Interesting to see your results, and to see that you’ve gotten germination so quickly ! I’d be interested in knowing what your temperature routine was, and if you used this year’s seeds ?

I have my ways of doing it, but I can’t say that I’ve done as much experimenting as I should. I get results, so I’m happy, but since I’m getting something…I’m probably afraid to do too much experimenting out of fear I’ll get nothing.

And what about all those cracked seeds ? I get them with some crosses, but not others. ‘Laddie’ seems to be the worst offender here – some years a large percentage of seeds will be ruptured, while other years most of them look fine. In the past I used to think that it had to do with widely varying amounts of soil moisture, which may still be the case. But different pollens seem to produce different results too.

My sense is that when we get brown tips on the end of the roots, it’s from too much moisture or a lack of air ?

I’ve come to where I now give all of my seeds, fresh or not, several days of soaking prior to putting them in the bags. And will give them a bleach solution rinse before I bag them too. My sense is that if I’ve soaked my seeds well before I bag them, then all that’s really needed in the bags is an atmosphere that can maintain 100% humidity. I use fairly coarse vermiculite rather than the very fine stuff, but that’s just a matter of preference, along with what happens to be in the big 4 cubic foot bag that I buy every few years.

One other thing about vermiculite – it does a good job of showing you which seeds are rotting, by the manner that it sticks to rotting seeds.

In any case, good for you for doing these sorts of experiments. I suspect others may be like myself – we do something that seems to provide us (for better or worse) with results, and then we tend to stop experimenting.

I don’t know whether to laugh or cry with joy.
Thank you very, very much!

CORRECTION. Please delete my previous translation:

Translation of the text found in: https://arastirma.tarimorman.gov.tr/yalovabahce/Menu/35/Sus-Bitkileri

Please comment with your corrections, as I am no botanist:

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Page Title:
Turkish Republic, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry
Atatürk Garden Culture Central Research Institute Directorate

Decorative Plants

Being the first decorative plant to be developed in our natural resource-rich country, the Peony is currently being researched by our institute, and its breeding rights have been taken under protection.

Alev Topu: ‘Fireball’ [‘Flame Ball’]

This variety, being a hybrid of Paeonia peregrina, has multilayered red flowers, is scented and perennial. Blooms in the first week of May. Its segmented green leaves are also decorative. Its blooms are sterile in structure, and, having been observed to very rarely show a tendency to bear fruit, its production by seeding is not economically feasible. Instead, it is produced by root separation and tissue culture. When propagated by root separation, if blooms are expected of each piece of tuber root within the year, a tuber root must contain at least 3 offshoot eyes. The separation process can be realised every 3 to 4 years.

Eful

This variety, This variety, being a hybrid of Paeonia peregrina, has multilayered deep pink flowers, is very beautifully scented and perennial. Blooms in the first week of May. Its segmented green leaves are also decorative. Its blooms are sterile in structure, and, having been observed to very rarely show a tendency to bear fruit, its production by seeding is not economically feasible. Instead, it is produced by root separation and tissue culture. When propagated by root separation, if blooms are expected of each piece of tuber root within the year, a tuber root must contain at least 3 offshoot eyes. The separation process can be realised every 3 to 4 years.

Kaya [‘Rock’, Most likely a reference to Mr Erdal Kaya]

This variety, being chosen by selection methods from the population of the hybrid natural species of Paeonia x kayae, is deep pink – white variegated in colour, has single layered blooms, lightly scented and early bloomer. Blooms in the first week of April. Its tri-segmented oval green leaves and fruit that crack open in autumn are also quite decorative. Produces quite a lot of seeds, and, therefore, in addition to being able to be propagated by seeding, it can also be produced by separation and tissue culture. When produced by separation, if blooms are expected of each piece of tuber root within the year, the tuber roots must contain at least 3 offshoot eyes. The separation process can be realised every 3 to 4 years.

Tombak [‘Iranian Goblet Drum’]

Blooms in the first week of May. Its segmented green leaves are also decorative. Its blooms are sterile in structure, and, having been observed to very rarely show a tendency to bear fruit, its production by seeding is not economically feasible. Instead, it is produced by root separation and tissue culture. When propagated by root separation, if blooms are expected of each piece of tuber root within the year, a tuber root must contain at least 3 offshoot eyes. The separation process can be realised every 3 to 4 years.