Pakistan Gardening Forum

Hardenbergia is an australian climber from the family Fabaceae. After successfully germinating the seeds of snail vine from same family i thought they would germinate easily but i was not successful. I read on internet that they belong to areas with bush fire and to stimulate that effect, hot water should be poured on the seed and let the water cool down with seeds in it which will break dormancy. i tried it but no germination.

I also tried sand paper to scarify it a little bit and then soaked in warm water, it swelled but when i planted it in seed mix, no germination. I tried the swelled seeds in all possible mixtures i have but no success. I tried it in September, october then in march, april and then May but no success. I also tried replacement seeds from chiltern but same issue. They confirmed that the seed is viable as checked through the cut test (embryo is fine). I also bought some white hardenbergia seeds from another country but no success. I still hav around 50 seeds or so.

Any tips or clues?

Fire

Apart from the "pea" flowers and acacias, some other seeds seem to require the passage of a bushfire to germinate. Flannel Flowers (Actinotus helianthi), for example, are usually seen at their best in the wild in the seasons immediatley following a bushfire. This effect can be simulated by sowing the seed in a terracotta pot (not plastic for obvious reasons!) and setting fire to leaf litter and twigs placed on top. The fire should be maintained for 2 - 3 minutes. This method has worked but is really a "last resort" method as it is difficult to have any real control over the amount of heat delivered to the seeds. Once the ash has cooled, the pot is watered and maintained as for any other seed raising container.

khabbab wrote: I read on internet that they belong to areas with bush fire and to stimulate that effect, hot water should be poured on the seed and let the water cool down with seeds in it which will break dormancy. i tried it but no germination.

Khabbab one thing you missed in this tip is smoke, Hardenbergia belong to Plant Genus whose germination is improved by Smoke. One practical method of applying smoke treatment is the use of smoked water as a pre-treatment where seed is soaked for 24 hours in a 9:1 water:smoke solution. Smoke water can be produced by bubbling smoke through a container of water for about 60 minutes.
Hardenbergia violacea seeds will usually germinate in 30-90 days, even under good conditions germination may be erratic.

khabbab wrote: I still hav around 50 seeds or so.

I think you understand what I mean

Why not try Gibberellic acid for soaking them..??

mirafzalkhan wrote:

khabbab wrote: I read on internet that they belong to areas with bush fire and to stimulate that effect, hot water should be poured on the seed and let the water cool down with seeds in it which will break dormancy. i tried it but no germination.

Khabbab one thing you missed in this tip is smoke, Hardenbergia belong to Plant Genus whose germination is improved by Smoke. One practical method of applying smoke treatment is the use of smoked water as a pre-treatment where seed is soaked for 24 hours in a 9:1 water:smoke solution. Smoke water can be produced by bubbling smoke through a container of water for about 60 minutes.
Hardenbergia violacea seeds will usually germinate in 30-90 days, even under good conditions germination may be erratic.

khabbab wrote: I still hav around 50 seeds or so.

I think you understand what I mean

Yes i did not try smoke yet. Will try it and then post results. I had never thought i would have to go to that extent to germinate a seed

Izhar wrote:Why not try Gibberellic acid for soaking them..??

Will GA just break the physical seed coat or it will awake the embryo? Because i am able to let the moisture penetrate as seed gets swollen, but still it does not germinate.

The hormone will stimulate the radical to grow..

Izhar wrote:The hormone will stimulate the radical to grow..

Great. But it is not available in pakistan, right?

It is.. let me search in the new subzi mandi by this weekend.. it is available on the agriculture shops which sell the products for fruits and orchards..

Izhar wrote:It is.. let me search in the new subzi mandi by this weekend.. it is available on the agriculture shops which sell the products for fruits and orchards..

Many thanks. I asked from all sources in lahore, not available.