Chinese Fan Palm (Livistona Chinensis) | 10 seeds | Stunning Houseplant

Please find for sale 10 fresh seeds of Livistona Chinensis better known as the Chinese Fan Palm - a stylish and elegant easy-to-grow palm. Makes for a beautiful house plant  with its lovely fans of glossy emerald green foliage  

PLEASE NOTE: All orders received before 8pm (Mon-Fri) will be dispatched same day

SAVE PACKAGING MATERIALS  - SEE OTHER INTERESTING & UNUSUAL SEEDS & PLANTS IN MY SHOP

INSTRUCTIONS - TO SAVE PAPER I NO LONGER SEND OUT WRITTEN INSTRUCTIONS TO CUSTOMERS. INSTRUCTIONS ARE BELOW SO PLEASE BOOKMARK THIS PAGE. FEEL FREE TO MESSAGE ME WITH ANY GROWING QUESTIONS.

Germination Guide

1) Optional - if you are experienced at seed scarification techniques or have good hands, you may want to file a small area of  the seeds slightly with a metal nail file - this speeds water absorption for 2) below and further speeds germination. Just do this on some of the seeds to play it safe.

3) To speed up germination, soak the seeds in room temperature water for 3 days, changing the water daily

3) Using gloves, quickly dip the seeds in a 10% household bleach solution then rinse off with fresh water (this process sterilizes the seeds, and reduces the chance of fungal growth.

4) Prepare potting mix - ideally 50/50 of regular compost mixed with perlite, vermiculite or horticultural sand. Mix should be moist but not wet

5) Put the compost mix in a plastic container and microwave on full power for 2 minutes (kills any fungus etc). Allow to cool

6) Sow the seeds individually about 2 cm deep and cover

7) Seeds tray can be covered loosely with a plastic bag but we find the risk of rot is much reduced if left open, with the seeds tray sitting inside a plastic tray/container to allow watering from the bottom.

8)  Place the tray in a warm area out of bright light eg on a window sill but out of direct sun . Typical UK indoor room temperature is fine 17-23c - if drops below this at night when heating off, best to use a cheap heat mat.

9) Ensure compost does not dry out. If uncovered, the best way is to pour water into the container below the seed tray, allow this water to be taken up by the compost for 30 mins or so, then once the moisture visible on the surface drain off remaining water from the container.

10) Seeds should germinate in 8 to 12 weeks.

TOP TIP! Don't use all your seeds in the same tray just in case rot sets in. 

Olly's General Guide to Seed Sowing!

I love sowing seeds and it runs in the family - dad, granddad and finally my great-granddad for whom the hobby helped him get over his experiences in the Great War. I still get a big kick when I see the first seedling poking through from a new plant that I have never sown before or been successful at. However, even the most experienced gardeners draw "blanks" from time to time. Whilst I sow all the seeds that I sell so I know that they are viable, some are trickier than others and problems can arise so here are some tips to make "blanks" few and far between:

1) Dont Rush! Tempting though it is when that packet arrives in the post to simply bung the seeds in some compost!

2) Google and Youtube are your friends! Take some time so see the methods other people use to germinate the seed. 

3) Think Nature! What conditions do seeds face? For example a seed from a tropical plant will fall to the warm, wet and dark jungle floor. A seed from the mountains of Europe will fall to the floor in Autumn, then have to endure months of freezing temperatures before germinating in the spring. So as growers, what we are trying to do is to simulate the conditions that the seeds will naturally experience and there are plenty of tricks that can be done to short cut the processes somewhat.

4) Good compost pays dividends . The best investment you can make is to purchase three bags - one of potting compost, one of vermiculite and one of horticultural sand. With these three bags I can make up whatever soil type a particular seed likes (although for most seeds I find a 50/50 mix of compost and vermiculite works just fine) 

6) Rot is your enemy. The single biggest danger to seed germination is rot - either before germination or after "damping off" when the seeds germinate. To reduce the risk, ensure you have good free draining soil mix and that it is moist but not wet. The best investment you will make is a bottle of (very cheap) 4% hydrogen peroxide (mixed with water 1:4) - this disinfects and also encourages germination. Unless the seed variety absolutely requires it I prefer NOT to cover my seeds trays with plastic bags, Whilst germination is often faster this way, it greatly increases the risk of rot. I prefer to place my seed trans inside a watertight plastic tray and water from the bottom - airflow over the surface reduces the risk. The surface is kept moist as required by spraying with my water/peroxide mix (see above)

Problem? Dont rush to Feedback - get in touch and I will sort it out!