How to Grow Red Maple Seeds? A Detailed Guide to the Latest Planting Methods
The branches and leaves of the red maple are purplish-red, brilliantly eye-catching, and highly ornamental. It is widely used as an ornamental tree in garden green spaces and courtyards, mainly planted as single specimens or scattered plantings. It is best placed in the center of a lawn, in front of and behind tall buildings, at corners, and other such spots, where the red leaves and green trees set each other off beautifully. It can also be grown in pots and shaped into exposed-root, rock-leaning, cliff-style, or deadwood forms. Let's take a look below at how to grow red maple seeds!
How to Select Red Maple Seeds
Before sowing red maple seeds, you must first select the seeds. Whether the seeds are well chosen directly affects whether sowing succeeds. It is best to use seeds harvested in the current year, because the longer seeds are stored, the lower their germination rate. At the same time, choose plump seeds with no damage or deformity and no pests or diseases.
Disinfecting and Sprouting Red Maple Seeds
1. Disinfection: Disinfection includes two concepts. One refers to disinfecting the seeds, and the other refers to disinfecting the sowing medium. For home seed disinfection, it is common to soak the seeds in hot water at about 60°C for a quarter of an hour, then use warm hot water to sprout them for 12-24 hours. For disinfecting the sowing medium, the best method is to put it in a pot and heat it by stirring until hot; any pests and diseases will be killed by the heat.
2. Sprouting: Generally, half a month before planting, first rub off the wings of the seeds, then soak the seeds in warm hot water (at a temperature similar to face-washing water) for 12-24 hours, until the seeds absorb water and swell.
Sowing Methods for Red Maple Seeds
1. Digging furrows and sowing: Generally, red maple seeds begin to germinate in 15-20 days. Once germination reaches 20%, they can all be sown (you may also first pick out the seeds that have already germinated). Sow 3 kilograms of red maple seeds per mu. On prepared ridges, open small furrows 10 cm deep and 20 cm wide, and sow the seeds together with sand into the opened furrows. Sowing should be even.
2. Covering with soil and building sheds: After sowing, cover the seeds with a layer of moist fine soil. The soil cover must not be too thick; generally 0.5-1 cm is enough. If the soil cover is too thick, it affects germination. At the same time, set up a small plastic shed, and above the small plastic shed set up a sunshade net arched shed. Note that the plastic arched shed should be below and the sunshade net arched shed above. The distance between the two arched sheds should be greater than 20 cm to maintain ventilation and cooling.
3. Daily management: Within 1 month after sowing is the key period for red maple germination. Observe frequently to maintain the temperature and humidity inside the arched shed. Putting your hand deep into the plastic film arched shed and feeling that it is not hot to the touch indicates the temperature is suitable. If you find the temperature is too high, ventilate immediately, and use the method of spraying water at both ends of the plastic film arched shed to cool it down. When the seedlings grow to 5-10 cm, remove the plastic film arched shed, while keeping the sunshade net arched shed. After the seedlings grow to 20-30 cm, harden them by uncovering the sunshade net in the morning and evening and covering it at noon. After 2 weeks, remove the sunshade net entirely.
4. Water, fertilizer, and weeding: After the seedlings grow to 10 cm, foliar fertilizer or a small amount of urea can be used. Remember that fertilization should follow the method of small amounts applied multiple times, and must not be excessive at one time, to prevent burning the seedlings. At present, there is no effective herbicide that does not harm red maple seedlings, so manual weeding is generally used.