Germination of Coast Redwood (sequoia sempervirens)

12/4/2012

Having only once before attempted to grow this rather temperamental species I thought that as I am selling this seed I need to know how well it performs in real growing conditions rather than quoting laboratory germination result statistics.

The seeds were placed in a ziplock freezer bag, the bag was then filled with enough ordinary cold tap water (with no sterilisation) to immerse the seeds. The bag was then sat on a shelf at room temperature for approximatly 24 hours. I then hung the bag up in an outbuilding using a bulldog clip and pierced several times at the base to allow the water to escape. I then gently squeezed out the remaining water with my hand and placed the bag in the fridge. This process is known as naked prechilling.

Expecting a delay of at least 4 weeks until any signs of root emergence I was greatly surprised to see lots of seeds with small white roots after only 15 days. I removed the germinating seeds individually with tweezers and placed them 1 seeds per cell into plug trays. The remaining unsprouted seed was returned to the fridge. I check the bag every 4/5 days, I have found that new seeds are continually germinating which I remove from the bag for planting in cell trays.

I'll just let the seeds in the plug trays develop for a few more days and I'll upload a photo.

Cheers,
Michael.

Photo of Sequoia sempervirens seedlings-just a few days old

They are difficult to photograph well at this early age

The same seedlings at 6 weeks just after having been moved into bigger growing cells.

56 Comments

palnter

22/7/2012 06:23:29

very nice :)

Phil

17/5/2020 21:03:26

Hi, so I don't just chill them for 4 weeks then partially sow them?

You mention just a plastic zip bag water for 24hrs drain then stick in the fridge and they will start rooting?

Do I need to put like a wet towel or something in the plastic zip bag?

Willy

22/8/2012 00:02:27

It's really nice. As I've heard some people said that the germination rate is pretty low for redwood. You did a great job!! Did you use fresh seeds? Thanks much. ;)

michael link

22/8/2012 14:08:12

The germination rate is lower than for many other conifer species. The seed lot than I am growing and selling is lab tested at 22% germination which is within the normal range. The seed was collected in 2010 and can be successfully stored for many years under the correct conditions. Best wishes, Michael

24/8/2012 04:32:51

I just took my coast and dawn redwood seeds out of refrigerator after stratifying them for 4 weeks and sew them in sterile soil. I put the seed sowing container in dark place around 77 - 89 degrees. Hopefully they will germinate. Keep my fingers crossed.

Alex

18/1/2013 08:51:29

Hi!
What kind of soil is the best to germinate?

Ian

17/9/2013 16:21:14

Vermiculite is best to get seeds to germinate, then once this has happened pot them up using seed compost as its nice and fine.

Ian

mark

20/7/2014 02:08:37

hi
great pics.

I've been growing redwoods for about 15 years and have just started to plant them out in and around the Newcastle area - Guerrilla gardening is alive and well! I've set myself a target to get 100 trees planted out and thriving....maybe i'll start a blog?

cheers

Mark

Carl

12/1/2016 23:15:09

Hi Mark, drop me a line via the Redwood Trees group on Facebook. im very interested in what you are doing, and would love to help out in other areas! Carl

Nick Onassis

15/6/2019 11:23:09

I have a redwood forest of over 80 trees at my vineyard in Tasmania.
My Dad planted them all from seeds he germinated over 30 years ago.
I have collected seed this year and am going to try my luck germinating them.

hank

30/11/2016 02:52:48

hi Mark i just started a small nursery here in Indonesia on redwood sempervirens and have manage to plant 11 on my premise. its almost 2 years old now and i would like to start using them as mother trees for vegetative propagation do you think its a better idea then starting from seeds. rgds

1/12/2016 15:04:02

hi hank
firstly, you should definitely join the Redwood Trees group on Facebook (if youre on) and post some photos. It sounds fantastic what youre doing.
Ive only ever grown the trees from seed but you've got me thinking about propagation now! Id say taking the cuttings from a more mature specimen which is thriving in the environment youre looking to plant in would be a good idea.
This will ensure that your new trees are genetically suited.

Please let me know what you decide to do and hope to see you on Facebook! all the best!

James hartley

26/9/2021 08:51:15

Do you still grow them ? I’d be interested in working with you

esteban

22/9/2014 15:05:55

I've been worried about germinating conifers on the same container. In my experience, i've always failed to get ever the most tiny pine seedling from the forrest flor.

