Seed and Spore Hold The Future In Store
“Flowers and fruit are only the beginning.
In the seed lies the life and the future.”
– Marion Zimmer Bradley
Sowing Diversity
Future Seeds
Many species are not self-fertile and require at least one other genetically different relative to reproduce. Even if you buy more than one plant, you don’t know how they were propagated unless the nursery tells you up front. It’s not as simple as avoiding cultivars, because many straight species can be propagated from cuttings.
The only way to guarantee that you are getting two genetically diverse species is to buy plants you know are seed-grown or grow them yourself.
Seeds May Resist Disease
The problem with monocultures (especially if all genetically identical) is a higher chance that a pathogen could wipe out the entire population. A seed-grown, genetically diverse population has a better chance of producing resilient offspring that can withstand a pathogen’s attack. It is still a good idea to split up large patches of species with other plants to reduce potential spread of pathogens through the entire population.
Naturalize With Seeds
When an entire population is clonal (all the same plant genetically), there is very little variation in appearance. A uniform garden is not a natural garden. You can still have a beautifully designed garden with a bit of variety within a population. This diversity adds visual interest, so the overall appearance doesn’t fall flat. Sometimes, the seeds may produce something completely different.
Nourish beginnings, let us nourish beginnings.
Not all things are blest, but the
seeds of all things are blest.
The blessing is in the seed.
Muriel Rukeyser
Open Pollination Leads To Hybridization
Hybrids don’t just happen in an artificial setting. There are many species that are known to hybridize in the wild. Sometimes this can be native and invasive species (such as bittersweet or cattails). Far more often it’s our own native species. Penstemon (beardtongue), Symphyotrichum (asters), Quercus (oaks), Pycnanthemum (mountain mints) and so many others, left to their own devices, will intermingle with others in their own or closely related genus.
Botanically inclined gardeners battle the balance of wanting to keep things taxonomically “clean” and allowing for a bit of wildness to creep in. This is especially challenging when growing many related species and collecting seed to reproduce or sell. However, growing open-pollinated plants from seed can sometimes result in something special, unique and new. “Nourish beginnings, let us nourish beginnings.”
Seed Adaptability
Everyone who’s grown up in the United States has heard of the story of Johnny Appleseed. To me the biggest contribution he made wasn’t in what he sowed, but what his legacy showed. The reason he was so successful is because he vehemently opposed grafting. Growing apples from seed is discouraged, because you have to wait 7 years to find out whether or not they’re any good. Seed grown apples never come up true to type. This wasn’t a big deal when growing apples for cider (which is why he grew them, and Prohibition destroyed much of what he grew). However, many of the apples we enjoy today are the offspring of Jonny’s efforts.
Had he stuck to the common practice of grafting, the apples would not have thrived in many of the locations he planted them. To me, this is the biggest take-away. It’s not about the apples, but the lesson that sowing from seed makes it possible to grow plants adapted to new conditions. This means ecotype is less important when it comes to seed. Maybe we could bring back species that can no longer tolerate our warming climate. Nurseries must balance expectations to meet a growing demand with the need for resilient, climate-adapted species. Growing plants to meet ecological needs means we need to grow them from seeds.
“Under reverent, patient care, the wild seed gradually relinquishes its protective husk and entrusts its reproductive care to human hands. {thus} this sacred law and covenant with Mother Earth; respectful care brings abundance. If you take, you must give back – Return the gift.”
Marilou Awiakta
For Those Who Love To Sow
Our passion for sowing seeds is unmatched. As the days get shorter and the threat of cold, winter days loom ahead, we look forward to cleaning, sorting and sowing seeds.
Will we be trying any new species? Are we going to challenge ourselves to something different? Did we try something the previous year that didn’t go well, and we’re giving it another attempt?
When things slow down in the world outdoors and our plants go dormant, we dust off our heat mats, switch on the lights and get to work. We reach out to colleagues to find out if they collected seeds for anything we wish to grow. Maybe we gather with friends to clean and donate seeds to the local seed bank. This time of year is just as busy for us as when we’re busy keeping up with the garden outdoors.
Winter flies by so fast, as we sow the species best started indoors and care for our little seedlings. We count down how many days we have left to condition certain species. Before long, it’s too late to sow species that need 120 days, then 90. Soon we question whether it’s too late to sow seeds that need 60 days. Is it too late for 30 days? We start conditioning seeds in the refrigerator last minute, just in case.
At that point, we already feel the earth waking up again, with the leaves of spring ephemerals emerging. We see the buds swelling on trees, like the round flower buds of pawpaw and spicebush. We pot up the seedlings that at one point filled a single pot, which now fill an entire shelf. Soon they will be ready to leave the comfort of their protected homes and face the elements.