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Eduard O
Joined: Sun Sep 02, 2012 7:46 pm Posts: 1196 Location: Maastricht Netherlands
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Tree ferns from spores
After a successful experiment in 2000/2001, I started again with the tree fern cultivation, in collaboration with Ro and Remko, forum friends, also crazy of tree ferns. November 2009, Ro worked at a large tree fern nursery and was able to get fresh fern spores, Remko did his best ordering many interesting subtropical and tropical spores . So we came to a great variety of ferns and we could exchange and share information, so could each in his own way make a start, and try different methods. So I sow in November 2009 and have chosen the spores boxes placed in a glass container so the boxes stand in a thin layer of water, the whole heated to + -22 º C. , after 4 weeks the first results,
I use chinese noodle boxes and add in + -1.5 cm fernsoil [good boiled], not sown too thick, not to mention a few vent holes at the top of the boxes! I continue spraying every week on the same day all the boxes, and let the excess water drain,
The fresh spores grew the fastest, older a little, some spores did nothing only fungi,
again a few weeks later April 2010, the first fern plants came up, there were already a number of species , I stopped at 20 species, because I already knew it soon would come to occupy a lot of space,
It was too hot in the house, and I used the small winter greenhouse as growroom,
And the first plants grew out of the smal boxes and it was time for them to plant in small growth cultivators,
I am looking for the best big + - 24 later 40 that fit in the cultivator ,
This is it for now.
Gr. Ed.
_________________ 2021 min. -09.1ºC --- max. 33.2ºC 2022 min. -09.0ºC --- max. 39.7ºC
Last edited by Eduard O on Thu Nov 05, 2020 11:17 pm, edited 4 times in total.
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Sat Feb 09, 2013 10:37 pm |
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Troydonovan
Joined: Sun May 30, 2010 1:54 am Posts: 1466 Location: Old Beach Tasmania
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Re: Raising tree ferns from spores
Whoa looks like a long hard process Ed way beyond my horticultural abilities.
So many packed in there and to separate successfully !
Palm germination is so much easier for me .
Very interesting thread though !
Troy
_________________ Tasmania 42 " south Cool Maritime climate
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Sun Feb 10, 2013 8:03 am |
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Josh76
Joined: Tue Jul 13, 2010 10:31 am Posts: 316 Location: Brentford, Middx
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Re: Raising tree ferns from spores
Incredible pictures Eduard - thanks for posting. You make it look so easy! I've never tried growing ferns from spores but these photos make me want to try it.
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Sun Feb 10, 2013 9:11 am |
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Tom Velardi
Joined: Mon Oct 29, 2007 10:20 pm Posts: 4337 Location: Kyushu, Southern Japan (33.607N latitude)
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Re: Raising tree ferns from spores
Fantastic Eduard.
From tree fern forests to tree fern lawns. Curious, what do you do with them all - Ebay? Your set up reminds me of the way I used to grow Sarracenia species from seed when I lived in Florida. I used to get quite a bit of fern sporlings in those days as well, but I never grew any intentionally.
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Sun Feb 10, 2013 9:58 pm |
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Kev Spence
Site Admin
Joined: Mon Oct 29, 2007 3:59 pm Posts: 10902 Location: Loughborough, Leics, central UK
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Re: Raising tree ferns from spores
WOW what a set up~~ same question where or what do you do with all your spares or is there a low survival rate when bring them on to a larger size?
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Sun Feb 10, 2013 10:06 pm |
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JohnS
Joined: Tue Jul 24, 2012 11:45 am Posts: 43 Location: Oslo, Norway
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Re: Raising tree ferns from spores
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Sun Feb 10, 2013 10:49 pm |
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Mark Longley
Joined: Mon Oct 29, 2007 6:45 pm Posts: 877 Location: Auckland, NZ
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Re: Raising tree ferns from spores
Nice work Eduard.
From my own experience, without a truly industrial, nursery type of environment for growing-on the tender sporophytes you can easily end up with just a small handful of plants at the end of the process (although I've still not decided what the 'end' of the process actually is!).
You can have hundreds if not thousands of sporophytes which, stage-by-stage get thinned out, survival of the fittest, only the strongest and fastest specimens make the next stage, particularly when you get to the 'plug' stage as you really do need a lot of propagator space then. For hobby growers just looking for 3 or 4 plants for ourselves it's uncanny how often you can only end up with 1 or 2 survivors even though you started-off with hundreds and did your best to maintain as many as possible!
That's the way it works for tree ferns in the wild too. Billions of spores from a single plant in its lifetime but maybe only a few make it to adulthood.
