planting apple seeds

[thebean]

what is the best way to go about planting apple seeds. I am not looking for true apples as a result, more of an experiment with my kids.
I think they cought my gardening bug. I have done multiple searches and found various ways of starting seeds but am looking for someone who has some experience here.

All I need is the info to get the seeds started. I can take it from there.

[petalfuzz]

I did this same experiment as a kid--with no adult supervision. I gathered some seed and let it dry out (not very long, maybe a few weeks to a month at most). Then plant it about 1/2 inch deep and moisten the soil. I then sat my tray under the grow light with a timer on 8-10 hours a day. I got almost every seed to come up.

These seeds will be pretty tender, though. So if one seedling looks like it might be diseased, remove it from the tray so it won't infect the others. Good luck.

If you want to plant citrus seeds, they don't need to be dried first--just go directly from the fruit to the soil.

[Gnome]

thebean,

I have started Crab Apples from seed three times so far, it is not difficult. One thing I would suggest is that you do stratify the seeds. A period of moist chilling of at least six weeks will help, Dirr and Heuser reccomend between one to four months. While the seeds can be dried and stored I don't believe there is any requirement for such. If you have fresh seed now I would skip the drying process an go straight to stratifying them. Plant them in the spring when the weather has warmed. Watch out for aphids and other nasties, Malus seem to be susceptible to many diseases.

As petalfuzz noted Citrus seeds are pretty easy as well but of course you will have to overwinter them inside which is not the case with Apples. If you are considering purchasing seeds Zelkova is a strong grower that is not as prone to disease and can stay outside.

Norm

OK a little addendum; some quick research shows some dispute as to whether the seeds require drying. One source says not to dry them, another says they must be dried and Dirr and Heuser state

Code: Select all

In nursery practice unstratified seed can be sown in late fall or stratified seed can be sown in the spring.

To me this sentence implies that freshly collected seed are sown outside with no drying, they then stratify naturally over the winter. When I did this I did dry (and later stratify) them because I collected them in fall for sowing in pots the next spring.

[thebean]

TY for the help. I have tried to plant orange seeds right from the fruit but they have done nothing in almost three weeks now. I have ordered over thirty trees to arrive this spring so i will have more then my hands full with those. I also have a agarden with several varities of seed I planted in the past fall. collected from walks along the niagara gorge. I am in no despirate need of trees just trying to include the kids in my hobbies without wasteing/ ruining expensive trees. Many thanks for your knowledge and research.

[Solveig]

I sow some orange seeds a couple of years ago. I took the seeds right from the fruit, but before sowing I soaked the seeds in water for a couple of days. I don´t remember exactly how long it took before the seeds germinated, it might well have taken longer than three weeks. Anyway, the seeds germinated at some point and now I have two orange plants that are about 30 cm high.

[applestar]

This is an unfounded notion of mine: Both apples and oranges are normally stored refrigerated
(1) Apple seeds from long-term storage (months after they were in season) tend to sprout. Some people have reported finding sprouted seeds IN their apples = apple seeds were cold stratified in storage
(3) Orange (and other citrus) seeds from long-term storage tend NOT to sprout. = orange seeds were stunted from too long in sold. = better chance of success with seeds from in-season citrus not too long in storage

So I think right now is your best chance for growing grapefruits and oranges.
For apples, look up ripening season for different variety of apples and try the ones that were harvested earlier in the fall (Granny Smith, for example, is a late season apple. FYI - for PA area, Adams County Nursery has a pretty comprehensive apple ripening chart on their website.

If anyone can confirm my idea, let me know

[jal_ut]

I have many times grown apple trees from seed. What I do is plant it outside in the fall. It overwinters in the ground and sprouts in the spring.

I have also accidently grown apples plums apricots and peaches because I tossed the remains of the food preparation on the garden for the organic matter, and next year little trees grow. If they are in a row and not bothering anything, I let them grow and move them in the fall to the windbreak or use them for soil erosion control.

I have not tried drying seed and sprouting that apple seed in the spring. applestar brings up a good point about getting seed from winter stored apples. Many tree seeds need the action of wintering over before they will sprout.

Other trees that can be grown from seed besides fruit trees, are maples, walnuts, ash, locust, and many others. I have always planted them outdoors in the fall.

Good luck.

[thebean]

TY all for keeping this post alive I took some apple seeds put them in a paper towel placed them in the refridge for well since the origin of this post, took them out a few weeks ago soaked over night planted and poof they sprouted about 6 days ago. they seem to have taken a lot longer then I expected to sprout but either way there here. Thanks again to all for your ideas and help.

[applestar]

Congratulations! I hope your kids were thrilled!

I have to admit after contributing to this thread, I ran to the fruit basket and found an apple that was late summer/early Sept maturing variety, so I tried sowing the seeds. I think I put some in a flowerpot outside, and I put some in some of the indoor pots. I actually didn't even record the name of the original apple, and all I can say is that it sprouted some time ago, but I have a seedling growing next to an avocado seedling right now. Initially, I didn't even know WHAT it was. I'd been burying seeds from every fruit I ate like a squirrel for a while.

Edited to add on March 25:
Here's a photo. It's been doing well in this SE window. I just up-potted it into a 4x4x5D pot.

[paul wheaton]

My understanding is that an apple tree grown from seed has a tap root - a transplanted tree does not.

[JONA878]

The main thing to rememeber is that an apple tree grown form seed will be a completely new variety.
As only one of the trees parents will be known it will not be true to the mother tree.
So you will have to call it whatever you want.
Second, of course, is that because it will be growing on its own roots and not grafted to a root stock, you can not be sure how strong it will grow....it may be dwarfing it may be a large one.....who knows?
If an apple has the words ' Seedling or Pippin ' after its name then it too was grown from a seed without the named cross known.

Jona.