Seed Germination: Caesalpinia Seeds | Growing Guide

[Stephen Tashi]

Sellers of seeds of the Bird of Paradise tree say to scarify or nick the seeds before planting them. How hard or gently should this be done?
https://www.adeniumstore.com/seed-g...ia-seed-germination-growing-guide-p-1383.html

Is there a natural process that implements the scarifying?

I collect seeds from the trees in a friend's yard. There are lots of empty twisted pods on the ground. Is this twisted shape typical of how seed pods open?

 

[jim mcnamara]

Opening - moisture changes and drying cause uneven pressure on the suture (the line on the fruit (seed pod) where the split happens)

Hard seed - many legumes like bird of paradise and alfalfa (pea family, fabaceae) have hard seeds. The seeds have to be stratified and/or be scarified to germinate - allow water to penetrate the outer seed coating - the testa - which is initially very resistant to water absorption.

Stratification is exposure to drying and wetting cycles, cold/frost is also often part of the deal.
Scarification occurs with moisture/cold cycling and microbial breakdown of the testa.

Scarification with sandpaper works well. Get a piece of fine grit paper, a small wide mouth jar with a lid, like a baby food jar. Cut the paper to fit inside the jar. What you want is to make a "second" interior wall lining with sandpaper - grit on the inside. This isn't a precision thing. Put the seeds in the jar, put on the cover, and shake. Because I used to do lots of seeds I used a Quaker oats cylindrical paper container. Seed houses have equipment that looks like a small potato polisher with very fine teeth. See video below

Try for about 5 minutes of agitation.

Before you plant, soak the scarified seeds for at least 24 hours. Any seeds that do not "puff up" need another dose of the sandpaper treatment.

PS: how well the plants grow is a function of the water they get until they have a decent root system. Water twice a week for the first few months.
Massive operation:
Small tabletop to potato polisher

https://www.webstaurantstore.com/22-lb-potato-peeler-110v/915DB10.html

 

[Stephen Tashi]

I had several caesalpina seed pods sitting in the console of van between the front seats. Today I found the twisted halves of one the pods on the floor of the car and seeds were scattered about. Perhaps when these pods burst open, they fling their seeds.

 

[jim mcnamara]

That is exactly what they do. Dehiscent pods like that can fling seeds a good distance.

Botanists, IMO, got a bit overzealous categorizing: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dehiscence_(botany)

Discussion and a model of "exploding" seed pods (fruits): https://www.mpg.de/10546404/seed-dispersal