The first seeds to germinate were the honeylocust. Next was the Kentucky coffeetree. I was surprised to see the Sibereian Elm is coming up, and just today a wisteria popped up. So far so good.

The hot peppers are settled in and are getting larger. More heat!

I have only one "mystery" seed this year - I remember collecting them, but I can't remember what they were, or what they look like, or anything else. Getting old. We'll see what happens.

The first tray of seeds included (Tray A):

1. Katsura - I found a nice tree at Rockwood State Park near my house,
   in their walled garden area. I snagged some seeds last fall, and just held
   them in a plastic bag, dry, over the winter. All the little pods
   had split open and ejected the seeds.

2. Ginkgo - boy, do these things stink. My neighbor has a beautifully shaped tree, but the fruits are a little much, especially when they get onto my driveway and I hit them with my bike. I love the trees, though; there are several streets here in Wilmington that are lined with these guys, and when they turn yellow in the fall they are something to see. I collected these particular seeds over near the Gibraltar mansion - the trees are a nice columnar variety and I have a little one growing (4 years old) at my office.

3. Osage-Orange - I feel a little silly planting these guys, since they almost always germinate, and aren't much of a challenge. However, they are a good seed for beginners or kids, since they always come through. I'm growing a lot for a friend who wants to try a hedgerow this year. As usual, I left the fruits in a ziploc bag over the winter and just poured the mush into a strainer when I wanted to collect the seeds.

4. Siberian Elm - Most elms have spring seeds, but these are fall. There is a small tree in a park near my house, so one day I toted a ladder over there on my shoulder and collected some seeds. First time for these bad boys.

Tray B:

1. Poncirus - Hardy Orange - My goal for 2010 is to get one of these to survive over the winter. I manage to germinate and grow some of these each year,  but they do not overwinter. Maybe they need to be brought indoors until they get larger. 

2. Lilac - I was up in Vermont last fall for a cider festival, and found some seeds hanging onto a lilac tree outside the house where I was staying.

3. Rugosa Rose - I got a new supply of these from my friend's house in Maine last fall. I tried these last year, and got nothing.

4. Mountain Ash - I found these last year in Maine. I don't think I've seen them around Delaware.

5. Korean Dogwood - from Rockwood Park near my house. A lot of the native dogwoods suffer from anthrocnose around here, but these seemed to be in good shape last fall. 

Tray C:

1. Northern Catalpa - haven't grown these for a while, and I want to see how they do at my house. They grow here at my office, but are stunted except in one wet spot.

2. Persimmon - spotted this tree in Bellevue State Park, near the stables, last year and collected a bunch of seeds. Just shoved these in the dirt. I scored a few.

3. Lilac(?)  - well, I think these are lilacs - the city is planting them as street trees. I think the species is Himalayan lilac, based on the white flowers and that these are 15-foot trees.

4. Redbud - no mistaking these seed pods.  I scratched the seeds with sandpaper just before planting. I usually scarify them this way in the fall, but didn't last year.

5. Goldenrain - not to be confused with "Goldenchain" trees. These have very pretty pods in the fall. I have planted several here at my plant, and for some reason they seem to grow well in the mix of clay and old brick here.

6. Linden - I've never had any luck with these, and I'm not even sure if they are American linden, or littleleaf. Usually either the fruits shrivel up into a rock-hard ball, or they are total mush by spring. These were still soft and I could pick the seeds out easily.

Tray D:

1. Wisteria - I collected from a great trellis wisteria at Bellevue State Park  near my house. I just held the pods in a bag until the spring, then gave the pods a twist with my hands to get them to pop open. These seeds are easy: they  need just to be stuffed into the ground to germinate. I built a trellis last year for another climbing plant, but it isn't going very fast so I think I'll put a couple of these in with it.

2. Honeylocust - I collected these seeds last fall from my favorite  "wild" tree with lots of spines; last year was a seed year, since the tree  seems to produce seed pods only every 2 years.  As usual, I just made a little cut into the seed hull with a hacksaw, more like a scratch. A bunch of the seeds were hollow, and some little bugs crawled out. I remember collecting late in the fall last year, so apparently the bugs made their home over the winter.

3. Hornbeam - I found these on several good-sized trees on the Greenways trail between Bellevue State Park and Rockwood Park. I've never had any luck with them before; maybe this will be the year.

4. Ginkgo - boy, do these things stink. My neighbor has a beautifully shaped tree, but the fruits are a little much, especially when they get onto my driveway and I hit them with my bike. I love the trees, though; there are several streets here in Wilmington that are lined with these guys, and when they turn yellow in the fall they are something to see.

5. Kentucky Coffeetree - I love working with these giant seeds. This year I scored them with a hacksaw. I have a 16-footer here at the office I planted about 6years ago, and a 2-year-old one at my house. They get big, so it's tough finding a spot for them at the house, but I have some big trees with problems and these might replace them.

6. Mystery.

Here is the diagram of the e Trays A & B and Trays C & D.  Be sure to see the page for each individual seed type to learn more.

Here is the diagram of the planters.

Note: I get most of my seeds from Pepper Joe's ( (www.pepperjoe.com). I have had good luck with germination using their seeds, they have a great variety of seeds, the catalog is a lot of fun, and I recommend them. I do not receive anything from them for this endorsement.

My seed collecting started last fall,  with help from friends and readers who either sent me seeds, or directed me to a new tree.  The lineup for this year:

ginkgo
Kentucky coffeetree
sawtooth oak
osage orange
poncirus trifoliata (hardy orange)
wisteria
Northern catalpa
Chinese elm
katsura
persimmon
goldenrain tree
goldenchain tree
thorny honey locust

Welcome to the growing season of 2010.

Well, last year was disappointing at Trees From Seeds - lack of time, bad weather, too busy, the usual excuses. 2010 will be different, I hope.

I did some repair on my pepper boxes this year, replacing rotting wood and using the strapping machine from work to temporarily secure the most unstable box. The hop trellises at my house are ready for action, and I've enlarged the home garden to try some peppers at home.

The land around the office that was sold and clear last year is still vacant, and we are still here. The plant might be moving within a few years, but we are safe this year.

This year looks to be interesting, with some new seeds and another try at some old favorites.

I had a hop blight in 2009, hopefully not the same one that wiped them out the year before. If it returns this year I'll have to save some rhizomes and replant somewhere else.

And hot peppers: as usual, I will be growing way too many hot peppers. I made some interesting hot sauces and pepper jellies last year, and I hope to do more this year. My basement is full of hanging dried pepper plants.