Magnolia Seed Harvesting
Fall is a busy time in the Wister Center Greenhouse. Volunteers work on a variety of jobs including taking cuttings of tender and tropical plants; potting up cuttings; overwintering succulent plants and this year they have been busy harvesting magnolia seeds to contribute to the Magnolia Society International’s seed exchange, The Seed Counter.
Colorful array of magnolia fruit collected from the Scott Arboretum, Henry Foundation, and Morris Arboretum. photo credit: J. Coceano
We have gathered seed from the Arboretum’s collections, as well as from the Henry Foundation in Gladwyne and the Morris Arboretum in Chestnut Hill.
Stack of follicles bursting with magnolia seeds. photo credit: J. Coceano
Most magnolia seeds are found in large cone-like fruits called follicles.
Magnolia seeds removed from follicles and ready for soaking. photo credit: J. Coceano
Once the follicles open up and reveal the seed which is often red and covered in a waxy coat, the seed can be harvested.
Once removed from the follicles, seeds are soaked for three days. photo credit: J. Coceano
After the seeds are harvested, they are soaked in water for three days in order to loosen the seed coat. Our volunteers found the most effective way to remove the seed from the seed coat after soaking was to squeeze the fruit. The seed simply squirts out of the fruit.
Cleaned seeds are allowed to dry for a day. photo credit: J. Coceano
The seeds are then dried for a day or two. The seeds are packaged in slightly moist vermiculite and refrigerated. Do not store the seeds dry, because they rapidly lose viability under those conditions.
Arboretum Assistant (volunteer) Marianne DiPaulo packages seeds in moist vermiculite. photo credit: J. Coceano
The moist seeds are stratified for 2 to 4 months at 32 to 41 degrees Fahrenheit before planting. You can also fall- plant the seeds outdoors to allow nature to provide the cool, moist conditions for stratification.
Throughout the process it is important to keep the name and the source with the seed. Those who subscribe to the Magnolia Society’s seed exchange will make their selections based on species and source. To learn more about the Magnolia Society International and to participate in the seed exchange go to: www.magnoliasociety.org. Also, consider attending the next annual meeting in the Bay Area and Sonoma Valley.
As a whimsical aside on the wonders of seed germination, enjoy this video of our former summer intern, Jared Barnes impersonating our favorite super hero, Superseed. Happy propagating!
Sue Stark November 16, 2011 at 6:05 pm
Great pictures!
PS Jared’s not just a seed. He’s a nut!
Becky Robert November 17, 2011 at 8:50 am
He will definitely be a nutty professor some day. hahaha
vicki fox January 23, 2013 at 12:13 pm
Hi
I am an artist in Maine where I make rustic creations. I like using these magnolia seed pods which I collected when I used to live in PHila but I haven’t been able to identify nor have I found any growing up here. I have an image of them but I don’t seem to be able to include it in this email format…can you tell me where I can senbd it so you can see it? Also, Can you tell me what they are and do you know where there are some of these trees growing so I can search out the pods next fall? Do you have them at Scott Arboretum or somewhere nearby? I THINK its m. Kobus…
Thanks so much for your thoughts!
Vicki Fox
Green Team Gardeners
207.422.2324
215.205.9949
Jan January 30, 2013 at 7:04 pm
done with the harvesting and they’ve been in the fridge since november. but where do i plant them? just in the ground outside (live in vancouver, bc), or in a pot in the house first?
help, please and thank you!
Andrew Bunting January 31, 2013 at 8:36 am
The seeds should either stay in cold storage until the spring or you could plant them in pots now and put them outside for the winter. It will be important to have to pots protected from rodents however. In the spring the seedlings should start to germinate and you can then separate them out into individual pots.
Andrew Bunting, Curator