{"id":17893,"date":"2025-10-20T16:45:12","date_gmt":"2025-10-20T20:45:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.highpoint.edu\/library\/?p=17893"},"modified":"2025-10-20T16:46:49","modified_gmt":"2025-10-20T20:46:49","slug":"hpu-seed-library-starting-wildflower-seeds-successfully","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.highpoint.edu\/library\/2025\/10\/20\/hpu-seed-library-starting-wildflower-seeds-successfully\/","title":{"rendered":"HPU Seed Library: Starting Wildflower Seeds Successfully"},"content":{"rendered":"

-Guest blog post by Emma Martone, Curator of the Mariana H. Qubein Arboretum and Botanical Gardens<\/em><\/p>\n

Starting this week, 15 seed starting kits will be available to patrons of the HPU Seed Library<\/a> on a first-come, first-serve basis.<\/p>\n

If you have ever sprouted a bean in a cup or sown a row of lettuce, you know how rewarding it is to grow something from seed.\u00a0 Most seeds appear round, brown, and unassuming, but within each is the potential for life.\u00a0 All seeds contain the tiny embryo of a plant, a bit of food to help them grow, and an outer shell called the seed coat that offers protection while the seed lays in wait for the right time to germinate.<\/p>\n

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For most plants we grow from seed, germination is reassuringly predictable. A radish seed may sprout in as little as 3 days and tomatoes can be expected in about a week.\u00a0\u00a0 This is because, when humans first began domesticating plants, early farmers and gardeners selected desirable traits such as fruit size, flavor, ripening time, as well as predictable germination.\u00a0 Predictability ensured that as long as crops were planted at the right time, they sprouted quickly and reliably, the first step to a bountiful harvest.<\/p>\n

However, for the wild plants that reproduce without human intervention, germinating at the right time is the key to survival. If a seed germinates in the dead of winter or in the middle of a drought, it\u2019s not likely to make it.\u00a0 Though most seeds ripen and fall to the ground in autumn or winter, they must lie in wait until the spring when warm spring temperatures and abundant rainfall will allow them to grow.\u00a0 But how do they know when the right time has come?\u00a0 Many wild plant seeds require specific environmental cues to germinate.\u00a0 For example, exposure to cold and moisture, a condition called stratification<\/strong>, helps ensure that seeds germinate only after winter has passed.\u00a0 Other seeds won\u2019t germinate until their seed coats have broken down, a process called scarification,<\/strong> which allows water to penetrate into the seed.\u00a0 In nature, scarification happens naturally when seeds are exposed to winter elements, or a lot of time has passed.\u00a0 This is another signal that helps a seed know when spring has arrived.\u00a0 Other seeds need exposure to light, exposure to fire, or prolonged dormancy before germinating.\u00a0 Many wild plants also produce a large quantity of seed, which allows them to build up seeds in the soil, called a seed bank<\/strong>. This strategy ensures that even in poor sprouting years, seeds remain in reserve for future growth.<\/p>\n

To grow wildflowers, it\u2019s important to understand that the seeds of these plants will often take longer to germinate than other seeds, and they will need exposure to moisture, cold, or other conditions to help them germinate. Though it can take a bit more work, growing these beautiful native plants is well worth it!<\/p>\n

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NATIVE WILDFLOWERS OF THE NC PIEDMONT<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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This take-home activity will help you to germinate seeds successfully!<\/p>\n

Step 1: Choose your seeds <\/strong><\/p>\n