Ready for some nursery propagation work? Today we are potting up some young trees that were sprouted from seed!

Earlier this year I shared how I cold stratified tree seeds and then put them out in pots to hopefully sprout.

I've been working with seeds of many types of trees and shrubs. Many of the species I have no experience with whatsoever, some others are seeds that I lovingly collected from trees I enjoyed.

This work with trees is important to me for so many reasons which I will save for detailing in another post. For now I am happy to say I love working with trees - it is one way I can learn more about nature, give back to the earth that gives back so much to me and honor life.

Now then - we have two pots overflowing with growth! These are seedlings of Yellowhorn (left) and Kentucky Coffeetree (right).

Let's get started!

Both pots sprouted seeds several weeks ago and the tree-lings have been growing well! I waited to separate these trees out into their own pots to see if more seedlings would sprout. But I didn't wait too long because the trees would eventually crowd and out-compete themselves.

These young trees look very healthy and have been growing vigourously, but as you can see from the yellowhorn on the left in the above picture, the edges of the leaves are starting to yellow - a sign that perhaps they are drying out too fast between waters.

Note about the soil & timing

First of all, you might like to know about the soil mix I am using for the potted trees I am using compost purchased from a local organic composting operation by the truckload. I believe it is 40% organic dairy manure and 60% green waste/compost. I mix roughly 8 parts compost with 1-2 parts course sand for better drainage. I may also add eggshells, bonemeal or kelp to this soil for more minerals.

Time of day is important- morning or early evening are better time of days to work with potting up trees during the hotter parts of the year. If you can't manage that, working in the shade is imperative to keep the trees from stressing too much.

Let's start with the Kentucky Coffeetree

This tree is in the Fabaceae family and bears large pods containing seeds. Both of which are edible. The roasted seeds are said to taste like chestnuts and can also be roasted and ground as a caffeine free coffee substitute.

I am excited about this tree because I would guess like most Fabaceae's it would be a vigorous grower and producer. How great would it be to easily collect numerous pods, thresh them and have copious amounts of chestnut like protein that can be roasted and eaten?

Checkout Plants for a Future for more info about the Kentucky Coffee tree propagation and uses.

I did not have to cold stratify these seeds but I did scarify them by scratching them with a file and soaking in warm water overnight. They swelled up visibly and those that did not got scratched some more and soaked again until they did. Then I put them out in pots and kept them regularly watered until they sprouted!

Here I gently pulled the seedlings with roots and soil out of the pot and laid it on its side.

I start to tease apart the trees trying not to disturb the roots too much.

In this case the soil came completely free of the roots - if it happens that's OK, I'll take care to be gentle with the roots.

Here's one tree with the bean still attached and supplying carbohydrates to the young seedling.

I found a few beans that hadn't sprouted yet or are just starting to sprout.

Here we are! 8 Trees, 5 un-sprouted beans and one tree that is dried up but I haven't 100% given up on yet.

First I put the unsprouted seeds into a pot of soil, along with the almost dried up tree in case it makes it.

Cover it up with some more soil, label it and set it aside for now.

Now I am preparing some pots for the new trees. I fill them about 1/4 with soil and add a small handful of biochar that I made earlier this year. The amount of soil in the bottom of the pot really depends on how big the roots of the tree are - we want enough space for the roots. Allow me to demonstrate:

I like to hold the tree with one hand while I scoop soil in with the other hand. This lets me ensure the proper height of the tree in the pot.

You can tell where the soil level was previously because the color of the trunk changes from light/white to green. I'll match the new soil height to a similar level. I like to leave some space between the soil and the top of the pot for watering.

Here is the finished up-potted kentucky coffee tree!

And here are the whole bunch, looking nice :)

I'm starting right in on the Yellowhorn now.

Yellowhorn is in the Sapindaceae which interestingly is the same family as the Lychee. Both the young leaves and the seeds are edible and supposedly delicious. The seeds have me interested - they seem prolific and can be boiled, dried and ground into flour or pressed into oil. How amazing would it be to have protein falling from the sky? I think this tree would make a fantastic fodder tree as well.

Here is a fantastic writeup on Yellowhorn as a permaculture tree.

I did cold stratify the yellowhorn seeds for 3 months in my fridge. It is pretty amazing that several already sprouted.

Potting up the Yellowhorn is the same process!

First thing I notice when I pull the trees out of the pot is the roots are just starting to matt up at the bottom. This tells me the yellowhorns have pretty vigorous tap roots. No wonder the leaves were getting a little yellow. Good thing we are potting them up now - and hopefully they wont live in pots too long.

Again I carefully separate the trees from each other.

Here they are individually now. Boy their roots sure are long already!

I am putting them into 2 gallon pots - 1 gallon is too small I feel for these roots. They may even outgrow the 2 gallon pots soon and need to be potted up again before long, we'll see.

Back in the nursery

The Kentucky Coffeetrees (front left) and Yellowhorns (front right) are back at home with their friends and graduated up to the big boys and girls section! Everyone is watered in nicely.

There are many more seeds in pots that I am waiting on patiently.

Some may sprout this season, some may take 2 or more seasons to sprout and some may never sprout. But in the meantime there are several other trees that have sprouted recently and will need to be potted up soon! It's an ongoing process :)

I'll be happy to share more with you as I continue working in the nursery.