Monkey Pod Brazilian Rain Tree (Samanea saman)

Sowing date: 4/20/10 (?)
Zone: 10, 11

The name of this one attracted me more than anything. I am not even sure if I can grow this successfully, it's a tropical plant that is native to South American rainforests but it's worth a shot. The bonsai version of this tree looks pretty cool (we'll see about that 5 years from now...) as do the full-size trees.

Here's what Whatcom Seed Company had to say about the Monkey Pod:

"In the rainforest, the leaves of this magnificent tree close up on cloudy days allowing the ensuing rains to rush through. Indoors too, it goes to sleep at the approach of night. Bears beautiful glowing pink flowers followed by attractive green and black pods that contain a sweet pulp that is eaten by monkeys in its jungle habitat. Native from the Yucatan Peninsula and Guatemala to Peru, Bolivia, and Brazil. A large, tropical tree to 80' but known for its huge spreading canopy which can be even wider. Makes an unusual bonsai and is very easy to raise from seed."

And here are a couple pictures of the seed. I got 10 seeds with my order and I planted 6 of them, two to a pot. Two pots were 2 inch biodegradable pots (kind of like these) and the third was a larger plastic pot. The sowing instructions called for bright light, so like a lot of my other seeds/seedlings/plants, they are on the windowsill that gets the bright morning sun. Since they are tropical plants, I was inclined to put them in a clear plastic shoe box to keep it humid. Plus, there was a cold spell in New York after I planted a lot of my seeds and I was worried that some of the tropical plant seeds would be affected in some way. But after a few days the cold spell passed and I placed the pots on the windowsill.

A few days ago, I spotted the seedling in the larger plastic pot. Take a look:











And this morning before I left work, I snapped this picture:

That's a nice looking seedling. I will post the sowing instructions in a day or so.

Update 5-27-10


Update 5/31/10

During the day:
The Monkey Pod leaves, true to the description on Whatcom Seed Co. and even as a seedling, will fold up, even in the late afternoon when it is no longer getting direct sunlight. At first when I got home from work one day and checked out my seedlings, I thought the Monkey Pod was dying. But the next morning its leaves were open and soaking up the sun.

At night:

Butterfly Pea (Clitoria ternatea)

Sowing date: 4/20/10 (?)

Zone: 8+ or Annual (all zones)

These were the first to sprout. I knew that I wanted to try some sort of vine or creeper, possibly something to hang from the ceiling. A co-worker gave me a couple hanging philodendron plants a while back and I really liked the look, so I wanted to add to the collection. When looking online to see what I might want to grow, I came across the Butterfly Pea and read this:

"Clitoria ternatea is a vigorous, twining vine that blooms in just 6 weeks from seed. Sensational plant for hanging baskets. Bright, deep blue flowers to 2" year round. White blooms may also appear occasionally. Full sun to part shade, morning sun is best. Annual or tender perennial."

Here are pictures of the seed, click on the pictures to see a larger version:

The sowing instructions (see below) called for nicking or pricking the seedcoat and then soaking the seeds for 24 hours prior to planting. So I took a regular serrated kitchen knife, lightly nicked about half of the seeds, then soaked them in water for a day. Since nicking the coat was only a suggestion, I planted the others without any pre-treatment, both the treated and untreated seeds sprouted, so use your own judgment. The instructions also called for high humidity and bright light so I placed them in a clear plastic box by the window that gets morning sun.

I planted seeds in 4 seedling pots and two sprouted. However, one seems to have sprouted upside down. I do not know if it matters and I figured once planted they would sprout as they were supposed to, naturally growing right-side-up towards the light. Perhaps because it's a vine it doesn't matter. But take a look at this, they are virtual opposites:

Hmmm, looks somewhat odd. The one on the top looks like its leaves are buried in the soil. That was the first one to sprout though and it actually had a twin that sprouted the same way. If you look closely, you see a dead stem to the left of it (sniff, sniff), so I am worried that it might not be growing right. That seems like a silly statement though, seeds know what to do (then again, the twin-seedling didn't...). The one on the bottom came a week later. And has recently done this:

Looks nice! So I am thinking about flipping the other one, shouldn't be too difficult. If I had a bunch sprouting, I would leave it and see what happens, but I only have two.

Here are the sowing instructions, click in the picture to get a clearer read:

Update - 5/25/10

<- I flipped the "upside-down" seedling

The other one keeps growing ->

Update - 5/26/10

Oops, looks like flipping the seedling was a bad idea. Lesson learned...

Coast Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens)

Sowing date: 4/20/10 (?)

Zone: 6 - 9

The last couple of months or so has been a bit crazy for me, I went on a brief trip to India, then I moved about a week after getting back. There are still a few boxes waiting to be unpacked and I have yet to set up my stereo or my PC. In any case, I didn't think about any of the upcoming craziness when I ordered my first batch of seeds. They got to me a couple weeks before the vacation to India and I realized that I would not only have to wait until I got back from India before I could plant them, but it was also in my best interest to wait until I moved a couple weeks after that. So I was looking at a month before I could plant all the seeds I was excited about. Bummer. I didn't even bother opening the package to look at the seeds or the sowing instructions, I knew I would be tempted to just plant them anyway even though it would make no sense.

