Thursday, June 7, 2012
Germination problems with flax
I seeded my new flax seeds (as opposed to saved ones) on May 7. Normally they germinate over 7 to 10 days, but 3 weeks later I had exactly 8 seedlings growing. So I re-seeded the plot last week, May 28, and now 7 to 10 days later I have good germination. However, since I sowed the seeds late, I do not know if the crop will ripen properly. Only time will tell.
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Did you reseed with the same seed or you saved seed?
ReplyDeleteI (almost) always use newly purchased seeds in an attempt to get the best crop I can. And I did this year as well. I bought them from a flax research place in Saskatchewan from whom Richter's has bought their seeds in the past. I wanted to try a different variety so I bought the Evelyn I had used from Richter's before and Electra. I think the problem was drought. The fellow I communicate with at SaskFlax told me the seeds did not need to be covered as long as they had good contact with the soil. (I am pretty sure they drill theirs though). So instead of lightly raking them in after sowing, I just tamped them down, like rolling them, but with 8 x 10 boards strapped to my feet. It rained the day I sowed them but not for a couple of weeks after, so I watered a couple of times a week but I guess it was not enough.
DeleteThe second time I seeded I did half the plot with saved seeds and half the plot with SaskFlax seeds and both have germinated now, but my saved seeds have better germination. That being said, I was warned that their seeds were not last year's and that I should overseed a little to compensate, which I did by 25%.