Growing Giant Sequoia Seedlings

[Aquaman]

Hi.

My son is interested in trees and especially big trees. So we have been watching some Youtube videos about giant redwoods and I thought it would be fun to grow some.

So I bought some Giant Redwood seeds and put most of the them in the fridge. But decided to chuck a few straight into a pot with some seed raising mix. I kept the pot in a warm part of my house and 2 weeks later to my amazement lots of little red shoots have started to appear.

So what do I do now?

I feel like its too warm in my house to keep them indoors, but don't want them to suffer and die outside over the winter. I'm in Sydney so the winter isn't too harsh.

I read that you should gradually expose them to direct sunlight.

Any tips from Redwood growers in Aus?

Cheers.

[Rory]

Never had any success whatsoever in growing them from seed. Tried everything, gave up. If you can acquire them as a seedling or a small tree, just do that,... its a lot less painful, and rewards you quicker.

[GavinG]

They should surely be OK outside when they get a little size, through a Sydney winter. You have three or four months before it gets cold. Sometimes the bonsai gods just give you a present.

Best of luck. And half into a grow bed in spring.

Gavin

[Rory]

They should surely be OK outside when they get a little size, through a Sydney winter. You have three or four months before it gets cold. Sometimes the bonsai gods just give you a present.

Best of luck. And half into a grow bed in spring.

Gavin

yeah, its not the actual winter that is the problem, its trying to get them to germinate that is the actual hard part.

[Aquaman]

Thanks for the advice.

I am excited to hear that they are hard to germinate. I have got loads of the little fellas springing up....and the majority of the seeds are still in the fridge.

I'll move them outside when the they look a bit more robust and gradually introduce them to direct sunlight.

I read that in the US they bury them in snow for the winter, so they must be quite tough.

[Isitangus]

You seem to have the Midas touch when it comes to growing from seed! Keep it up!

[Aquaman]

You seem to have the Midas touch when it comes to growing from seed! Keep it up!

Thanks isitangus. I am not sure about the Midas touch.

I put it down to understanding what the seeds need to germinate and trying various techniques. You have to be quite scientific.

Don't put all your eggs in one basket. In the fridge I have sequoia seeds in seed raising mix, moss and some in water.....as well as the ones I planted that have already germinated.

Also make sure you have good fresh seeds. Collect them yourself or buy from a reputable source. A dead seed won't germinate no matter what you do to it.

[Aquaman]

I thought I should post a pic of some of my little seedlings.

Hard to imagine that in the wild they could grow to nearly 100m tall and live for more than 2,000 years.

Nature is really wonderful.

[Rory]

Don't forget about the Mountain Ash in Victoria. Those beasts can grow taller than American Redwoods. Not as thick, but they can grow taller than the yanks.

haha, we're taller and not as thick as Americans. But most of us already know that.

Interesting tree facts:
Tallest tree ever recorded: Australia, Victoria - Mountain Ash
Longest living tree organism ever lived: Australia, Tasmania - Huon Pine
Most awesome tree ever lived: Australia, New South Wales - My casuarina bonsai on the back deck.

[lackhand]

Interesting tree facts:
Tallest tree ever recorded: Australia, Victoria - Mountain Ash
Longest living tree organism ever lived: Australia, Tasmania - Huon Pine
Most awesome tree ever lived: Australia, New South Wales - My casuarina bonsai on the back deck.

I had to go look, and found this kind of interesting.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_superlative_trees
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_lo ... t_colonies
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_lo ... _specimens

Enjoy.

[Aquaman]

Some great links there Lackhand.

It's interesting to see that its basically Australia vs. USA when it comes to big trees.

[lackhand]

Some great links there Lackhand.

It's interesting to see that its basically Australia vs. USA when it comes to big trees.

Yeah, I didn't want to make it that way since I'm vastly outnumbered on here.

I have more Aussie than US native trees at the moment though so hopefully I'm safe.

[Aquaman]

Just a quick update on my Giant Redwood seedlings.

The un-stratified seedlings are now growing well in pots outside. I am gradually introducing them to full sun.





I would guess about 20% germinated.

I had a much higher germination rate with the stratified seeds. I would estimate over 50% germinated.



Cheers.

[Drac0]

Great stuff. Would love a couple of these but just no space at all, had them on my ebay watchlist for months before deciding I had better not! If I happen to find some space I might have to see if you want to part with a few later.

I remember coming across a page a while back where the guy had ground grown a few of these for a couple of years & then got them together to fuse them. Was going to be one big bonsai for sure.

Once established I don't think a Sydney winter is going to be a problem for them.

Good luck & keep us posted.

Cheers

[ToddB]

I have a two year old redwood seedling growing in a pot in my backyard. I didn't raise it from seed though. I collected it as a 5 cm-high seedling from beneath a redwood grove in an arboretum. It's growing extremely well, is already a metre high and has developed a twin trunk. It should make a nice bonsai one day...