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Hello Russ,
To answer the first part of your question, it helps to know if you intend to grow your plants in a greenhouse, outside, inside your home or another controlled environment. This can be a fairly important question but is not a serious factor. The seed of the golden barrel cactus, Echinocactus grusonii, can be very easily germinated and can be easily cared for with very little added effort. Since you are not very familiar with the cactus seed growing methods you may find it difficult until you see that any problem can easily be solved and controlled. My important word here is controlled. Start with a good soil mixture. You can usually find a good Cactus and Succulent potting mix in any good nursery or garden center. This will do even though it may be better suited for mature plants. I always place the soil in a good Tupperware bowl and cover the bowl with a paper towel or hand towel. Place this in the microwave oven and heat it for approximately 3 to 5 minutes. This will greatly reduce the amount of fungi in the soil and will help prevent early death of your seedlings. After heating the soil let it cool before placing it in a pot or container. I use plastic containers that are clear plastic and can be sealed for any period of time needed, I like a sealed environment for at least 4 to 6 months after germination. A normal plastic flower pot will do in most cases. Next you must wet the soil. I always use Distilled water for this purpose as it seems to be less contaminated. This is just my opinion of course! Remember that you must keep the soil moist for several months as this will help get your plants off to a good start and will not be a true burden on your care. Place your seed on top of the soil. With Echinocactus grusonii seed you do not need to greatly cover the seed with soil. Only a light dusting may be needed. If you use a plastic pot you will need to place it in a saucer that can be filled with water and you must cover the top of the pot with plastic in order to keep the soil from drying. Next is the tough part. In order to get good germination you must place the container or containers in a spot where bright light is sufficient but not excessively intense. Full Arizona sun is a NO, NO! These young plant will need good bright light and for adequate germination a fairly constant temperature of around 75 degrees Fahrenheit is very important. You should see germination in about 1 to 2 weeks when all the right conditions have been met. Good luck and let me know how it goes. The second part of your question is refrigeration of the seed. Seed can be kept refrigerated for a number of years. Inside the seed is a very limited amount of moisture therefore seed can sometimes be frozen and stored for years without a lot of harm. You can store the golden barrel seed in your refrigerator until February if you like. I often keep my seed in the cold until I am ready to plant. Thanks, Vonn |
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