Tahina spectabilis seeds available!!!!

[Gbarce]

April 19-day 44 - The spear has begun to unfold

[Gbarce]

April 22-day 47 - wider!

Edited April 28, 2008 by Gbarce

[Gbarce]

April 27-day 52 - I think that the leaf is fully unfurled at this point.

[Mike4284m]

Wow! Congrats Gene!

[bgl]

Gene,

That sequence of events is great! Good to know what to expect! Apparently I received my seeds about a week before you received yours. But you may have more heat at your location...! I put 9 Tahina seeds in this container on Feb. 28, so today we're at 59 days. 8 spikes, and who knows, maybe #9 will still appear!

Bo-Göran

[Breadfruit Bill]

I'm gonna need more space...

[Kris]

Dear Gene & William

lovely stills and that's great results_Gentlemen !

thanks & love,

Kris

[JakeK]

Hopefully at least one of the 4 I have left will sprout. A few of them germinated very quickly, but I had 3 rot in just a couple of days between checks.

[Palm Guy]

Jakek,

I'm sure the other 4 will germinate. Some of them take their time. I have a few that have spears ready for opening and others that haven't broken the surface yet.

Will,

Time to start Tahina weeding!

[Don Little]

It's exciting to see all of the successes you guys are having. Unfortunately I was unable to get any seeds and they seem to be sold out. I haven't had much success germinating seed anyhow so maybe that is better for me but who knows, the germination methods you are using have been outlined very well so maybe even I could have some success. Look forward to seeing some of the seedlings up for sale eventually, then I'll be the first to jump on it. Thanks everyone for the well documented steps posted here.

Don

[bgl]

Bill,

That's pretty impressive. Do you know how many seeds you put in that pot? I actually potted up my first four Tahina seedlings today. Put them directly into deep 5G pots, and had no difficulties separating them. The roots are sturdy and you shouldn't have any difficulties separating them even though it looks like you have about 30 in that pot!

Bo-Göran

I have germinated most of mine in these 1 gallon Crystal Geyser plastic containers. I cut off the top and put 4 seeds in each container. In most cases I'm getting 100% germination. In some cases where I can only see 3 seedlings at this point, there's stll hope for the 4th one to show up. This is a good case, with the first 3 already opening up and the 4th one just showing up as a tiny spike.

In the second photo is a larger plastic container, which I have used for a total of 9 seeds. Again 100% germination in this one, with 3 on the left and another 3 in the lower right (somewhat difficult to make out in this photo). Sorry about some of them being somewhat out of focus.

[Palm Guy]

Bo,

Looks like you got a good germination also. I'm sure you already have plans for the Tahina grove/groves.

One thing I did notice is that the deeper the seedling pot, the more elongated the radicle becomes hence the longer the spear would have to travel upwards to hit the soil surface. The first two of mine to pop above the soil line were in containers with the least amount of soil. Either the roots were pushing it up or the spear pushes up from a shallower position when its roots have less room to grow. That could explain why some have yet to appear above the soil line while others are already opening the leaf. There are other factors such as time from germination, water, heat and light to consider also.

Cheers,

[rozpalm]

Mike, I think you just explained my situation. I have almost 100% germination of 20 seeds. I have some that germinated over 60 days ago and I still have no leaf. I placed all of my germinated seeds into deep pots. After seeing everyone else getting leaves up, I decided to dig one up yesterday to see if maybe it just died off and to my surprise, it had gone all the way down to he bottom of the pot and had a stem about 2" below the soil. I have 3 left that I have not transferred to deep pots and I think I am going to do what Bo did and use a shallower pot to see if it puts a leaf up faster.

[Davidl]

Does anyone have any seedlings they want to sell or trade ? I really only want one. Thanks.

[Breadfruit Bill]

Bo, I planted 49 seeds in each community pot. I think more in this pot that will break through the surface over the next month... I plan to break this compot apart in about 30-45 days, temps should be consistantly hot by then and better for transplanting... The other 2 compots are about 2 weeks behind this one... I am planning on potting up into 2g square pots... Gonna have to sell off some of my larger stuff to make room for all these Blessed Palms.

[Wai`anae Steve]

I bought 10 seeds and placed in a shallow container w/spag moss. This was on March 10th. So far I have 5 that sprouted enough to plant out in their own pots. They went into 5 gallon pots and according to Bo, (was it him) they should not be showing green for a while as the pots are deep.

I have one more w/just a bit of a white root showing and 3 that have done nothing yet. One seems to have vanished??????????????? Ouch that cost $10 US.

Hope to see some green in the 5 gallon pots by the end of June.

Wai`anae Steve

[rozpalm]

Steve, I had a few from my first batch that took 60 days to sprout. I also believe they like more moisture then most seeds since when I increased the moisture level by quite a bit in the sprouting tray I had 4 sprout within 4 days. I just want one leaf and then I'll probably relax. Oh one more thing, I float tested all of the seeds before planting, and interestingly, all the floaters sprouted, so the float test does not appear to test viability for these seeds either.

