Saxifragia seed starting

[Rimmer]

 just received a bunch of saxifrage seed packages and i was wondering when i should sow them and if i should sow them inside in pots outside in pots or outside  in-situ?

Rimmer

[Todd Boland]

I generally start them in pots but they do require a cold treatment.  I sow them in the fall and leave them in the cold frame then they (hopefully) come up in the spring.  You may have to leave them in the pot (thinned out of course) for a year until they are large enough to pot up or plant out.

[Rimmer]

Hi Todd:
how is the snow cover in St John's??
If i was to keep the seeds for fall sowing should they be stored frozen or in the refrigerator

Rimmer

[Todd Boland]

Part of my garden is snow-free while parts have 6 feet!  We are expecting 6-10 inches more tomorrow.  However, up until 2 weeks ago, the garden was practically devoid of snow...very unusual and I guess we are now making up for it.

I'd keep the seeds in the fridge...I've gotten them to sprout 2 years later when kept in the fridge, but maybe they would have been fine at room temperature.

[McGregor]

I sow Saxifraga seed from the seed exchanges as soon as I get it. So I've just sown the seed from NARGS - and some will germinate this year. I have kept Saxifraga seed at room temperature and in a fridge. At room temperature germination can be very patchy the following year (sometimes nil), from the fridge it can be very good or again nil. My philosophy in general is to sow immediately.

[Rimmer]

Hi Malcolm, no one mentions saxifragia needing a cold period to germinate, is this the case?

Rimmer

[McGregor]

I've never found any particular problem in this way. I give them no special treatment in general although if I'm dealing with Arctic species I have kept them in the frisge in damp tissue and sowed them after they have germinated but that is with seed collected in Alaska or in far northern Russia (which I got from Alexandra Berkutenko who is a great source of obscure Russian arctic species). I find Micranthes species harder to germinate than Saxifraga species in general but this may well be the quality of the seed I've received since Micranthes are almost always wild collected and that is often of poorer quality although offering intriguing possibilities.