Planting Adenium (Desert Roses) From Seeds (Germinate seeds with paper towel)

 

A bit about adenium

Adenium is grown as a houseplant everywhere and a large number of hybrids have been developed. They are mostly loved for their colorful flowers and their unusual, thick caudices. They can be grown for many years and are commonly used for bonsai.

Seed-grown plants are not genetically identical to the mother plant, so people tend to propagate them by grafting and cutting to get the desirable varieties. However, cutting-grown plants do not tend to develop a nice thick caudex as quickly as seed-grown plants. Also, I love to plant them from seeds and wait to see them grow with different looks every time. 

Germination

When it comes to planting seeds, experimenting is the key. Since planting from seeds takes time, I tend to split the seeds I have into half and germinate one half with soil and the other with paper towel. 

Adenium seeds has hard shell, I prefer germinating seeds with paper towel since they seems to germinate faster in general. All you need is a container with lid, some paper towel, and water. Here's the process:

1. Prepare a container with lid, lay paper towel in and arrange adenium seeds on the paper towel.

2. Cover the seeds with a thin sheet of paper towel and spray water to damp the surface. Take care not to over spray until soaking wet. You don't want your seeds swimming in water.

3. Cover the lid lightly. Depending on the temperature where you are, the seeds will start germinating after 3-6 days. Once you see roots sticking out, they are ready to be transferred to soil.

4. Start picking out the germinated ones. They are ones that you will put in soil. Leave the rest of the seeds that are yet to germinate in the same container, spray some more water and close the lid. They might germinate later after a day or two.

5. When transfer the germinated seeds to soil, make sure you leave a good 2 to 3 cm. distance between them so they have enough room to grow. Simply place each of them on soil that you've prepared, cover with a thin layer of sand and water generously. Keep them in shaded area (partial sunlight in the morning is fine) and water at least once a day. **During this time, as they are sprouting out of the soil, take care to remove shells off it's head if the seedlings are already stand up almost straight but still have the shell on. Do this after watering by gently pull the shell off with your fingers. 

After roughly 4 to 6 days, your adenium should look like this..

.. and after 20 days..

Repotting

I usually transfer the seedlings to a bigger pot after they have at least 4 pairs of leaves simply because they are then strong enough for the process. Do not take all the soil off the root. Replant them with the soil that they grow from to reduce the shock and to allow them to adjust to the big change. 

Closing

Adenium is a type of succulent. They love sunlight and thrive in a rather porous soil. With the right planting medium and regular watering, they will grow well and last many years. I do hope you give planting this beautiful plant a try and see for yourself how beautiful they are.

Happy gardening!