_________________ www.thefernhouse.moonfruit.com
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Mon Feb 11, 2013 6:53 am |
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Eduard O
Joined: Sun Sep 02, 2012 7:46 pm Posts: 1196 Location: Maastricht Netherlands
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Re: Raising tree ferns from spores
Hi, Thanks everyone for the comments, from the dense trays I get several hundred young tree ferns, I grow a number that I think to need for one year. I'm going to exotic plant fairs, and usually I get most often lost, But the market becomes saturated here, and it becomes difficult to get rid of them now, I can’t destroy anything and yes of each species if they go well, I like at least 50 plants per year . Dicksonias I can keep up to 7 years in small boxes, cyatheas with much difficulty 3year! Whether you should keep them in small pots that will also work, issue is the place here, which is not sufficient 've had bad experiences with send abroad, but if someone really wants we can try in April / May. Not all species went well, most tropical species gave problems, also you need to use boiled water spraying otherwise the whole tree fern cultivation go moldy by bacteria in the rainwater! Back to see the continuation of the growth of the tree ferns,
The first plants that were ready to be potted, here C.spinulosa, followed by, C.medullaris and C.cooperi / revolvulum,
The other species all went quickly into the small cultivators,
My greatest enemy is the fungus gnats, this dead at this stage quarter of all young plants! One day a beautiful medullaris, the day after been attacked by the larvae of fungus gnats!
Here is everything in the small conservatory, and I try to get them through the winter, the house is too dry by heating,
But conditions were also not optimal,
All pictures are until December 2010, to be continued.
Gr. Ed.
_________________ 2021 min. -09.1ºC --- max. 33.2ºC 2022 min. -09.0ºC --- max. 39.7ºC
Last edited by Eduard O on Fri Nov 06, 2020 11:15 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Mon Feb 11, 2013 10:29 pm |
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Steve Pope
Joined: Tue Apr 29, 2008 8:37 am Posts: 1401 Location: Sussex coast
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Atelier climatology
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Mon Feb 11, 2013 11:28 pm |
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Eduard O
Joined: Sun Sep 02, 2012 7:46 pm Posts: 1196 Location: Maastricht Netherlands
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Re: Raising tree ferns from spores
Hi Steve thanks, also my choice! I also have tried another way, I have a few large palms which have a kind of micro climaat on top of the root ball, every year grows throughout the root ball above the pot and I quite pruning and there growing for a few months after potting again small ferns on, so I had a rest of spores of C.brownii on what I've sown in the fresh soil, to my amazement grew far faster than those in the small boxes! After nine months were already 10cm high and no longer had a cultivator and could immediately be potted, or even six weeks into the glass container, then these where ready!
Gr. Ed.
_________________ 2021 min. -09.1ºC --- max. 33.2ºC 2022 min. -09.0ºC --- max. 39.7ºC
Last edited by Eduard O on Fri Nov 06, 2020 11:30 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Wed Feb 13, 2013 4:23 pm |
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Steve Pope
Joined: Tue Apr 29, 2008 8:37 am Posts: 1401 Location: Sussex coast
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Squatters rights
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Wed Feb 13, 2013 5:16 pm |
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MAU
Joined: Sun Mar 22, 2009 5:46 pm Posts: 216 Location: Madrid,SPAIN
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Re: Raising tree ferns from spores
Hello Eduard, You don`t love tree ferns... they love you Good job!! Mau.
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Wed Feb 13, 2013 8:45 pm |
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Eduard O
Joined: Sun Sep 02, 2012 7:46 pm Posts: 1196 Location: Maastricht Netherlands
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Re: Raising tree ferns from spores
The last is a beautiful picture Steve, with that red shine hairs on the fern Mau, I will ask them thanks. Gr. Ed.
_________________ 2021 min. -09.1ºC --- max. 33.2ºC 2022 min. -09.0ºC --- max. 39.7ºC
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Thu Feb 14, 2013 9:52 am |
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Taffy
Joined: Tue Jun 15, 2010 7:06 am Posts: 453 Location: Newport Wales
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Re: Raising tree ferns from spores
I can only sit back, read and applaud your efforts. Amazing .........
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Thu Feb 14, 2013 10:06 am |
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griphuz
Joined: Wed Oct 31, 2007 3:50 pm Posts: 263 Location: the Netherlands
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Re: Raising tree ferns from spores
Nice Eduard!! As I said at that time; This is a nice way to get some interesting species into cultivation! I'll try to keep collecting nice species if I go on trips abroad from above 2000 m altitude Kind regards, Remko.
_________________ Remko
https://picasaweb.google.com/griphuz
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Fri Feb 15, 2013 11:51 am |
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