Camellia sinensis — Germination Log

Seeds from Camellia Forest Nursery arrived February 17. Pre-soaked for 8 hours before sowing to soften the seed coat.

Sown into cone-tainers in a plastic storage bin. Mix: coco coir, perlite, and vermiculite — perlite and vermiculite weighted more heavily toward the top of the cones for drainage. Bin kept closed to retain humidity and maintain cool, consistent conditions.

Timeline

February 17 — Seeds received and sown.

March 6 — First germination. Single green stem emerged.

March 11 — First true leaves on the earliest seedling.

March 19 — 34 seeds germinated. Tallest seedling just over 1 inch with 6 leaves. Batch moved to a humidity box under grow lights. Media kept consistently moist throughout. Humidity box under a 4-panel LED grow light, 16 hours on. No fertilizer at this stage; mix is intentionally lean.

March 25 — 81 seeds germinated. Watered today. Small fan introduced for air circulation, running in short bursts — continuous use is causing a noticeable humidity drop that will need to be monitored.

March 24 — 73 seeds germinated. Leaves noticably bigger, largest almost thumbnail size. Germination still ongoing. Moved back to large bin with t8 grow light. Had three Barrina T8 growlights, but a few seedlings started looking more purple, reduced to one light. Removed some of the cotton from the bottom of some of the cones since soil is staying in place. Watching for roots to emerge. Light osmocote extended release fertilizer applied on some seedlings.

Current setup

Large plastic bin with cone-tainers, coco coir lining bottom of the plastic bin under cones. Barrina T8 light across top of bin.

Next steps

Pot up individually once roots reach the bottom of the cone-tainers. Acidic mix targeting pH 4.5–6.0. Light fertilization to begin once established in individual containers. Overwintering indoors planned for the first year or two while root systems develop.