Starting Trees From Seed Part 1 - Homesteading Challenge
In the Beginning
The story of this tiny tree starts back when I first began blogging on Steemit. I came across some trees with the weirdest looking nuts on them and those turned out to be Ohio Buckeye. Being a plant nerd, I couldn't help but collect some seeds. Of course, this inspired me look for other sources of seeds to try and plant. I also collected what I believe are Burr Oak seeds as well as some random apple seeds.
The next part of the story I shared about three months ago. I had been storing the Oak and Buckeye seeds in damp peat moss in the refrigerator. I noticed that some of them had been covered in a strange fungus and a few of them had sprouted.
A few weeks later, I did an update where I planted the buckeye seeds that had sprouted. I figured they could use a little more room, but I wasn't quite sure what to do with them since it was still a deep freeze outside. I ended up planting them in red solo cups and putting them back in the fridge. I crossed my fingers that they wouldn't grow too much more before the weather warmed up and spring arrived.
Which Brings Us to the Present
Our living situation has been a little odd lately as we have temporarily moved in with Aimee's parents. In all the confusion, I almost forgot about these tree seeds. I probably would have forgotten but we finally started to get warm weather and that made me think about planting stuff. They had been sitting in the fridge for over a month and I only checked on them a couple of times! I wasn't even sure if they were going to be alive because I hadn't been watering them!
Most of them still felt a bit moist but a couple of them were pretty dry. None of them had pushed up through the soil yet. I was a little worried that I had killed them. I brought them back to the in-laws house, watered them and set them out at room temperature. Hopefully, they would continue growing.
I still had a bunch of seeds in various containers, though some of them are semi quarantined with the fungus. I sifted through them and found a few more sprouted buckeyes and finally some sprouted acorns!
Last time I lamented not having some sort of free container to plant them in but this time I was ready with a bunch of large used coffee cups. Finally, my caffeine addiction is paying off! I like the cups because they are really tall which will give the tap root more room to grow. At some point, later this year, I will repot all the survivors into larger pots or plant them out into the ground.
I poked holes in the bottom of the cups with a pen, because that is all I could find at the in-laws that was about the right size, then filled them with a mix of soil from the ravine behind the house and some potting mix I had left over. I will have to go through the containers again in awhile to see if there are more sprouted seeds.
I must say, I find growing trees when you aren't yet living where they will be planted a little odd, but if @gheambyt can grow hundreds of trees and bushes while living in an apartment then I should be able to manage a few trees while staying at the in-laws...
After about a week, here are the results.
Ohio buckeye seedlings.Pretty much all of the buckeyes in the red solo cups are up! I didn't kill them! A few of the buckeyes in the coffee cups are up too. So far, none of the oaks are poking through the soil but they weren't nearly as far along as the buckeyes were, so I am not worried yet.
Stay tuned for more updates on this project as well as the other seeds I am attempting to sprout.
The Challenge
A couple days ago I came across a Homesteading Challenge by @kiaraantonoviche to do a post themed about Earth day or Arbor day and how you are doing something to make the world a better place.
So what did all of the above have to do with Arbor day?
Well, Arbor day is a day to celebrate tree growing and planting and I will be growing quite a few trees this year. I am not sure yet how many, as I am still waiting to see how many sprout. I also am working on some other seeds that are beyond the scope of this post but so far I am up to 17 buckeyes and 5 Oaks and I have no doubt that there will be more.
I'm growing them from seeds that I harvested locally. Can you imagine what the world would be like if everyone planted just 10 trees every year? Especially if some of those trees were edible or had other benefits besides providing habitat for animals and cleaning the air. It would be like the garden of Eden. The world would be even more beautiful and there would be a lot less food scarcity. We could also reverse a lot of the deforestation that has occurred in the past few centuries.
As I am demonstrating the cost of planting trees can be next to nothing and it is kind of fun. I hope you plan on planting a few trees this year too!
All of the photos in the post are the original work Matthew and Aimee.
Suddenly I'm craving a Timmy's. In my life I have planted over 60,000 trees. I planted trees up north of Thunder Bay for a season.
Good Luck with your trees. Looks like you got it down.
Thank You.
