Question
My daughter wants to plant her orange and sweet cherry seeds after she eats them. I always took it to be a cute child behavior but now that she's older she is getting upset that she's never gotten a tree. I guess i need to find out what to do to be successful. Thanks for all your help. Jennifer

Answer
Hi Jennifer,
Thanx for your question.  It is fun to grow seeds from the fruit we eat.  There are several things one needs to understand before embarking on this relatively simple endeavor.  Almost all fruit purchased in the local grocers are the result of many years of hybridization.  When one takes seed from these fruits and attempts to grow it, the resulting fruit seldom resemble the fruit of the parents.  There will either be a genetic degradation to a less desirable fruit or there will be, on very rare occasions, an improvement.  Additionally, it will take 5-7 years for the seedling to develop into a tree that is bearing fruit.  With that all said, it's still fun and I've done it with avocadoes and citrus.

Orange seeds germinate quickly at warm temparatures and are easy to care for.  You can shape and trim the orange to grow as a houseplant.  I had a friend who had a 6 foot tall lemon tree he grew from a seed and kept for 15 years!  I had an avocado tree for about 5 years.  Plant the orange seed about 1/2 inch deep in potting soil and keep it moist but not soggy.  The seeds will germinate in 10 days or so and the sunlight requirement is high so putting the plant out in the summer helps a lot.  I would put mine out after daytime temps stayed above 60 and night time temps didn't go below 40.  When taking a houseplant outdoors remember it needs about 10 days in the shade to acclimate to a bright sun, then you can move it out into direct sunlight and be sure to keep it well watered.  Cherries are a different story.  They require cold treatment to break dormancy.  I would plant the seeds about an inch deep in a pot of potting soil and put the pot inside a plastic baggie and seal it.  Leave it in the fridge for 90 days.  After that, return the pot to warm surroundings and germination will occur sporadically after a couple of weeks.  When the seedlings have their first set of true leaves, gently prick them out of the soil and pot in individual pots until they are 8-10 inches tall.  After the last frost, put them in a protected shady place for 10 days and then plant in the desired location.  I hope this helps.
Tom