This time I'm looking to grow a few Melaleuca. I had a hankering to get a few nice paperbarks up and running last summer, and then after attending the Vic Native/AABC convention in May this year I was sold that I needed to get rolling with this idea. Like I said, I am particularly drawn to the varieties with papery bark - it just appeals to me, so I have spent most of this year looking for a few varities to get started on ... from seed of course! I was ideally looking for what I consider to be the "holy trinity" of Mels ... M. Stypheliodes, M. Cuticularis and M. Rhaphiophylla. These seeds are a little more difficult to get here in Melbourne - but as with a lot of things, it's not what you know ... ! I have managed to source a few seeds of varying species (including those above) from a few different sources as well as just collecting some myself. A big shout out to a couple of members of this forum who have supplied me with some ...
So, today I finally managed to get myself organised and sow a few of them. Here's what i have put in today.
M. Decussata
M.Ericifolia
M. Elliptica
M.Rhaphiophylla
M.Cuticularis
M.Stypheliodes
There are more that I still need to get moving on, but that's all for now. This is what I did : This is commonly known as the "bog method" and seems to be a pretty standard propagation technique for Melaleuca. Water is drawn up through the pot via capillary action, keeping the seed moist and meaning you don't have to water from the top and rinse away all the tiny seeds.
Let's see what we end up with in a couple of weeks or so.
Cheers John.
! I will be waiting to see how these go with the vermiculite. I normally cover my Mel seed with a thin layer of sifted seed-raising mix and have always assumed that as long as the surface stayed wet, the seeds should stay put. That said, I normally sit my pots in a 5L ice-cream container, which I think helps with mitigating the effects of wind.