Tree Planting is a hard job. I thought about it when I was younger. In hind site I wish I would have done it. I think I would have had fun and met some interesting people.
your story is very interesting and very detailed, I also have planted the seeds of dates in my place, the result is now the trunk is high, but not yet fruitful, I am not sure to bear fruit, but I do not know ,, sometime I will photograph.
you write in very detail, i will learn how to write it from you, thank you for your knowledge
How many years old is the date tree?
my date palms are about 3 years old, people say if only one stalk he can not bear fruit, I do not know for sure the truth,
do you have any knowledge about date stems?
I don't really know anything about dates but many fruit trees take more then 3 years before they bare their first fruit.
my date palms are about 3 years old, people say if only one stalk he can not bear fruit, I do not know for sure the truth,
do you have any knowledge about date stems?
The first benefit I got from planting trees is "Happiness". I am really happy when I saw new sprouts came out from the seed it day by day it is turning into green leafs. I think yo do love to see it no matter what seeds you are growing. I have had 75 seeds of Deamonorop sp, some of them have started to grow very well now. the good thing is that plant is endangered in the will base on my 2 years survey, last time I managed to get 30 seeds and 45 sprouts from the wild. Some of them I kept in the wild for good regeneration. I will come back there to check on December or early next year. Happy planting @canadianrenegade and Matt and the twins
Wonderful! You've been entered into the challenge, thank you!
The first year we bought this place was when the old owner told us about the three ornamental pear trees in the backyard that the sapsuckers had ruined. We went back there and the bees were all over the blossoms of the trees, which were planted about three feet apart in the shade of the neighbour's Manitoba Maple that she won't let me cut down.
Anyhow that year there were a few plums growing on the one "ornamental pear" tree, and the second year was a very early spring and those trees turned out to be two apricots and a plum.
The next spring I turned the compost and there were tons of sprouting apricots, but between the shovel and the chickens most were destroyed. I managed to keep three alive all last summer and then the deer nipped the tips off in the fall, but I see a few buds on them today, so I'm still hoping they survive as two trees have since been pretty decimated and are being removed. I will baby them in pots for this summer and plant them in their forever home next spring.
We don't have the space for too many trees right now, but as I take down these massive spruce, pine and cottonwood, I will be replacing them with more manageable species.
Interesting. Funny how they figured that an apricot and plumb trees looked like ornamental pear.
Also those damn deer really are a bane.
I know. When he saw plums and apricots he was shocked.
I'm going to try and crisscross string across the top of the fence about 6 feet or so and mark it with ribbon to dissuade the deer from coming in the yard. They destroy everything.
Hopefully that works for you. I don't know though. Those buggers are persistent and I swear they like to just come and sample anything unusual to them.
I love your idea of planting trees. I think if I was rich, I'd start a charity with the purpose of turning the yards of those depending on government assistance and the elderly into food forests. Fill them with edible perennials and edible trees when there is room. Do it in a way that works with the land (and the neighbors trees) to provide a lifetime of food for those living in the house.
I'd also buy empty lots and turn them into food forests and let anyone who needs it gather food. It's all just a dream for now but someday...
That is a great idea. I feel like some of that may already be happening on a small scale somewhere.
Love the idea. I will follow through and try to plant ten walnut trees. Will be a challenge because I live in the city.
Thanks for the inspiring article (and the tree planting :).
I have some heartnut seeds I am trying to sprout but I am not sure if they will because I don't think I stratified them properly.
Are you planning on planting the walnuts gorilla style or will you find people who have yards that want them?
I think I will plant them gorilla style. Never heard the term before; loving it :)
I am very interested in your story, I never grow green beans in the basin, the result is enough for us to eat a family ,,
I rarely plant indoors, I usually plant it directly outside the house or our yard ,,
you are really creative ,,
Thanks, it is so cold here in the winter we have to take extra measures.
I can not imagine how the season of your place, I never go to the area whose temperature is -14 degrees,
hopefully your day is always blesse
your gardening is really impressive sir... i wish you will succeed soon to fulfill your goal.👍
Thanks, I hope it works out too!
It is a study of the plant. In which my friend produced the seed. The time to come will make a nice tree. save to tree