arboreus, M. splendidus, M. saxatilis, M. chrysanthus and M. fimbrifolius produce 0 to 2 large seeds per floret while the M. capitulates (the first seeds on the sunward side are ripe earlier) and M. hirtus 0 to 5...
Figure 6. Leucadendron cone with seed Some leucadendrons have nut-like seeds (e.g. Leucadendron argenteum, tinctum) which are treated the same way as Leucospermum and Mimetes seeds, but most have cones that produce flat winged seeds that require far less attention to germinate. The cones are retained on the plant for a few years and the insect predation and...
Figure 7. Orothamnus seedhead and achene (seed) The monotypic Orothamnus (only species O. zeyheri) is different in that the seed (technically a fruit classified as an achene) maturity and release happen quickly so the seed heads should be picked a few hours before seed drop. This is indicated by the floret bracts first becoming semi-transparent and...
Figure 8. Hollowed concrete trough for abrading seeds A helpful rubbing trough for all this is easily made with stone reinforced concrete. A long 90-degree elbow bend (short bends are not suitable) of 100 mm irrigation pipe is needed to create the hollow. This is painted with 3 coats of cement retarder which will prevent the setting of cement in contact with...