Win and germinate

Harvest seeds at the right time - that's how it works

You cannot grow tulips from seeds until you have a central aspect in the Maintenance program leave it on the left. To the seed too to harvest, the withered flowers must not be cut off. Only under this condition do the hoped-for seed pods develop from pollinated flowers. Tulipa usually take 8 to 10 weeks for this ripening process. This is how you reap Tulip seeds for the sowing correct:

• Harvest-ready seed pods are completely dried and brown in color
• Carefully cut off the seed heads or break them off with two fingers
• Grind the capsules between your hands over a bowl

Then use a sieve to separate the seeds from the remains of the capsule. If necessary, sift through the seeds several times.

Stratify first - then sow - this is how you do it right

So that tulip seeds do not germinate prematurely, Mother Nature has equipped them with a sprout inhibitor. A cold period of several weeks is required before sowing in order to motivate the seeds to germinate. You can implement the process known as stratification in technical jargon in this way:

• The fresh seeds in the clay pot on a mix Potting soil and sow and pour sand
• Sieve thinly with sand and cover with a layer of small pebbles or aquarium gravel
• Set up in the partially shaded place in the garden for 4 to 6 weeks

After 2 months at the latest, life starts to stir in the tulip seeds. Long, green seedlings sprout as spring progresses. Keep the seed slightly moist during this time. Only when the shoots wither and fall off, the longed-for tulip bulbs have developed at their ends. Get the tiny ones out of the ground to put them in the pot of leaner Potting soil to plant.

In a mild winter, put it in the refrigerator

If winter comes with consistently mild weather, tulip seeds in the garden do not experience the necessary cold stimulus. Now you can convert the vegetable compartment of the refrigerator into a simulation room for winter weather. Put the seeds in a plastic bag with damp sand or sphagnum. Tightly closed, deposit the seeds for 4 to 6 weeks at temperatures between - 4 and + 4 degrees Celsius. Only then do you sow the stratified seeds in pots with potting soil.