Quote:
Originally Posted by sunfish
Plant Physiol. 1985 Aug ;78 (4):876-882 16664344
Reprogramming of Protein Synthesis from a Developmental to a Germinative Mode Induced by Desiccation of the Axes of Phaseolus vulgaris.
Santosh Misra , J Derek Bewley
....Immature seeds of Phaseolus vulgaris cv Taylor's Horticultural removed from the pod at 32 days of development do not germinate unless first subjected to desiccation. Our results show that premature drying not only redirects metabolism from a developmental to a germination program but it does so permanently, thus effecting an irreversible switch....
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Sunfish,
Thanks. It might be relevant even though beans are a long way from bananas. I've observed premature forced germination in embryos that came from tropical forest fruit that were subjected to predation by parrots.
So far, my recipe is:
First, I cut my premature bunches (because if I returned to collect them in 4-6 weeks time they'd be long gone - ripening bananas don't stay on the bunch - they're attacked by vertebrates and insects). Then I let them desiccate in a shaded, well ventilated room until the fruit are black and dried hard.
I then soak the mummified fruit and extract the seed.
I keep the cleaned seeds under about 2-3 cm (an inch) of water for as long as 3 weeks.
Finally I sow in unsterilised soil enriched with wood compost.
Unfortunately, I haven't done this enough times to be sure it's anywhere near an optimal method.
I have found that if I extract from fresh-picked fruit; the seeds don't come up.
So
I'm wondering if there is a tested, established protocol; because I'm sure that collectors must run into the problem everywhere in the Musa native range:
bunches everywhere... but none are near ripening!!!
shannon
shannon.di.corse@gmail.com