How to Germinate Native Seeds In Ontario
Seeds are not created equal and germination methods vary to meet the needs of those seeds. If you have tried starting seeds with traditional warmth, grow lights and a ‘nurtured’ setting only to be met with failure it might be time to take a step back and look at where that plant thrives in nature.
Whenever we step into the role of gardener we are directly or indirectly mimicking Mother Nature. If we don’t get the successes we set out to achieve we can look to her to see where we went wrong.
Many annual seeds (tomatoes, marigolds) have a soft outer shell, allowing us to sprinkle them in soil outdoors, once it has warmed up or start earlier indoors in a similar method. Both are native to more temperate climates such as Mexico and South America. Native to Ontario seeds often have a hard coating that prevents the seed from sprouting prematurely as our winters freeze and thaw. This keeps them in dormancy until the time is right. We’ve all experienced the false springs only to be shocked by another blast of winter.
Native to Southern Ontario plants require the cold, moist weather that a Canadian winter brings. We can scatter them in the soil and hope for the best, but seeds are also nutrient storehouses and are what many critters rely on to survive the winter months. Moisture and temperature may not apply evenly. Wind, snow and rain may relocate your garden plans to another property.
How to Germinate Native Seeds In Ontario?
We germinate many native seeds by using “cold moist stratification” methods.
Use seedling trays outdoors.
Allow mother nature to do the work for you. Pot up your seeds and leave them outside to experience the natural swings of winter. This often requires a little safe proofing against critters and the elements. We are less prone to be monitoring our seed trays when the weather is unpleasant and a heavy rain can cause the potting mix and your seeds to splash out, tip over or become oversaturated if they are in trays without drainage. Winter winds tend to knock items over. But mother nature is usually much better at her own game then we are and this method has a great success rate.
Another option is to mimic nature indoors with a baggy method.
This requires you to soak the seeds, helping to soften the outer shell, drain and spread the seeds out onto a rung out, moist paper towel, place in a sealable bag and store in the fridge for at least a month. After 4-5 weeks the seeds can be potted up. The term “cold stratification” is referring to the same method but you skip the moist paper towel and use a dry one. Which method do you need? It depends on the plant.
The last few years winter sowing is making it’s rounds as a trendy way to get your seed starting fix without ending up with oversized plants in March.
It allows gardeners to get a head start on the growing season, doesn’t take up any space inside and is a set it and forget style of seed starting. This method works very well for plants requiring cold moist stratification and cold stratification but can also be used for various annuals and non natives (vegetables/flowers). It once again allows mother nature to do all the work, but it safeguards the seedlings in a little greenhouse. This is a fun project to do with kids! Clean and repurpose jugs. In my experience the bigger the jug the better. Less chance of tipping over, drying out and better airflow to prevent molding. Slice it around the middle leaving a hinge, add some drainage holes, fill with moistened potting mix, add your seeds, seal up the jug with duct tape and pop it outside where it is exposed to the elements (not under a canopy).
With all of these methods, we are using moist conditions to break the seed coatings down, prolonged cool temperatures to encourage dormancy and then gradual warming temperatures plus extended hours of sunlight to trigger an ‘awakening’. With the two outdoor methods there is no need for watching the calendar and counting back weeks, as Mother Nature will take care of the math for you.