How to Propagate Styrax Japonicus Pink Chimes From Seeds

Pink Chimes (Styrax japonicus "Pink Chimes") is a flowering tree, native to China, Japan and Korea. It bears pink, almost fuchsia, fragrant blooms in May and June, with yellow fall foliage. An attractive landscape ornamental, Styrax japonicus has a broad, flat crown and grows to 30 feet in height. Although the tree is hardy to zone 6 on the U.S. Department of Agriculture Plant Hardiness Zone Map, it is delicate and may have trouble in the colder regions within those zones. Pink Chimes seeds have a double dormancy, and so require both warm and cold stratification.

Things You'll Need

• Shallow bowl
• Peat moss
• Plastic sandwich bag
• 1-gallon planting pot
• Seed starting potting mix

Instructions

1. Place the S. japonicus seed in a shallow bowl and pour warm water over it. Allow the seed to soak 24 hours.

2. Moisten a handful of peat moss and wring it out until no excess water can be removed.

3. Insert the Pink Chimes seed into the peat and place the bundle in a plastic sandwich bag. Set the bag in an area where the temperature remains between 60 and 68 degrees Fahrenheit, and allow it to remain for 90 days. Check the peat moss periodically and if it begins drying, dribble water over it slowly until it is slightly moist.

4. Place the bagged seed in the refrigerator for 120 days. Keep the peat moss slightly moist during this period.

5. Fill a 1-gallon planting pot with a quality seed starting potting mix. Place the Pink Chimes seed on the surface of the soil and cover it with a 1/4-inch layer of sand. Keep the seed moist at all times. Germination generally takes between 30 and 90 days.

References

• University of Connecticut: Styrax Japonicus
• Tom Clothier's Garden Walk & Talk; Germination Database; Tom Clothier
• "Manual of Woody Landscape Plants"; Michael A. Dirr; 1998