Have: Fresh Black Hills Spruce/Northern White Cedar Seeds

[philagardener]

Great project on the second generation, and a very generous offer!

I don't have experience with these species, but seeds requiring stratification usually need to be hydrated before they are sensitive to the temperature cue, so if these have been stored dry (or overwintered in the cone) it may be necessary to plant and repeat cold treatment (naturally with the seasons, or artificially) to enhance germination.

[philagardener]

Great question to which I don't know any one answer. Some conifers require fire for release and/or germination, but you don't have a problem germinating seed in pots. Maybe seed eating birds like finches and cross-bills get them, but eruption years vary everywhere. Maybe the natural soil chemistry, or microbial ecology, is a problem, or the mature trees shed an allelopathic signal that suppresses germination in the immediate vicinity to reduce competition.

Seed survival in the wild seems a pretty fraught process. Around most trees, you don't see a forest of their own seedlings coming up . . .

I hope others will add ideas here, as it always has intrigued me too!

[reed]

Evergreen trees, except for our native cedars and a rare holly don't sprout wild here either. Over by the lake where I like to fish there are large groves of various pines the government planted years ago but I'v never seen a young volunteer tree. It isn't that the seeds aren't good cause I have collected and sprouted lots of them over the years.

[mjc]

Cut down all the parent trees and wait...some of those thousands of seeds will then sprout.

One of the inhibiting factors for a lot of conifers is the seeds need light to germinate.

Around me, there are a lot of planted spruce and Scots pine. Seldom do they sprout volunteers...unless the parent tree is removed, then you need to mow the area, repeatedly, for a couple of years to prevent a thicket from developing.

Oh, and I'm interested in some of the Thuja seed.