germination comments by our visitors
For general germination instructions click here.
Also see plant cultivation comments below.
Seeds from this species ...
... are easy to germinate and need up to 3 months to sprout.
Germinating Trachycarpus seeds are pretty easy. Be sure to use some sterile seed starting mix or potting soil to avoid any diseases. The seeds can be sown in a community pot about 1.5 inches deep. Keep them at room temperature and in about one month the first sprout should appear. They can be grown for a couple years before needing to be separated. When separating them, dunk the seedlings into a bucket of water to rinse off the soil. Carefully separate them being sure to minimize any root damage. Pot them up into 6 inch or one gallon pots. T. fortunei seeds can also be germinated using the baggie method where moist peat moss put into a plastic bag and the seeds mixed in. Check regularly for germinated seeds and pot them up in individual pots as they sprout. It's all pretty easy. A great cold hardy palm to grow in zone 7. Give them a try.
Submitted on 30/07/2006 by Austin Lovenstein austinl01@sbcglobal.net
...very easy to germinate and need up to 3 months to
sprout.
The Trachycarpus Fortunei is very easy to germinate. I had very fresh seeds and soaked them for four days. I
sowed them in march. The temperature during the germination was between the 5C and 35C. After 2,5 month the
seeds began to germinate. It´s now June (tree months after I´ve sowed the seeds) and I can say that
more than 90% of the seeds have sprouted and they are already between the 0,5 and four centemeters tall.
Submitted on 09/06/2005 by one of our visitors
...easy to germinate and need up to 1 month to sprout.
First I soaked the seeds in water for three days. Then I took a tupperware container and made a bed with moisted
cotton pads. I placed the seeds on top of this and covered them again with moist cotton pads. I closed the cotainer
and put it away at a temperature between 20° and 25°C. I checked the container weekly by lifting up
the moist pads and after three weeks i found the first germinated seed, i now hope that the rest of them will
follow quickly. When the root will be about a few centimeters tall i will sow it in a 15 cm high container.
Submitted on 11/08/2004 by Joeri Seghers joeriseghers@skynet.be
...very easy to germinate and need up to 1 year to
sprout.
I have found this spcies easy to germinaate . I just take fresh seeds and sow them in the my garden at varying
depths from 2"-surface level and always get reasonable germination over a 2 year period. I would estimate
80%. My oldest specimen is 9 years old, 13' high, and has taken 5 degrees two nights in a row with no damage.
It is planted in full sun on a very exposed hill top in heavy red clay in zone 7.
Submitted on 11/08/2004 by Snakeman thegreenplantmarket@charter.net
...very easy to germinate and need up to 3 months to
sprout.
Seeds were soaked in tap water for 24 hours, then transferred to zip lock bags. Medium was moist, 50% peat,
50% perlite at about 18C. Seeds germinated fairly quickly but the roots are quite slow growing by comparison
with the C. Humilis Var Cerifera growing alongside.
Submitted on 13/07/2004 by Lucian Morris lucianmorris@hotmail.com
...very easy to germinate and need up to 3 months to
sprout.
Picked 500 seeds from a tree in town in mid Feb. Placed seeds in a ziplock bag and put in refrigerator for 4
weeks. Then took them and placed them in a small tray sized greenhouse with damp cocopeat (less chance of fungal
growth), the only moisture that I provided after sowing was from an organic fungacide. Not in mid-June I have
about 400 seedlings from the original 500.
Submitted on 16/06/2004 by Cheri Wilson Reininrabt@aol.com
...very easy to germinate and need up to 1 month to
sprout.
The seed for T. fortunei germinates very easily. First, I soaked the seeds in purified water for 3 days, changing
it daily. The final day, I used regular tap water since this may cut down on fungal diseases. I sowed mine at
73F in a plastic baggie with a mixture of 50% perlite and 50% peat moss. Make sure it is moist and not soggy!
Within 30 days, I had several starting to sprout. As each seed sprouts, I will take it from the bag and place
it in a deep pot or a tray of plugs (3 inches deep). Palms tend to have long roots, so providing it with a deep
container will cause faster growth. I'm sure you will have the same successes I have had!
Submitted on 21/01/2004 by Austin L. AustinL01@comcast.net
...difficult to germinate and need up to 3 months to
sprout.