Osama

16/4/2016 07:52:44

Hi all,
I am very interested in growing this magnificent tree here in Benghazi, LIBYA.
I love to have sequoia sempervirens seeds, the problem that I can neither use PayPal (PP Band Libya) nor Visa.
I can though send other tree seeds, I have Pinus Pinea , Pinus Halepensis, Cypress sempervirens.

Any body intrested to help me get these seeds?

Canyon

22/11/2016 07:18:50

I would be willing to exchange Sequoia semperviren seed for your Pinus and Cypress seed. I would also be able to include Sequoiadendrum giganteum and Metasequoia. My email is [email protected] if you would like to contact me.

Alan

29/3/2020 15:23:08

Send me your address and I'll ship some to you freshly harvested from the coast of California where I live. Hope this gets to you even though you posted 4 years ago?

Will

17/4/2020 12:14:12

Hey Alan, I noticed you have one of the most recent responses and are likely to see this. I am currently trying to get into Bonsai and I want to create a multi tree Bonsai display to recreate some pictures of Hyperion. Unfortunately living in USDA 3b, this is the only viable way for me to grow these amazing trees since my climate cant support them naturally. But I'll be damned if I can't at least do my part to grow them in some form or another haha.
I have had issues finding seeds from companies with good reviews. Do you think I could purchase some of those fresh seeds from you? My email is [email protected]. Thanks for reading this!

Gonzalo

18/4/2020 15:51:30

Hello Alan,

Thanks for your proposal.
This year they are running out of stock.
Please drop me an email to [email protected] so that I would be able to share my address to you.
Thanks in advance

Sergiu

2/11/2020 14:42:10

Hi Alan

I have grown coastal redwood trees successfully out of seeds, but the low germination rate is becoming frustrating and the germination rate keeps dropping with time. Does your offer still stand? I'll be more than happy to buy some seeds from you.

Looking to hear from you.

Richard Morgan

5/10/2024 13:52:57

Hi Alan I'm currently doing the same thing here in the UK
I currently have 25 giant redwoods and 40 coast redwood plants I plan on planting them out in the wild I would love to receive redwood seeds especially from California I will be more than happy to pay postage fee's if you would be willing to send them.
Kind regards
Richard

Dale W. Merrell

5/5/2016 03:19:24

I want to gather my own seeds and attempt to germinate them. I have access to three trees that are about 80 to 100 years old. I believe they are coastal sequoia. The question I have not found the answer to is how do I know when a pine cone has mature seeds in it that have a chance of being germinated. I know you have male and female parts on the same tree but during what time of the year should you pick the pine cones to harvest their seeds?

5/5/2016 11:38:38

I would try picking the closeed mature cones and the closed green cones that look full. I've had succes with cupressus in that way. After drying (some heating up may help) they open apart easily.

David Snider link

6/1/2022 20:18:16

Hello, Viability is usually the oldest trees. At 80 to 100 years, those trees are still considered young, and not mature, although there have been reports of viability being at an age of 24 years. There is even proof that a tree just one year old produced a cone. Of course this cones seeds are not viable. If your tree is 80-100 years old. Consider viability only at 5-10% compared to 25-40% for very mature trees. If you want viable seeds, i have a couple hundred thousand coastal redwood seeds! :-) [email protected]

chris

25/7/2016 06:13:11

I'm in WNY, and have a huge tract of land that hopefully I can get a grove going. I have a few thousand seed of Sequoia/Coastal/Dawn. My property is 99% sandy loam soil, and has a grade to it (drainage). I will be using Groasis Waterboxx(water column), and Mycorrhizae soil mix (root development). Jiffy 50 mm Forestry Pellets seem the best or Containers SC 10. In early stages the seedlings need to be insulated from harsh cold drying wind. Once large enough hoping they will be fine. When large enough will pipe up water (misting system) to simulate fog that they are use to on the West Coast.

13/9/2016 18:48:02

Hi Michael

I've successfully germinated S. giganteum and S. sempervirens seeds bought from you and from somewhere else. I couldn't though grow them over a certain age.
I've read your germination instructions for both species and saw there are several differences in the methods used. For S. giganteum you recommend a compost mix with just a cover of vermiculite, for S. sempervirens you recommend just vermiculite. I've always used vermiculite with success for S. giganteum, but I'd like to retry growing S. sempervirens. Which substrate is better?
Thank you

17/11/2016 07:56:22

HI All, I am in Indonesia and have been trying to have my own nursery for Giant Redwood,Wellingtonia. i have bought these seeds from you and have manage to plant around 11 trees on my property. the area is ideal for giant redwood. i am in zone 9 and the get regular fog during the rainy season. my question is can i do vegetative propagation on mothers trees only 2 years old. Thank you

22/11/2016 07:25:06

Hi Hank,
I would wait to do any vegetative propagation. While it would be possible, S. sempervirens clones best when it is more mature. Staking it down now will promote sites for later propagation, though

Ken

28/11/2016 23:40:33

I have been told the Giant California Sequoia Redwood's seeds do not germinate without fire. Is this true?

