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Growing Native Plants from Seed

Fall is here, and maybe you didn’t get quite as many plants in the ground as you wanted to this summer, but it’s not too late to boost your bird-friendly garden. With many plants setting seed and fruiting this time of year, now is a great time to think about growing some of your favorite native plants from seed. This can be an economical way to add new species, or to encourage future generations of your favorite plants. Here are a few tips to help you get started.

• Look for fruits or seeds that are fully ripe. Ripe seeds are generally brown, firm, and dry with seed pods that are only slightly opened. Ripe berries should come off the parent plant with just a light tug.
• Many natural areas prohibit collection of any plant parts, so be sure to get permission when needed.
• Take at most only one-tenth of a plant’s seeds so that enough remain to perpetuate the population.
• Check nuts, like acorns or beech nuts, for viability by floating them in water. If they sink, they’re alright to plant, but if they float, toss them out.
• Remove fruit pulp from fleshy fruits by soaking the fruits in water for a week and/or working the pulp over a screen. For fruits that have very small seeds (like raspberries), you can smear the fruits on a paper towel to remove the pulp, and scrape off the seeds once the pulp has dried.
• If you plan to store seeds until the spring, have some small paper envelopes, snack-sized plastic baggies, and sticky name tags on hand to keep your seeds either dry or moist (according to species’ needs) and properly labeled.

You can sow cleaned seeds in the garden immediately, which requires the least amount of effort, but you may have more losses due to seed predators. Alternatively, you can sow seeds in prepared beds or pots kept in a cold frame. Label the beds or pots with stakes so that you can identify the seedlings in the spring; some seeds take two or more years to germinate, by which time you may have forgotten what you planted where.

You can also store your seeds until spring; just be sure to provide the correct storage conditions to prevent dessication, mold, or early germination. Some seeds can be stored dry in paper envelopes, while others require a cold-moist stratification period in a dampened soilless growing media or sand, usually for one to three months. Different plants require different “wintering” treatments, so check the conditions required for each species in The New England Wild Flower Society Guide to Growing and Propagating Wildflowers of the United States and Canada. For woody species, refer to Native Trees, Shrubs, and Vines: A Guide to Using, Growing, and Propagating North American Woody Plants. Both books are by William Cullina. If you don’t have access to these guides, you can also find good general propagation information and species-specific details in the Native Plant Database compiled by the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. The basic idea is to mimic the natural conditions that the seed would encounter if left to nature. In the spring, you can start seeds indoors, or sow directly in an appropriate location once the danger of frost has passed. If a seed begins to germinate while in storage, take it out and sow it immediately. Transfer it to the garden in the spring.

Growing your own native plants from seed can be a very rewarding way to establish your bird-friendly garden and ensure that the plants you grow will be adapted to your specific region. Get outside today, enjoy fall, and propagate some plants!