Sitting on the rocks here in mid-coast Maine. Theres an Aronia growing out of a fissure in the granite. Not much soil, and a whole lot of salt to deal with! Thats one tough plant.
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Nice photos Hobilus, I’m assuming that’s the wild melanocarpa type rather than the hybrid. Did you taste it? How did it compare to your McKenzie?
Yes, I’ve heard it’s quite a tough plant, very easy to grow from cutting apparently. Growing from seed however, for me has been difficult.
I’ve decided to cover the tray that I sowed the aronia seeds that you sent me with a plastic cover to mimick a greenhouse, as I have a feeling the temperature is too cold as it has been almost a month without germination. Hopefully the cover will make them germinate. Otherwise I’m not sure what went wrong. I hope customs didn’t irradiate the seeds. Wish me luck.
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Yeah, thats a wild one. Super low dwarf form. Its growing in about 1/2” of sand on a granite outcrop right on the shore. I didn’t try them this time but I have before. They’re a little dry. I think McKenzie is better. Bigger fruit, more juicy. I like the wild dwarf lnes though and always get a kick out of where theyll grow.
I dunno whats up with your seeds. I haven’t grown Aronia from seed, so no useful advice really, except patience. Sometimes double stratification is needed. That can sometimes be the case when seeds dry out, I believe. You might see if the seed is still healthy looking or if it has rotted or otherwise decayed. If not, maybe give it another stratification and resow. Just a thought
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Found this written on a website selling aronia seeds:
After the cold stratification period they are then brought back to room temperature 20-22C (68-72F) for them to germinate. Germination is about 60 days after the warming period. Do not discard the planting tray, as patience is needed, and they are well worth the wait.
Looks like it might take longer than I expected. Weather is definitely getting warmer now too, so will be interesting.
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what’s your preferred vegetative prop method ? Most recommend softwood, though you mentioned hardwood?
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Softwood is definitely easier and the way to go this time of year. Let’s say you had 1000 you rooted in river sand and controlled humidity with a mister , bags, etc. methods thats a great way to go. In the fall overwintered cuttings are the ones that should be hardwood. @TheDerek @39thparallel do this stuff all the time with cuttings. I usually use a rooting gel like clonex.
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if you can bend over some young shoots into a pot they will readily root. ive given away probably a doz. over the years that root when they touch soil. ive never tried rooting cuttings but i suspect they would be easy to root.
I tried softwood last year in late June, probably a 20% success rate, I’m trying this year with May harvested material. I have my stock plants stooled in the meantime.
Planted a bunch of seed last summer from ripe fruit, not sure which variety I sowed but they seem to have a very high germ rate.
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layering would be fun to try but I have a hard time keeping pots watered if they’re not directly in front of me.
put a stone or brick on it, directly on the ground near the mother plant. easy and very successful. scratch the cambium where it will touch the ground.
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Some plants dont like to root from softwood cuttings if they have been getting too much nutrition. Better to take cuttings from hungry plants than ones that have been fed recently. I think its excess N specifically that can inhibit callus formation and root growth in cuttings.
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they should be good candidates then, all they’ve really gotten is mulch from old potting soil, sawdust , pulled weeds from other beds etc.