Limited success with this species, much less than I expected. After being soaked for 2 days, 10 seeds were sealed
in zip-bags in a pre-moistened mixture of 50% peat-based compost and 50% Vermiculite and kept at approx. 20º
C. After 2 months, 1 seed germinated and is still doing well and growing vigorously. But no more seeds germinated
and it has now been over a year.
Submitted on 30/11/2003 by D W Matzdorf davidmatzdorf@blueyonder.co.uk
...very easy to germinate and need up to 6 months to
sprout.
This is one of the easiest palm species to propagate. I am a grower of Trachycarpus on a big scale. Each Spring
I sow thousands of local seeds that I collect. I sow approx. 1,000 seeds per flat. I use Pro-Mix HP as the growing
medium. This is a sterilized peat base with heavy perlite. I keep the trays evenly moist and at temps. of approx.
20 celcius. Although T.fortunei will germinate at much cooler temps., it just takes longer. In my greenhouse
the first seedlings will appear 3 months after sowing, but many can take several months longer. it is good to
be patient. I have hundreds of seedlings growing throughout my gardens. This is a very good palm seed for beginners,
because of it's high germination rate.
Submitted on 14/10/2003 by Joe Clemente bananajoe@saltspring.com
...need up to 1 month to sprout.
The seeds were so good they actually began to germinate while in postage. Excellent !
Submitted on 13/03/2003 by one of our visitors
...very easy to germinate and need
up to 1 year to sprout.
I have germinated T. fortunei at temperatures anywhere from 10-25C,
but I would probably suggest about 18C as the ideal temperature.
Often some stragglers will come up sporadically long after most
of the others have sprouted.
Submitted on 01/08/2002 by Ian Barclay deus_vobiscum@hotmail.com
...very easy to germinate and need
up to 1 month to sprout.
Probably the most easy palm seed to germinate, but if it takes too
long (or seems to), it can be made faster. Put the seeds on clean
sand, moisture it and place the pot on the top of the aquarium.
Threfore the aquarium lamp will heat up the sand and seeds might
germinate in a week or two. Clean sand prevents seeds rotting. Remember
to keep the sand moist so the seeds wont get too dry.
Submitted on 02/08/2002 by Olli Wuokko ollihenrik@hotmail.com
...very easy to germinate and need
up to 1 month to sprout.
We cultivate T. fortunei for 7 years in the Alps in France. We have
a lot of seeds and we could exchange them.Our palms have resisted
to -15 until now, without no damage. But young subject died for
less (between one and three years old).
Submitted on 15/04/2002 by de Looze delooze@wanadoo.fr
...very easy to germinate.
In the early 1980's, I gathered seeds from the ground underneath
a large pair of _Trachycarpus fortunei_ palms at the old Post Office
in Anderson, SC, USA. At the time, I was a graduate teaching assistant
with the English Department of Clemson University, where I shared
a sixth-floor corner office of Strode Tower with two other teaching
assistants. I kept a lot of tropical plants on my desk and, knowing
nothing about _Trachycarpus fortunei_ seeds, plunged several of
them into the potting soil of one of the tropical plants. In almost
no time at all, _Trachycarpus fortunei_ seedlings were sprouting
underneath the surrogate mother plant. I removed them from the pot
and planted them in small individual containers. Over the few years,I
grew them in containers and moved them up into larger containers
as their size increased. During this time, they resided in Valdosta,
GA, which has summer heat that's a little too intense for _Trachycarpus
fortunei_; but they tolerated four years of South Georgia heat--like
it or not. Theyresided another couple of years in Athens, GA, home
of the University of Georgia. In the late eighties, I thought they
had grown sufficiently large to be planted in an outdoor garden
location and planted themon our farm, three miles east of Pendleton,
SC, where two of them have thrived and grown to an admirable size.
Some of the other plants were given away to friends. I would say
that germination of _Trachycarpus fortunei_ is simple, and the seeds
have a high rate of germination.
Submitted on 07/03/2002 by Jay Evatt jevatt@andersonlibrary.org
...very easy to germinate and need
up to 1 month to sprout.
One of the easiest palms to grow if you know how. Most important:
germinate at room temperature only (around 70°F/21°C). Do
not use tropical greenhouses or similar! Remove flesh, clean fruits
and presoak 1-3 days in water at room temperature. Then put them
in germination pots, water them so they get moist, not wet. Then
put them somewhere in the room. Check from time to time. Water only
when they get dry. Be sure not to add too much water. At room temperature,
80% will germinate within 3-6 weeks.
