Hi George, I sink the pots so the soil in the pot is at the same level as the soil in the surrounding ground with the pot lip sticking up an inch or two so I can water well. I use a peat mixed with any potting soil and a little sand to facilitate drainage. I have a volcanic silty sand surrounding the pots (my poor volcanic soil) so the seeds never are sitting in water. The mixture doesn't seem as important as keeping the seeds in the ground. If I didn't have freezing temps I would put the seeds in the freezer for a 6-8 weeks after they are moist. That breaks down the seed coat as well as the heat in the summer before. I was surprised how easily they all sprouted and their survival. These plants grow in the harsh high desert conditions with high winds, hot summers with cool nights and freezing with some snow. They are hardy beings. The Sculpture Garden is an amazing place in an amazing setting. If the winds are right Kokopelli's flute plays. The artist lives on site. When one visits you are usually the only person around and it is all the more powerful. Anne On Wed, Jul 11, 2018 at 7:02 AM, George Goldsmith <g_goldsmith@hotmail.com> wrote: > Joe, > > Thank you for this thorough description for addressing seed treatment. I > appreciate your help and the time you took to pen your reply. Thanks again. > > George > > -----Original Message----- > From: pbs [mailto:pbs-bounces@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net] On Behalf Of > Joe G > Sent: Wednesday, July 11, 2018 5:05 AM > To: Pacific Bulb Society <pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net> > Subject: Re: [pbs] California Peonies > > The treatment I've been using (for species tree peonies) is to remove the > radicle end of the seed coat (carefully!), cold moist stratify until the > radicle forms, then soaking in giberillic acid and sowing the seeds > normally. I've read about folks simply scarifying, soaking in GA-3, and > stratifying, as well as all other manner of pretreatment (soaking in > rubbing alcohol, soaking in indoleacetic acid, anaerobic fermentation, > maybe a combination of all of the above!) > > -joe > > > On Wed, Jul 11, 2018, 12:49 AM John Wickham <jwickham@sbcglobal.net> > wrote: > > > George, > > Seeds require treatment. They have a very tough outer coat that should > > be nicked to allow for better germination. There are other treatments > > that may be effective too. > > > > If you can't find seed, Las Pilitas in Santa Margarita sells plants. > > John Wickham > > > > On Tuesday, July 10, 2018 8:56 PM, George Goldsmith < > > g_goldsmith@hotmail.com> wrote: > > > > > > I'm writing to see if anyone on the list has had experience growing > > either of the two California native peonies, Paeonia brownii or > > Paeonia californica. If so, can you provide any guidance on growing > > these from seed? Also, if anyone is aware of sources for seeds for > > these two plants, that would be helpful also. Thank you. > > > > George Goldsmith > > (33.998702, -117.797542) > > _______________________________________________ > > pbs mailing list > > pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net > > http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/… > > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > pbs mailing list > > pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net > > http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/… > > > _______________________________________________ > pbs mailing list > pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net > http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/… > _______________________________________________ > pbs mailing list > pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net > http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/… > _______________________________________________ pbs mailing list pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/…