Date palm attempt

I still dont know what to call em, trawling the internet some call em pips, some call em stones and other seeds. I think I'll go with stones lol.

Anyways I put a couple date stones in wet paper towel, which i put in a jar in the airing cupboard about 3 weeks back. Checked em this morning and one has rooted. Put the other back in airing cupboard and pot this rooted one.

 

They are very easy to germinate as you have found. A wet paper towel in a hot water cupboard and they will germinate within a week or 2. Pot them up in sandy soil. It takes a few years before they have decent pronds and they are not that hardy.

 

Nice one.

John (JWK) has got my one now, as I can't really put my plants in storage when I move.

 

Well done , I got 19 out 20 stones to germinate within 2-3 weeks a couple of years ago by putting them in damp vermiculite and putting them top of the boiler. Once they had roots slightly longer than your photo I potted them up in some sandy compost and put them on a heated propagator base until they shooted; which took longer than they did to germinate as they produce a healthy root system first.

Interestingly the shoot developes outside of the stone and doesn't come directly from it.

I gave most of mine away to family and friends but still have a couple on a warm windowsill that have 3 12" leaves, still not proper fronds, but they're still doing ok

 

Sorry about that, I bet you hate me now

 

so are there any special requirements to keep date palms happy? havent seen much info on them on the internet. hope it will be ok in multipurpose compost sitting on a sunny windowsill, because thats where its going lol

 

Sandy well draining soil (mix sand and grit with the compost). They are slow to grow to begin with but can be put outside during summer. Apart from that they are pretty easy.

 

Does this work ok, just asking because if you had a wet paper towel in our Airing cupboard, then it would be dry with a matter of a few hours..........or is it a case that you have to keep the paper towel moist / misted?

 

i put the paper towel in a glass jar with a lid on so it dont dry out