Germinating black cohosh Cimicifuga racemosa
Answered by: Inge Poot
Question from: Briscoe
Posted on: July 21, 2010

I must try Black Cohosh from seed for my spring sales. How do you germinate this frustratingly difficult plant?

Norman C. Deno in his "Seed Germination Theory and Practice" says that dry stored seed should be kept moist and at 70 degrees Fahrenheit (20C) for three months, then shifted to moist at 40 degrees Fahrenheit (5C) for 5-7 weeks, by the end of which they will have produced the embryo root or radicle. They are then planted in sterilized, well-drained, humus-rich soil and switched to 70F/20C and will now grow cotyledons, etc. The first two stages are best accomplished in moist paper towels, enclosed in an unsealed new plastic bag. Seeds planted out of doors tend to rot. I presume that seeds that have gone through a bird’s gut are never dry and these CAN withstand planting straight out of doors.

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