Submitted by Thomas Foltyn t@chello.at
...difficult to germinate and need
up to 1 month to sprout.
first batch end may 01 from rarepalmseeds, three germinated within
four weeks, the other rotted. I lost one seedling in my tropical
chamber, it seems to be too hot. Second batchof 14 seeds from an
other palm-seed-dealer, they all rotted during the next weeks.Pre-soaking
during one day, germination at elevated room temperature, (20-25°C)
used Kokohum slightly moist.It seems to be very difficult to germinate
them (some internet sources made same experience), I think only
seeds fresh fallen from tree will have a good and fast germination
result.
Submitted by Jens JensBluetling@onlinehome.de
...easy to germinate and need up
to 3 months to sprout.
Seed was roughly cleaned and boiled water poured over and left to
cool overnight. Later drained and soaked seed in 2 tablespoons Captan
" fungicide to 1/2 Litre (1 pint) water for three days. Then rolled
drained moist seeds in two tablespoons "Captan" fungicide and planted
in an ice cream bucket filled with 50% peat/perlite mix wetted down
with Two tablespoons of bleach to 1 gallon of hot water (Drain well
-to damp consistancy)......after two months at 70-75 degrees germination
rate was easily 90%. Good luck with yours."
Submitted by Gefry Stone gefrystone@telus.net
...easy to germinate and need up
to 3 months to sprout.
Soak seeds in hot water for a few days, then clean the seeds (removing
the pulpous mesocarp is great help for germination). Disinfect with
diluted chlorine for 15 minutes, rinse. Sow in individual pots or
freezing bag in part composted pine bark and peat. Add a fistful
of garden earth per litre of sowing medium (better lime than acid
soil) ; fill in pots with the mixture (filling the pot to the top
will help you not over-water your sowings) cover the seeds with
1 cm then water with diluted fungicide (benlate or thiram) provide
some heat (20°C-25°C more can cause germination delay),
optionally cover with glass. Germinates freely within 2 months to
3 months.T. martianus seedlings are very sensitive to lime (avoid
absolutely) and damp soil (water few).
Submitted by one of our visitors
...easy to germinate and need up
to 1 month to sprout.
I put my seeds in locked plastic containers of some size in a mix
of sand and peat moss and put them above the fridge in 80F 25C, and
they germinated like crazy. No mould because of the dark and the
hygienic soiltype with few nutrients for mould and algae. Good luck
Submitted by Jonas Grund jonasgrund@tjohoo.se
plant cultivation comments by our visitors
Also see germination commnets above.
Plants from this species ...
... are of average ornamental value 
In London in England they need very little care and grow normal.
T. fortunei is a very variable plant. My first specimen was purchased as a small seedling, 200mm high, in approx. 1997 and was kept as a pot plant until 2000, when it was planted out in heavy clayey loam and in a generally shady spot with occasional short periods of sun. The plant has unusually lengthy petioles - how much of this is due to the shady spot and how much to genetic variability is unclear, as it had rather long petioles even when it was a pot plant kept in Southwest facing spot. After a year of slow growth whilst it established its root system, the plant has made steady progress and is now 2.0m tall, with 500mm of trunk and leaves up to 700mm in diameter. It is completely trouble-free. My second plant is a 2 year old seedling, which started making pinnate leaves when less than 1 year old. It is also completely trouble free and has been left outdoors since Spring 2005, where it has grown slowly and steadily and has reached 250mm in height.
Submitted on 19/11/2005 by David Matzdorf davidmatzdorf@blueyonder.co.uk
... are of average ornamental value
In Hässlehom in Sweden they need little care and grow fast.
This 40 cm trunked palm has been overwintered in Hässleholm zone 7 last winter (-21 Celsius for several nights)with only 10cm of leaves and spruce on the ground. The frozen stem, and the strong sun in the day killed all the leaves except the spearleave. This year i have 7 new leaves in november.
Submitted on 20/11/2005 by Mats Carlsson maffa73@hotmail.com
If you wish to read more on palm cultivation, we highly recommend Ornamental Palm Horticulture
by Timothy K. Broschat and Alan W. Meerow, available in our bookshop.
Ratings and comments reflect individual experiences and the views of our visitors. They do not necessarily describe the most
appropriate methods, nor are they necessarily valid for all seeds or plants of this species. Germination and plant cultivation
success depends on many different factors; nevertheless, these experiences will hopefully aid you in your effort to get the
best germination results from our seeds and the best growth results from your plants.
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