How to grow a pine tree from a seed yourself, planting and care
All pines are included in the genus pine of the Pinaceae family. All of them, without exception, belong to coniferous plants. The genus pine is distinguished by its variety of species and forms. There are giant pines, and there are dwarf and even creeping forms. Almost all pines are unpretentious, and because of their long needles and decorative forms, these trees are readily used in landscaping and landscape design.
When planning to plant a pine tree on your site, you can purchase a ready-made seedling, or you can grow a tree yourself. Let's try to figure out how to grow a pine tree from a seed. First of all, the success of growing any plant depends on the choice of planting material.
Content:
- How and where to find pine seeds for sowing
- Preparing pine seeds and soil for planting
- How to plant pine seeds, care for seedlings
How and where to find pine seeds for sowing
All pine trees have seeds in their cones. To stock up on planting material, you need to find pine cones. You can do this while walking in a forest or park where pine trees grow. We need to find the female cone that fell to the ground. It is best to choose a specimen with closed or half-open scales, since most of the seeds can spill out of the opened cone.
The best time to collect cones for planting is autumn, from September to November, until the ground is covered with snow. It is advisable to collect cones from under 2-3 trees. Place them in a bag and bring them home.If the cones are received open, then it is better to carefully examine them to see if there are at least a few seeds under the scales.
It is important to know that most pines bumps They ripen only in the second year. As a rule, the cone of the first year is green, the cone of the second year is brown or brown. If the cone is closed, then it needs time to ripen. To do this, the box with the collected material should be placed closer to the radiator or wood stove, or simply left in a warm and dry place.
As soon as all the scales open, you need to gently shake or lightly tap the cone so that the seeds fall out. From these you need to select well-developed specimens and use them for planting. Considering that wild pines reach enormous sizes, they are not always suitable for small areas; in this case, you can look for seeds of the desired type in stores.
When purchasing, it is important to pay attention to the shelf life, and pine seeds remain viable for up to 5 years, and to the characteristics of the tree. Its location on the site will depend on the size of the adult plant. It is advisable to obtain information about the number of needles of the purchased type of pine.
There is an opinion that the method of preparing seeds for planting depends on this. In addition, it is better to make a purchase from a trusted manufacturer or seller. After the planting material has been purchased, you need to properly prepare the seeds and soil for landings.
Preparing pine seeds and soil for planting
Seed preparation
Opinions on the need for preliminary stratification of pine seeds are divided. Some experts believe that this process does not affect the germination rate, while others consider stratification necessary.
In addition, it is enough to stratify seeds of species with two needles in a bunch for one month before spring planting, and with five needles - 4 months. For stratification, pine seeds are placed in a cool cellar or refrigerator. It is advisable to mix them with sand or peat and monitor the soil moisture.
If stone pine seeds are selected for sowing, then stratification will have to be carried out for growing at home. For seeds For other types, soaking them for 48 hours will suffice. To do this, place the seeds in a saucer or shallow plate and cover with settled water. After a day, change the water.
Remove all seeds floating on top, leaving only those that have sunk to the bottom. After soaking, it is advisable to keep the pine seeds in a solution of any growth stimulant, for example zircon. After this, just dry the seeds a little and you can start sowing.
Soil for sowing pine seeds
If there is no ready-made soil for conifers, then you can mix leaf soil with peat and sand in equal proportions. It is important that the soil is light and loose and allows water and air to pass through well. It would be ideal to add at least a little dry pine needles or coniferous soil, replacing part of the leafy soil with it. Even needles collected from a New Year tree will do. So, the soil and seeds prepared, all that remains is to sow.
How to plant pine seeds, care for seedlings
The method of sowing pine seeds is quite simple. Pots for sowing seeds must be at least 15 cm in height and filled with soil not to the very top, but 2 - 3 cm before the border of the pot. Moisten the soil and place the seeds at a distance of 2 cm from each other. Cover them with about 2 cm of soil on top. Cover the pot with glass and place in a warm place.
You can use the method of sowing in the ground. To do this, after the soil has thawed, the area is dug up using the bayonet of a shovel. A trench is made about 25 cm wide and filled with the same mixture as the pots for sowing pine seeds.
After which a groove is made, 2 cm deep, and the prepared seeds are placed in it. The grooves are covered with sand on top; its layer should not exceed 2 cm.
Every day, during the first week, once or twice a day, the sowing site needs to be moistened. In the second or third week, water only when the soil begins to dry out a little. After three to four weeks, green shoots should appear above the surface of the earth. After sowing pine seeds in the ground, it is important to protect the area from cats and dogs.
Of two ways sowing, it is better to choose the first one, since it is easier to ensure care and preservation in pots. In the first weeks, it is necessary to protect the seedlings from fungal diseases. To do this, they need to be sprayed several times with potassium permanganate; a light pink solution is enough. If the seeds are sown in pots, then after a year the young plants can be planted in separate containers. Pine seedlings should not be planted in a permanent place before they reach three years of age, but it is better to do this in the fifth spring.
Video about how pine cones are collected to obtain seeds:
