Blake's Dawn Redwoods

Dawn Redwoods at Kew Gardens

2007-07-26T19:27:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, while in the UK, I made sure to stop by at Kew Gardens to see their redwoods. They really had an impressive collection of sequoias, coast, and dawn redwoods. Unfortunately, I forgot to see their wollemi pine.

Seeds Tough to Sprout

2007-07-25T18:13:00.001-07:00

Very good news (for a tree nut)...

Of my two-hundred dawn redwood seeds, I finally had a second germination in one of my seed/soil baggies. In a few days, when some green starts to show, I'll plant the new sprout and upload a photo. In the meantime, I'm not going to wait around for another -- I just ordered five-hundred more seeds from a different vendor to try a shotgun approach :) Even with a low germination rate, I should get a few sprouts out of the bunch. And, just for one last insurance policy, I'm also going to try to get some seeds from a local arboretum.

I don't know why these seeds are so stubborn...

Seed #1 - A Very Sad Sprout (But Getting Better)

2007-07-25T17:12:00.000-07:00

About a week ago, I left my only dawn redwood seedling out on my deck... Just long enough for my dog to eat it. After a cooling off period, I put the tree back under the lights and hoped for the best. About half of the stem and one seed leaf seemed intact - a few secondary leaves were barely hanging on.

I guess I was too upset to snap a photo at the time, but after that week long rehab, this little guy is starting to grow a new shoot! The last remaining seed leaf is starting to wither, but it looks like the new shoot is already off to a good start. Once the dying part of the stem falls off, this shoot should take over, and all should be well.

Seed #1 - Transplant

2007-07-13T19:16:00.000-07:00

This seedling was ready for transplanting, so I moved it into a six-inch pot with a well-drained soil mixture, consisting of:

cheap potting soil
vermiculite
perlite
sphagnum peat moss
sand (just a bit)

Seed #1 - First Branches

2007-07-13T19:04:00.000-07:00

Three weeks ago, I setup some grow lights for my seedlings. Since then, my only dawn redwood seedling has doubled in size, and has grown its first two branches. This is very good news - once seedlings make it this far, they have a much better chance of surviving.

Changing Baggie Method

2007-06-16T20:39:00.000-07:00

I'm not having terrific success with the coffee filter baggie method, so I'm switching to the soil baggie method. I split my seeds out into two sealed plastic bags with a few tablespoons of seed starting soil (peat moss mixture) in each. I moistened the soil by spraying spring water on it, and put the baggies on a shelf. With any luck, the seeds will start germinating in the bags. When they do, I'll wait until they're showing off their cotyledons, then move them into their own cel-packs.

At first, I thought that my low germination rate was due to my seeds needing help breaking out of dormancy, but then I read that dawn redwoods don't need to be cold stratified. So, I'm hoping for better success with the soil baggies.

Seed #1 - Sprout Opened, Secondary Leaves Showing

2007-06-14T19:47:00.000-07:00

This is still my only dawn redwood, but it's doing very well. The sprout was quick to open, and is now showing off the start of its secondary leaves.

Seed #1 - Sprout

2007-06-07T18:19:00.001-07:00

I still can't quite make out how many cotyledons there are. It looks like at least one of these two is a grouping of two, just waiting to separate.

Seed #1 - Sprout

2007-06-06T18:17:00.000-07:00

This is still my only dawn redwood to sprout, so I'm still very excited to see it progress. The cotyledons are starting to show - it'll be interesting to see how many it has.

Seed #1 - Sprouting Up From Soil

2007-06-05T17:16:00.000-07:00

I've had such poor luck with my one-hundred dawn redwood seeds. So far, (and it's still early), only one of my them has germinated. After less than a week in the soil, that seed found its way out. This is a very good day... I hope this little guy knows how much I'm counting on him!

Seed #1 - Radicle

2007-06-02T14:45:00.000-07:00

Of my one hundred dawn redwood seeds, this is the first to germinate. These seeds are so tiny and fragile, I was surprised to see any sprout roots. This is very exciting - unfortunately, I'm not seeing anywhere near the immediate success that I've seen with my coast redwood seeds.

Starting Out...

2007-05-25T19:34:00.000-07:00

These are the smallest, most fragile seeds I've worked with so far. Next to this one is a toothpick for size comparison. I'm not expecting stellar germination rate from these little guys, but who knows.

To start them off, I soaked them overnight in aerated spring water. The next morning, I placed all one hundred of my seeds in damp, unbleached coffee filters in airtight baggies with just a little bit of air inside. This is known as the 'baggie method', and has worked well for me with my giant sequoias and coast redwoods so far.

I will keep them in the dark, checking them once a week for germination. Once they sprout their embryonic root, or radicle, I'll plant them in moist seed-starting soil in covered cel-packs. When they sprout, I'll remove them from the mini-greenhouse, giving them only indirect sunlight.