[Breadfruit Bill]

Ron, very interesting about the float test not proving 100% positive... How long did you soak the floaters for? Did you soak em till they sank or just a day or so? I have a hunch Tahina seeds have a really short shelf life... I don't know the exact harvest dates of our seeds, but I would bet more than a couple months with less than optimum conditions and these seeds would lose viability.

[rozpalm]

Bill, in my first batch I got at the end of February, I soaked all 10 seeds for 3days. 6 of those seeds germinated in 10-14 days. None of them floated when first put in the water. The remaining 4 germinated over the next 45 days. So 100% germinated. I then ordered a second batch of seeds at the end of March. I let them sit for another week (my work got in the way ). I then float tested them and had 4 floaters. I took the floaters out and put them in my floater germination tray (I do this with all my seeds just to see how accurate this test is with them). The rest of the seeds soaked for 3 days. I then put them in the germination tray and 2 of them germinated after 30days). The ones in the floater tray, all germinated, just last week. They went off at once, which was strange. One day the looked dead, the next day they all had a 1/4" to 1/2" root. I still have 3 that have not germinated from the second batch.

Its clear that seeds from the second batch did not germinate anywhere near as fast as the first batch. I used the same methods for both batches. In fact the first batch went though a few nights in the high 40's low 50's, while the second batch never got below 70deg. I just wish I would get a leaf up. It would be interesting to hear from people that got seeds after me as to how they are doing.

[Mark@PalmBeach]

I bought 10 seeds and placed in a shallow container w/spag moss. This was on March 10th. So far I have 5 that sprouted enough to plant out in their own pots. They went into 5 gallon pots and according to Bo, (was it him) they should not be showing green for a while as the pots are deep.

I have one more w/just a bit of a white root showing and 3 that have done nothing yet. One seems to have vanished??????????????? Ouch that cost $10 US.

Hope to see some green in the 5 gallon pots by the end of June.

Wai`anae Steve

I know how you feel. I just got 6 out of 10 to germinate, but the good news is at least all 6 are about to open their first leaf. I believe they were planted in late February. I kept them in my garage where they were constantly 80+ degrees. They are now planted out in deep pots outside.

[rozpalm]

Congrats Mark! I just got my first leaf up and then a second I brought up on my own.

Question for the experienced palm growers: In a moment of frustration, I unpotted one of my Tahina's and found to my surprise that the leaf was actually slightly open about 3" below the soil and off to the side of the pot. The leaf was yellowish green and slightly open. Its as if the stem with the leaf grew sideways more then straight and when it reached a certain length it started opening the leaf. Is this normal? I have never seen this before, but then again I have not been growing palms all that long.

Anyhow, I replanted the seed with the leaf now above ground like it should be and the lead is now becoming a dark green and opening wider, so I don't think I hurt the palm. I am now wondering how many more of my Tahina's might this be happening to and if I should replant them. I did notice a green stem up on one of them this morhing, although it grew under the seed and was pushing the seed away from the root. I adjusted it so I think it will be fine.

Just in case someone asks, I planted the Tahina seeds similar to a coconut, that is 2/3 seed in dirt and 1/3 out.

[Gbarce]

May 20- Day 75 - spear of the second leaf is poking out of the ground! There are 2 that have the second spear but the other has a bit of damage on the tip. Its kind of brown and mushy. I don't think this palm likes it to be too wet

[Gbarce]

I just realize you can hardly see that new spear poking out of the soil so here is a close up

[Breadfruit Bill]

Ron, I know how you feel... I wonder if I have others below the surface that may never see light

Bo, Gene, what do you guys think, will these subterrainians find their way up in time?

[JakeK]

Does anyone have a seedling they'd be willing to sell? All 10 of my seeds either rotted or germinated but later died. RPS is now out otherwise I'd buy 10 more.

[Gbarce]

Will - you can try hosing off the top layers of your soil till you get a visual. Luckily I haven't had that as a problem though.

The kinks I get with the seedling is browning off of the tips of the leaves before they even open. When they do open- thats when you get to appreciate the damage. I am not sure what causes the damage though but I suspect too much humidity.

[Gbarce]

Here's a shot of the brown tip damage when the leaf finally opened. It had a hard time opening up too becuase the brown parts sort of stuck together.

[Breadfruit Bill]

Will - you can try hosing off the top layers of your soil till you get a visual. Luckily I haven't had that as a problem though.

Hey that's a great idea Gene! Thanks buddy, I hadn't thought of that! I always miss the simple details and tend overcomplicate things...

[Breadfruit Bill]

I am not sure what causes the damage though but I suspect too much humidity.

Photo looks like dampening off... Your medium may be holding too much water... not well drained enough?

And BTW, I am lovin' the new avatar Gene!

