Rose hip harvesting, and such.

[Beecmcneil]

Hello fellow green thumbs.
I have a few questions. are the seeds in rose hips that are dry on the outside(still reddish), but moist on the inside still viable? And if so, should I plant them right away (02/03/13) if I'm in The Bay Area, California? If its not a good time to start, when should I plant them, and how might I store my seeds till that time comes? Your answers are much needed, as I am eager to grow something other than the snapdragons I took from a local planter and stuck into the planter outside my window.
Sincerely,
Bee

[luis_pr]

I think one waits about 4 months before cutting off the rose hips. See this link to the Santa Clarita Valley Rose Society Website's instructions on How To Grow Roses From Seed:

https://scvrs.homestead.com/HybridizeKB1.html

[Beecmcneil]

But... I'm just trying to find out if the seeds are still viable. The hips were hard but still reddish . I'm not sure how long the hips have been on the plant, it's actually a neighbors plant, I stopped and took some of the hips, as it doesn't seem like the plant was getting much care there, so I thought I'd give it a better home. I got 124 seeds from like seven hips. Do I have good odds of getting a good plant? I can't wait to breed mine with another variety. I don't even know what colour the roses will be. Will all the seeds produce the same plant? I read somewhere that they all have different traits but I don't know.

[luis_pr]

The water float test says to use only those seeds that sink to the bottom when you soak the seeds in water. I have seen pros/cons to this and have not tried it but a lot of people use this test so it is worth trying it out. Basically discard the seeds that float and use the one that sink to the bottom. After cleaning the seeds, most people suggest that you startify them for 6-10 weeks in the fridge to prevent mold from occuring.

There is no way to tell ahead of time what color of blooms the new plant will have but I think that is part of the excitement as all seeds will not produce the same plant. There will be variations from one to another.

[Beecmcneil]

Thanks so much man. Most of my seeds sank, so I've got good odds. I read that out of 100 seeds 15-30 will germinate. I'm so excited. What is the stratifying process?

[luis_pr]

Just a fancy word for chilling the seeds in a refrigerator for several weeks. The link above gives details. You put them inside a folded paper towel that has been moistened using water and peroxide (half and half of each) and then store the folded paper towel inside a tightly sealed baggie (zipper bag). Check the moisture every 2 or 3 weeks.

See the paragraph titled "To Stratify or Not to Stratify" (in the link above) and the ones that follow for details.

[tomc]

Rose seed are always under-performers. Seed sets late in the summer and are ready to pick after the hip changes color. (Red or black being the most common change-to-colors.)

Rose hips need to be cold stratified outdoors in the cold (and cyclic weather). Repeat outdoors, your fridge don't recreate the same cycles.
Cold stratification in your refridgerator, never works as well. If you have spouses or children, don't act surprised when they throw your seeds out. Did I mention to not use the fridge?

If you set your germinating pans out in October, seed will germinate in the spring.

The longer you dry or store rose seed the longer they they can take to germinate.

Even when setting rose seed promptly to pans, I have had a flush of germinating rose babies, and the discarded soil has produced a second flush of babies the next year.

Throroughly dried seed can just sit there and do nothing for a full year.

If you want a full description of seed inhibitors in woody plants, Mike Dirr will tell you more than you wanted to know. (try Manual Of Woody Plants).

Spoongy and icky hips are just as viable as dry ones. If not as fun to handle.