Perennials: How to start Jack in the Pulpit, 1 by zonedenial

zonedenial wrote:
Peter,
I'm no expert; most of my Jacks get planted by birds or chipmunks, but...
If you're just planting them in the ground, just plant as is, 1/4-1/2" deep in moist, loose soil. If you're planting in pots, put the seed in the frig. for two months in a plastic bag with some moist sphagnum or paper towels. Remove the red coating with whatever; if they are mushy, I just squeeze the seeds out with my fingers, leaving me with red fingers. If the seed coatings are firmer, a dull knife would work fine, though if the seed coatings are hard I'd just put them in the frig. as is, and remove the coating when I took them out, when it will be soft. If you remove the coating, do NOT let them dry out; they'll go dormant. They will not germinate in the frig. in my extremely limited experience. Take them out and plant in moist, loose potting soil, keep moist, and they will germinate in the pots, but it might take 4 weeks, or 4 months. Over the next few years I'll try and pass on a little seed from different Asian Jacks occasionally, though it will all be open pollinated.
Here's A. fargesii, which may be my new favorite; the leaves are shiny and make you think "Tropical". It's new but when mature it's supposed to have leaves up to 3 feet across.
Don