[Eric in Orlando]

I ordered 20 seeds and 16 have germinated so far. They sprouted within a few weeks of sowing (sowed March 5) but have only pushed the above ground growth in the last couple of weeks.

[Jeff in St Pete]

I discovered my Tahinas were pushing up leaves when I was showing Al, Jerry and Cindy my shadehouse on May 2nd, the day before the Biennial started. I finally got around to taking pictures today so I thought I would post a couple. I originally had 9 out of 10 seeds germinate, but one of the seeds retracted the root so I ended up with 8 out of 10. The remaining two seeds are still firm and look fine but have not germinated. I bought the deepest bags I could find, filled them with the best soil I could find, and laid each seed on top of the soil. I put them under a table to keep them from getting too much rain and forgot about them after a while. 7 out of 8 have pushed up a leaf so far since 5/2. I think this is because the 8th seed to germinate was much slower and was put into a grow bag much later than the others. Hopefully I will see a leaf on that one soon.

I should have turned the flash on my camera off. It washes out the nice green color of the leaves

[Kris]

Dear Eric & Dear Jeff

lovely stills & great work ! keeps us all updated on its grouth rate !

thanks & love,

Kris

[Gbarce]

I am not sure what causes the damage though but I suspect too much humidity.

Photo looks like dampening off... Your medium may be holding too much water... not well drained enough?

And BTW, I am lovin' the new avatar Gene!

Yup- that's what I was thinking too but I am a bit scared to dig them up this point-- but I think its also because its been raining here heavily almost on a daily basis and the soul probably doesn't have enough time between showers to fully drain out. I'll probably put some plastic over the netting on this part of the shadehouse.

On the avatar- yup thanks and I think I will stick with this one . I was playing around with different avatars for a while and I think I should have a directly palm related one.

[Palmetro]

Here are my 3 "mexican" tahinas with their first leaf!

I already have the right spot in my garden for one of them!

[Wai`anae Steve]

The first of my BABIES has shown some GREEN.

To follow the story of it's life check the link below:

Tahina In Wai`anae

[Palm Guy]

Nice photo story there Steve. I would imagine the others will be popping up soon.

[bruno]

This one will surely be the longest thread ever.

I thought I might keep you up with some news of the money received from the sale of the tahina seeds.

Xavier (you remember him of course, the discoverer of the palm!) has given me fresh news.

He wants me first to say a thousand thanks to Toby Spanner who has sent quite a lot of the money he received from that sale. He did what he said he would do on his web site! Thank you. And thanks to all of you all over the world, who acepted to pay this price for ten seeds minimum purchase!

Xavier was over to the tsingy this week-end and told me the tahinas were superb at the end of this rainy season. No new inflorescence coming out though. He will send me a few pics soon.

About 100 seedlings are thriving all around the tsingy.

Finally, here is a text Xavier sent me: the program of what will be done with the money.

The local community held some "meetings" to decide on some priorities to spend the money they have already received or are going to receive soon.

For time being they proposed the following divided in three groups :

Tahina spectabilis Conservation :

- Make an agreement with ANGAP (National NGO for nature reserve management) for training and organisation.

- Make fire breaks

- Clean arround the site

- Position fences against cattle on seedlings of last year and of the year

- create a path for visitors

- Train guides for leading tourism tour.

Infrastructure in villages :

- Improve wells and water points access where existing (x3)

- Create wells where not existing (x3)

- School roofing to make in corrugated sheets

- Plan an extension of the existing school (for time being 1 classroom for 80 kids)

- Village administration office to be roofed with corrugated sheets.

Agricultural practice improvement :

- Purchase of improved seeds (rice)

- Purchase of some tools (plows, pumps, harrows (?))

- Training for improved rice cultivation practices.

- Introduction of new varieties of food plants (Kasava, bambara peas, sorgho....)

For time being no budget had been calculated but this will be estimated soon and depending on the money available we would choose by priorities in each group.

Quite a program! Thanks again to Toby and all of you on this incredible adventure. bruno

[Breadfruit Bill]

Awesome news Bruno, thank you for keeping us informed. It is really cool to be a part of this adventure! I, as do other I'm sure, look forward to hearing updates on the local communities changes. It is amazing that a couple palms trees will have so much impact of so many lives.

[bgl]

Bruno,

Thank you VERY MUCH for this exciting update. It's wonderful to hear that the money has reached the local community, and that it will make such a dramatic difference for them. I'm sure I speak for all of us when I say that we're looking forward to more photos, as well as future updates! Personally I have had excellent germination on the seeds I bought from Toby, and hopefully within the next several years there will be Tahina spectabilis growing in a number of different locations here on the Big Island!

Bo-Göran

[Palm Guy]

Good news Bruno! I'm also glad to hear that our money made it to the village! Thanks to all who helped out. Hopefully in the near future we will have more seed available and that those funds will also go to the same village. Thanks for the update.