Hello - does anyone have any recommendations for cleaning Phytelephas macrocarpa palm seeds?  Do you think I should try a warm water soak?  Also, would a hydrogen peroxide solution soak be likely to make the seeds germinate more quickly?  Thanks for any help about this species!!!

Mate, I have absolutely no idea about that palm. But I would think that for any palm seed a warm water soak is unlikely to hurt them and may help.

And that a peroxide soak is very unlikely to speed germination, but will kill some external pathogens e.g. fungi which usually recolonize quite quickly.

But again probably won't hurt. Good luck, and you know that we all want to see pictures when they pop up.  :-)

Thank you gtsteve!  I actually called Floribunda palms on the Big Island of Hawaii and got a similar answer - although she said I will need a hammer ("tap gently") to open the husks.  So I will have to be Very Careful!  And I found an research article on the internet which stated, essentially, that this type of palm germination benefits from daily temperature swings - 77 F to 104 F.  So they are going to go on a heat mat with a temperature regulator.  It's rather a lot of fuss, but worth it for this rare species.  :-)

 

Meant to chime in earlier, but yes, use a hammer to crack and remove the outer husks. Don't worry about being too careful, the seeds are harder than some rocks......they are HARD! I have no idea how long they take to sprout because of their dense solid endosperm. 

Here are a few photos of P. tenuicaulis here in the garden and the cleaned seed. I left them too long after cleaning, so they probably aren't viable now. No worries, there is a new batch of seed on the palm ready to go.

Tim

Thanks for the photos and info, Tim.  Do you use the 77 to 104 temperature swing method for germination of the seeds?  (http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2317-15372017000100020).  Also, do you germinate the seeds in pots, plastic bags, or a plastic tub?  I'm going to need to use a heat mat, as temps are getting lower here on Kauai.

Jen, I've never germinated any seed from this genera, honestly it's easier for me to drive up the hill and grab a few 1 gallons and save a couple of years.

I do germinate other stuff using a variety of methods. Baggie with spaghnum moss, in pots with good soil, and sometimes I clean them, sometimes not. I have more stuff in the nursery than I will ever need and use as give-aways. I've never used a heating mat, and just leave everything outside in the carport. May take a bit longer, but more often than not, I get babies.

Tim

Stunning palms tim ..

10 hours ago, realarch said:

Jen, I've never germinated any seed from this genera, honestly it's easier for me to drive up the hill and grab a few 1 gallons and save a couple of years.

I do germinate other stuff using a variety of methods. Baggie with spaghnum moss, in pots with good soil, and sometimes I clean them, sometimes not. I have more stuff in the nursery than I will ever need and use as give-aways. I've never used a heating mat, and just leave everything outside in the carport. May take a bit longer, but more often than not, I get babies.

Tim

Tim, I contacted Floribunda but they didn't have any phytelephas at this time.  I've had an incredibly difficult time finding seeds - was starting to despair until a guy advertised some on the Tropical Fruit Forum - he's also on the Big Island.  I'm nervous about germination of the seeds because they were somewhat expensive, so I want to make sure I do it right.  But I like your idea - I think I may just leave a few in pots in the carport over the winter.  I will try a few different techniques, so hopefully out of my 15 seeds I will at least get a few.  :-)  - Jen