At some point, probably a week after the move, I opened the packet and took a look at the Coast Redwood instructions. In big bold red letters it stated: Sow immediately upon receipt. Then this as well: Note - germination rate is characteristically low (20%) for this species. I figured I had lost the chance to grow anything since I waited a month but threw them in a seedling pot anyway thinking I'll try and if it doesn't work, I will order more. The packet had 50 seeds, so I split those seeds between 3 seedling pots. To my surprise, a seed sprouted about a week and a half later. First, one seedling in a pot, then two in the same pot. Now it's four seedlings in one pot and one seedling in another pot. Take a look, click on the picture for a bigger image:

The seed- ling on the left - alone in the pot - looks a bit different from the others. I will post the sowing instruc- tions when I get a chance. As a note, they specifically called for shade, so they are sitting in my room on the west side of my apartment (i.e., afternoon light) and are about 3-4 feet away from the window.

My dilemma now is, do I repot the seedlings that are crowding each other? I am not sure. But my guess is that as they get bigger, all but one will die off and possibly none will make it. If I attempt to repot a seedling, there's a risk that the stress will kill it. I haven't decided yet what I will do.

This is what Whatcom Seed Company says about the Coast Redwood:

"California's magnificent Coast Redwood is the world's tallest known tree and one of the world's oldest trees. Some trees have been measured at more than 360 feet (see height comparison). These giant evergreens inhabit a narrow strip along the Pacific Ocean from central California to southern Oregon. The Coast Redwood has excellent ornamental value, as specimen or feature tree or planted in groups. They are fast growers, up to 2 feet per year, and make excellent windbreaks and privacy screens while still young (their fast growth is an added advantage). Their beautiful foliage and bark is a perfect backdrop for smaller shrubs with similar growing conditions. They do not require trimming as a rule, and their drought resistance make them fairly maintenance free once established."

I found the seeds under the bonsai link... Apparently you can cultivate these as bonsai as well, though I don't have instructions for that. Something I learned recently is that any tree can be grown as a bonsai. Bonsai is not a species, just a way a tree is grown. A bonsai coast redwood would be cool, but so would a huge tree in my living room. Maybe I will try both if I can repot the seedlings.

Update - 5/23/10

Sowing instructions below, click on picture to see larger image:

Seeds planted, basic set-up

Below is a list of seeds I have planted, most are now on a windowsill on the east side of my apartment, getting plenty of morning sun. A few are in my room on the other end of the apartment, and they get the less direct and less strong, late afternoon sun.

Here's the set-up for the plants getting the bright morning sun. As you can see, some of the seeds were placed in a clear plastic box. It is my experience with a few other plants that seedlings thrive under high humidity, at least to get them started. In the past I've used a Jiffy Greenhouse Starter Kit. Unless the sowing instructions call for a seed's soil to be lightly moist or perhaps susceptible to damping-off, then I would try it (damping-off is a disease that can kill seedlings caused by fungus. It can be prevented by sowing seeds in dryer conditions, i.e., don't over water. More on that later). However, I believe it is important for there to be some air circulation, especially if the seedling pots are getting direct sunlight and especially if the seeds sprout. So I usually crack the top open to let them breathe and at some point in the day I will take off the cover completely. Really, it's all trial and error for me. The rest of the seeds were not covered and planted in regular seedling pots, those are pictured as well. I'll talk about watering later, but if your seedling pots are small and getting a lot of light, the soil will dry out quickly and possibly destroy the seeds if not watered frequently. I water the pots in the morning before I leave and then when I get back from work, not a ton, just enough for the soil to be moist. If the pots are not getting direct sunlight or only a little direct sunlight each day, then once a day is fine.

Here is a list of seeds I have planted. In the future, I will post pictures of seeds before I plant them.

• African Baobab (Adansonia digitata)
• Butterfly Pea (Clitoria ternatea)
• Coast Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens)
• Dawn Redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides)
• Japanese Zelkova (Zelkova serrata)
• Joshua Tree (Yucca brevifolia)
• Marigold Striped (Tagetes patula)
  
• Monkey Pod Brazilian Rain Tree (Samanea saman)
• Sensitive Plant/Touch-Me-Not (Mimosa pudica)
• Splitleaf Philodendron (Monstera deliciosa)
• Telegraph Plant (Desmodium gyrans)

So far a few have sprouted: the Butterfly Pea, Coast Redwood, Sensitive Plant, and the striped Marigold.

New blog

I've recently taken up indoor gardening at my apartment in Astoria, NY. I have no experience gardening and thought this would be a manageable way to record the progress of the seeds I've planted. Not really sure how it'll all work and I am new to blogging but I hope to at least post pictures and make notes of anything that seems interesting (i.e., interesting to somebody new to this hobby).
Hopefully, I'll start getting suggestions at some point, so please comment with any ideas or wisdom. I haven't found a definitive website that can help me with some of the questions I have, so any tips are appreciated. The header picture is of the striped Marigolds (Tagetes patula) I planted only a few days ago, they sprouted within a day and a half.
So far I've ordered all my seeds from Whatcom Seed Company, if you are interested in starting from scratch with your plants or flowers, they are a pretty good place to start. I'll post a list of all the seeds I've planted and the sowing instructions that came with them, then weekly pictures of any sprouted seedlings.