Question
Hi Sarracenia Northwest,

I bought a P. macroceras from you about in late-March to early-April.  It produced a flower which I successfully pollinated.  The seed capsule has turned brown and will probably split open within the next few days.

What is the best strategy for geminating these seeds?  I live in the SF Bay area.  My questions are:

1) Should I try to germinate the seeds now or store the seeds (dry) in the refrigerator till next growing season?
2) Does this species' seed need stratification (cold?) to germinate?  If so, how long a cold period will they need?  Should I stratify in the refrigerator or outside (next fall and winter)?

Thanks in advance,

 Randall

PS:  Your answers to my previous questions have been right on the money.  I now have about 100 P. ionantha seedlings that I started outside in January thanks to your help.


Answer
Hi Randall,

Congratulations on getting Pinguicula seeds!  You have more patience than I do.  I stopped trying to pollinate my Pinguicula because it's too tedious for my taste.  I prefer to propagate this species by collecting gemmae.  Even then, I often delegate this task to Jeff because he has more patients than I do!

I actually haven't come across any material specifically about germinating P. macroceras seeds.  Because the seed capsule set seeds so early in the season, my guess is that it'll germinate without a stratification period.  I've seen Darlingtonia seeds germinate without any stratification.  Since both P. macroceras and Darlingtonia occupy the exact same habitat, it could be that P. macroceras seeds don't require stratification.  Like Venus flytrap seeds, the seeds probably set early to produce plantlets by late summer to survive the upcoming winter.

Of course, you could test this theory by germinating about 25% of your seeds without stratification.  Store the rest in your refrigerator.  Sow the seeds on straight peat moss and keep it in a warm windowsill with partial sunlight.  The soil temperature should be about 75癋 constantly.  If they don't require stratification, your seeds will germinate within 3 weeks, similar to flytraps.  (If the temperature is cooler than 75癋, you may need to wait longer than 3 weeks.)

Please let me know how it goes!

Good growing!
Jacob Farin