HelpfulGardener.com

I am a beginner and I've have been trying to grow a Flame Tree. They germinated nicely and two of them have already sprouted! Except they look a little funny. The seedlings grew with the seed shell over their leaves. The roots are fine and the stem is nice and healthy... but shell is covering the leaves like a bucket over a head. I tried gently tugging it off but it's on there tight. Should I try and pry it off or should I leave it be?

Was your soil moist enough? It could be that the seed shell might not have received enough moisture to soften. You can try gently misting it.

In general, for trees in the wild, seeds/nuts will sit on the soil and respond to the rain showers in the spring and begin to germinate, digging their roots into the ground as the shell softens, splits open and falls off.