6/1/2022 20:12:48

No that is not true, However, Fires are essential to many seeds being released. Seeds can also be released by cone eating beetles and Chickaree squirrels. The cones that Chickaree squirrels hide underground for years, can be opened by fire in huge numbers. potentially releasing tens of thousands of seeds in just one location

Alan Morriss

28/6/2017 10:00:53

this might be of interest . i sent some sempervirens seeds to my friend in reykjavik , iceland. he wanted to try growing them as it seldom goes below - 10. he has germinated 3 , and i have sent him some root grow mycorrhizal fungus starter as there is not much chance of a suitable root fungus there. if they live they will be growing north of the arctic circle.

Daniel Buckley

18/8/2017 13:27:34

Hi there,
I am based in Ireland and would be interested in growing coast redwood. Is it best to purchase the seeds in the springtime from you so I can place them outside once they are a certain age or can they be grown at anytime?

Many thanks
Daniel

Andrew

26/9/2017 20:43:52

I have planted three Redwoods at 950 feet in North Wales. Lots of mist here but some impressive winds at times. My arboretum is 18 months old now! Andrew

Selskar

29/5/2021 02:35:32

Hi Andrew

I'm in Ireland, I'm very interested to follow your progress

Shane

14/12/2017 20:04:48

Hello,
I've been trying pretty unsuccessfully to grow a Coastal Redwood in Denver, CO. I got a handful to sprout (7/50) but they didn't last too long after that. I did leave them with a friend for a week, so that might not have helped. I'm going to try again but I'm looking for advice on what soil to use for germination and when I would transplant them to a different soil. I'm growing them inside with a growing lamp since it is dry and cold in Denver this time of year. I was also considering getting a humidifier for my room. Any thoughts?

Thanks,
Shane

david Snider link

6/1/2022 20:24:30

Hey there. You need to be misting often, everyday, several times a day. They need to be near the window, getting at least partial sunlight. Your soil needs to drain properly, with sandy loomy soil. i would also recommend vermiculite, perlite and coconut coir as a mixed soil along with some sand. once your sapling is an inch or two, it needs to go outside. Its not a houseplant and is naturally exposed to hot and cold elements. However, Coastal redwoods in hot temperatures require water, if there is no foggy conditions on a semi daily basis. Spray bottle works good

11/5/2018 14:36:39

I have a Question where is the origin of the seeds , i want the oregon ones because im living in a more cold climate

sam woo

24/10/2018 22:59:27

Hi,
Where can I buy good quality coast redwood seeds?

thanks in advance

Dillan Wood

8/5/2020 02:51:53

Will it work with my redwoods If I put them in a paper towel (damp, ringed out) and out into a baggy and than the fridge, or just in a drawer to germinate. I’ve used this method before with seeds and it works really well.

I had them in the paper towel in a baggy for 3 days now and than came across this. Seen how you did it so I’m curious if I can just put them in the fridge to chill them until they sprout.

Thank you

2/11/2020 14:44:43

Coastal redwood seeds don't require stratification. You can sow them right away in sterile soil mixed with perlite and covered with a thin layer of vermiculite. You can substitute vermiculite with perlite if you don't have any.

Alexander

9/1/2021 15:22:52

I have mould growing on my sprouting seeds.
Can any one advise what best to do? Thanks

David Snider

6/1/2022 20:26:53

Stop watering so much, add vermiculite to topsoil or repot into new soil that is sterile.

Kev

23/1/2021 14:33:02

I'm having a nightmare.

I've soaked the seeds for 24hours in water, I then placed the seeds in a kitchen towel, sprayed them with water, folded the kitchen towel and put it in a zip lock bag in the fridge.
The seeds have been in the fridge for about two months now but I have not had any signs of growth.

Am I doing something wrong? Please help.

