Questions about seeds from hot and dry summer areas
Mary Sue Ittner (Wed, 18 Jun 2003 10:07:59 PDT)

Dear John,

I have had the experience of having seeds of Mediterranean things in seed
pots germinate the second year in the same pot that I have left dry over
summer. Some come up the first year and some come up the second. I usually
move the seed pots that don't come up at all into the shade and let nature
take over so that means dry unless you count the fog drip. I don't think my
percentage of second year germination is very high, but some things do come
up. I suppose to be really scientific you'd have to have two pots and water
one and let the other one go dry.

I agree that there are species like Trillium, Scoliopus, Disporum, etc.
that need to be planted right away and kept moist until they come up. At
least it has been my experience that if I let them go dry they never came
up. But many of these are woodland plants where it is cool and perhaps they
get fog drip too or as Jane points out the ants have moved the seed
underground.

Mary Sue