Anyone have advice for this? I am hoping to start them indoor so I can have nice little plants by the spring (which I will then plant outside for the summer).

Is this an unrealistic endeavor?

Also, I got the following form Ehow. does anyone have anything to add to that?

Instructions

1

Make a cut or nick in the large end of the seed. Mimosa hostilis seeds, being from the pod fruit family, are very hard. Making a cut or nick in the seed will help promote germination, similar to what some gardeners do with bean or pea seeds to help the new sprout escape the pod seed.
2

Soak the seeds in very hot, but not boiling, water for 30 minutes to an hour. The seeds that have plumped up (or swelled) after soaking are more likely to germinate. Re-soak the others in hot water in the hope that they will swell.
3

Wrap the swelled seeds in a wet paper towel. Place the towel in a plastic bag to keep the towel moist. Check the seed-germination process and the moistness of the paper towel every other day. Re-wet the paper towel if it appears to be drying out. In a few days (up to a week), the seeds should show signs of sprouting.
4

Plant the germinated seeds in a small pot filled with perlite, grit or any non-organic soil. This will help keep the moisture level uniform during sprouting and early growth, and prevent mold. Plant each seed 2 inches deep in its own small pot.
5

Place the planted pots in a well lit, but not hot, location. Mimosa hostilis is native to rain forests, so it prefers a more humid, filtered light over direct, hot sunlight.Germination and plant development usually takes two to six weeks. During that time, keep the potting mixture consistently moist, but not overly wet and soggy.
6

Transplant young mimosa hostilis plants into organic soil when they are a few inches tall. Provide the young plants with a lot of root space, diffused or filtered light and regular watering. As the mimosa hostilis plant establishes and begins to grow, occasionally fertilize the tree with a liquid fish fertilizer.


Much appreciated!
Shiv

Firt of all..mimosa hostilis is not native to rainforests..it grows in arid semi desert sort of climates in mexico and brazil etc..

I do grow mimosa hiostilis in BC I grow it indoors in a 6 foot or so window under lights. I have a number of them. They are a hardy tree and hard to kill..but I would say no in my experience to the idea of growing them outside.

I put my trees outside this last summer and they did not like it. Where my salvia divinorums and san pedros love the summers here outside and grow very fast it seems to only stress the mimosa trees and slow the growth. Indoors though they are growing at a very fast rate and they seem happy. I have them in big pots and will grow them right to the ceiling.

Now it might still be doable to get them happy outdoors..if you introduce them slowly..mine were not happy though.

I also grow acacia's and there are a few acacia's that seem better suited for a northern climate..some like acuminata, obtusifolia and floribunda can probly go into the ground here where I am year round..but there is no way this is going to be doable in quebec. The climate on the coast of BC here where I am is far far milder than quebec..they might do okay outside for half the year or so in quebec though.

Fantastic - in that case I will keep them inside.

What kind of light do you use on them? And also what kind of light do you use on your cacti? As of right now I have l.Williammsii, peruvian torch, and san pedro. My l.wiliamsii are growing tall instead of short and fat.I want to buy a light but I am unsure as to which type of lighting I should buy...

thanks

I dont use a light for my cacti. IME you are going to have to put them outside for them to grow properly. I guess if you have a good enough light they will grow better indoors, but for me they grew all weird and skinny.

I leave them outside for like 7-8 months and the other 4 they come indoors in a shaded spot and just sit dormant till spring again. My torch grows about an inch a month while outside.

I dont use a light for my cacti. IME you are going to have to put them outside for them to grow properly. I guess if you have a good enough light they will grow better indoors, but for me they grew all weird and skinny.

I leave them outside for like 7-8 months and the other 4 they come indoors in a shaded spot and just sit dormant till spring again. My torch grows about an inch a month while outside.

for my mimosas I have a couple 120 watt flood lights on them..but they are also getting lots of natural light due to them being right at my sliding glass door. Im getting a few more lights so I will have about 5 120 watt lights on them..and the lights can go up to 300 watts if I need it at some point when they start to really get big..right now they are only a couple feet tall.

Or you can get an HPS bulb and light if you have no large open window space, but that will be $$. Without that window giving them some natural light they might want the spectrum of an HPS..for me thats not an issue. They are not like cannabis, so you dont need HPS lights for them if they have some kind of natural lighting as well.

AN INCH A MONTH!!!!!!!

Jesus, I'm definitely doing something wrong. My pedros are going to be a year old in a few months and they aren't even an inch. I will put them outside in the summer, but unfortunately it's too late for this year so I would like to get a light on them for the winter.

In my experience, getting 60-70% germination rate was more simple. I nicked the seeds, soaked them in spring/distilled water for a day or two (until the tail started peeking) and planted them half an inch deep in hydrated jiffy peat pellets. Using fluorescents to get them started, I had no problems. But I suppose the extra steps you mentioned won't hurt.

Seeds were started indoors in december and moved outdoors in june with good results, but I am in a warmer climate than you guys (min. 15ºC, max. 35ºC between april and october)... and as jamie suggests, that makes a difference.

Jamie: is there a thread which outlines cold-hearty acacias? Or other fun cold-hearty plants?

Almost 100%...