I noticed last week that my young yellow lantern Magnolia in my front yard was growing a few ugly blobs which I initially thought were deformed flowers or some type of weird fungus. Then once my brain kicked in in and actually thought about it I worked out that these were actually the fruits which I had never seen before. My initial reaction was to get rid of them as they use an enormous amount of energy to grow but it occurred to me that I hadn't actually seen magnolia seeds so left them.
Over the course of a week or so the pink-ish blobs developed into cone like structures and then popped open showing the seeds.
I collected the seeds, which are fleshy and bright orange (and look more like beans) then conducted some research on how to get them to germinate. I had to put the beans in a place where they wouldn't mistakenly get eaten for skittles (hmmm, wonder what they taste like? bags not trying).
After I collected them I found that the best way to propagate a magnolia is to take a cutting (this is by far the quickest as it takes 1-2 years to flower, as opposed to 10-15 from seed). In saying that, I still want to see if I can grow one from seed.
From my research, I found that there are many different ways to germinate a magnolia seed. So I just chose one.
I soaked the beans in tepid water for 24 hours to help remove the coating. I then squeezed the bean to force the hard glossy black seeds out, then washed the seeds again to remove any leftover residue.
After this, I rubbed each seed with coarse sandpaper - the abrasion is needed to help moisture penetrate the hard coat and reach the internal embryo.
I then placed the seeds in a labelled bag with damp peat based potting mix and put in the fridge for a couple of months to imitate winter and preserve them. This is known as stratifying and is necessary for the seed embryo to germinate next spring.
Stay tuned for results!
After taking a few more classes, I know know quite a bit about the Plant kingdom and the naming of plants. I'm even learning a bit of Latin. Jeepers.
Gingko Biloba a confier? Apparently so - I would never have thought it.
The way you can tell is that if you put the leaf up to the light you can see that there are needles which have fused together. The Biloba part of the name means that there are 2 parts to the leaves.... bi-loba. It totally makes sense. Because I now know this fact, I have no more excuses to pronounce Biloba as 'Bliblah blahs'. Yes I am weird.
I have only been going for three weeks but I am getting an enormous amount of knowledge out of this class. I have a very passionate German teacher (Martin Zierholz) - the class hangs off his every word. Seriously he is a freak - I don't think there is anything that he doesn't know about horticulture. This 4 hour classes fly by!
My pracs to date are:
- um, so far nothing, just a whole heap of listening and asking questions.
Implement a propagation plan - So far it all seems very familiar because of the previous course I have done - this doesn't stop me from enjoying it though! I still feel incredibly at home in the greenhouses and are enjoying watching my specimens grow into plants.
I am keeping a record of my pracs to date on other pages in my blog. Every week I monitor the progress of my little ones and insert the results and photos viewing.
Sowing Annual Seed
Semi- Hardwood Cuttings
Leaf Cuttings
Pricking out seedlings
Direct sowing of Acacia cardiophylla
Germination trial
Deciduous Hardwood cuttings
So I commenced my first class - woop woop!! This semester I am studying a couple of subjects. So far I am loving it and would much prefer to be in class than at work .....My brain is so thirsty for all this new knowledge - it makes such a difference when you are interested in what you are learning.
I'd love to write down everything I have learnt so far but it would take a heap of time and effort, when really the little time I have to myself now is precious so instead I will just keep my Prac's on other pages in this blog and post when I have found something I find interesting. .
So my wonderful cousin Kate worked at the Heritage Nursery at Yarralumla and had decided to move down the coast to start a new life down there. Before she left the nursery I got in contact with her on a whim to see if the Nursery would take me on on a casual basis - she thought it was a great idea and agreed and put me in contact with the owner - Bruno. This is not something that I would do normally - I am the kind of person to look for an advertised job, not go out approaching people - what was I thinking!!
I met with Bruno and gave him a spiel about what I wanted to do etc. I don't know whether it is because Kate had given me a good wrap or that he saw something in me, but I got offered a job on the spot to work casually all day, every second weekend. He also asked me to help out with a bit of social media after I told him my background. This was another holy crap moment - could I really work two jobs and study? I guess there was only one way to find out and that is to try it! I accepted the offer and started in late January, around the same time as I started at NHPA.
Massive change. I started two new jobs in one week and have also found out that I will need surgery again before we can progress with our family plans. It has taken me a while to settle down, but I am now feeling a bit calmer about it all. I love my nursery job, I have worked three weekends so far and are fitting in well. My feet are telling me another story - I haven't worked that long on my feet since my hospitality days, but my brain is like a sponge, wanting to know everything - I just need to pace myself and not rush in to fast!
This really interested me as a couple of years ago when we first moved into our house in Holder, we cut down the 30yr old Claret ash in our front yard . It was a hard decision to remove the tree as I feel so connected to them, but due to the drought it has suffered severely and branches were falling off in the winds and was quite dangerous. Yep, it had to go, and gee it made the front yard feel empty! I was at work the day it happened, but dad was passing by our house and took some photos for us - they had abseillers and everything - big job! 
A few weeks later we got a surprise house warming pressie from the lovely Jodie. You guessed it - a Claret ash that her brother Ads had picked from his nursery. We vowed to take extra special care of it and planted it next to where the old one was removed. It is now a few years old and is really healthy. 