Jack Sparrow

23/1/2021 14:38:32

@Kev

Take them out of the fridge and leave them out at room temperature for 1-2 weeks. They ought some to sprout. The germination rate is extremely low for coastal redwood seeds, so don't expect more than 2%-5% germination rate. I've had 2 out of 100 germinating from my last batch.

6/1/2022 20:28:43

Coastal Redwood Seed germination is 20-40% from VIABLE MATURE Coastal Redwoods.

If you want viable seeds, i have a couple hundred thousand coastal redwood seeds! :-) [email protected]

Nezih

29/1/2021 14:11:53

Are there anybody who can help me about how cuttings could be propagated? seqouia giganteum? [email protected] from Turkey

Sincerely yours.

New Jersey CIF link

27/2/2021 03:47:21

Very thoughtfful blog

Michael

29/5/2021 02:32:00

Brilliant blog, I'm loving every comment. I saw a redwood in our local university and fell in love. So far I haven't managed to germinate a single seed despite sowing months ago. That said I'm going to keep trying as any video I've seen of them just makes my heart skip a beat.

Those of you planting them in local woods that's amazing and a real treat for your next generations

Why are these species so magical and why do they capture our imagination so readily

I feel there should be a Dawn Redwood convention or global get together of the people who try to germinate these magnificent forces of nature.

Good job to everyone who has a healthy sapling.

My ambition is to have a few so I'm going to keep trying. This blog is gold dust thanks so much for providing a space for people to share experiences

Mario

7/9/2021 20:01:27

Hello!

I to am into growing sequoias.
Started growing them 10 years ago and they usually would not survive the summer. Now I tried again and found a nice shaded spot, watered them properly and the tiny giant is now almost 10cm tall. I leave in southern Europe and now I don't know on what to do with my baby plant over the winter.

Can someone give me an advice?

Over here winter temperatures are around 0 to -5 deg Celsius, but there are days when they fall to -10, even -20.

Should I keep in inside my apartment and water when dry?
Or....???

6/1/2022 21:30:43

Wrap your young trees in Burlap sacks before it gets too cold. This will prevent the trees from being too wind wiped especially when it gets so cold

JoeDoe

8/9/2021 07:57:28

Hi Mario

If you're growing giant sequoia, under no circumstances should you leave them indoors during the winter as they will DIE.

Move them to an enough large pot, > 10% of the current one your trees are growing in and leave them outside during the winter, protected with leaves or sawdust; the pots should be buried in leaves. The trees need to go dormant and need to be watered the last time just before the temperatures drop. If you'll protect them with leaves or sawdust they will survive -20 C as mine have.

9/9/2021 15:54:34

JoeDoe hi!

Yes I am growing giant sequoia.
Thank you very much for the advice.

So, last watering should be some days before temperatures reach freezing (0 Celsius)?

After winter when should I uncover the leaves and start watering again? Somewhere just before spring when temperatures reach 10 deg Celsius?

Best regards,
Mario

9/9/2021 19:16:55

Hi Mario

You could water them before the temps drop to 0, let's say 5 degrees C, before the root ball freezes, which will freeze completely below -5 or even -10 C.

Giant sequoia are loving water, and they will die if the root ball goes dry even once for more than a few days.

When you will see new signs of growth, when the trees will wake up from their dormant state and start the vegetative growth, you could start watering them. Signs of vegetative growth is when they will turn green again from bronze, brown as it happens during the winter. The brown color is just something that happens in their natural habitat, because of cold winds burning their needles.Once the temps will increase and spring will come, they will change color and turn green again. Protection by covering them in leaves mulch diminishes that burn somewhat.

Check my instagram, where I've posted some pictures ofmy trees in their mulch protective bed during winter.

JoeDoe aka dr.giant.sequoia on Instagram. Check my profile!

https://www.instagram.com/dr.giant.sequoia/

George Pietersen

15/6/2022 17:15:57

Hi there,

I have just received my order of 100 Coastal Redwood seeds. Its winter here in South Africa now. How long should I cold stratify the seeds for and in what medium would be best ?

Olivia link

22/9/2022 12:02:46

Great Article! Thank you for sharing this is very informative post, and looking forward to the latest one.

188 JILI link

14/3/2024 08:32:16

Your writing style is also fantastic! It kept me hooked from beginning to end. It's clear you put a lot of thought and effort into it, and it definitely shows. I'm definitely going to be sharing this with my friends and family.

Germination of Coast Redwood (sequoia sempervirens)

Photo of Sequoia sempervirens seedlings-just a few days old

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