Question
Tom, I saw your answerback to a question about WHEN to pick Bismark seeds.Well I guess I read the wrong info somewhere and it said bismark seeds were just about ripe when they had a greenish bronze look to them, so I just picked about 1200 the other day April 27 - 28th and have been drying them out in the sun for about 2 weeks now.Do you think they will root? Also do you have a simple way remove the husk from the seeds? Bob P.

Answer
Hi Bob,
Thanx for your question.  The danger with picking any seed before it is ripe is that the embryo, inside the seed case will not have had time to mature and therefore be rendered sterile by picking too early.  I think in one of my previous posts, I recommended waiting until the seed dropped.  This will generally signify full ripeness and maturity and then you will need to remove the fruit or outer covering.  Some fruity flesh has enzymes or hormones in it that prevent the seed from germinating until the fruit has fully decayed from the seed.  This is usually in deciduous fruit and other types of temperate flora that may require a cold period to break dormancy.  Anyway, let the seed fall to the ground, remove the flesh around the pit and then plant.  I hope this helps.
Tom

PS, The only way you'll know about the seeds is to plant say 20 and see what happens.  I'm going to guess that they are not fully ripe but...here is a guide to growing palm from seed that you might find helpful.

http://www.palms.org/principes/1999/palmseeds.htm

Some growers say that after you remove the fruit from the seed, place the seed in a container of water, the ones that float after 48 hours are not viable.

I hope this helps.
T