I have a stone wall that I would like it to climb, I'm going to wait a bit as it will get more sun closer to summer. In the winter there are trees that shade it by afternoon. Hopefully, if it gets established in summer it will be ok with less direct sun part of the year.

Hello Jonna.
Anything new happening with your Syngonium? I would love to see the fruit when the plant drops it, or it ripens. I am not sure how this family acts with their fruits, & I am trying to save a rare species set of fruits to plant the seeds for a huge stock I hope of this species. I would love to get dwarfs like LariAnn mentioned too. Since this plant is a Syngonium, I assume the group of fruits will act more or less the same as the more common Syngonium podophyllum. The only thing I am noticing that is different about the fruit is they have not changed color which is actually best for this plant since it lost it's leaves when I uprooted it.

Hey Jonna,
After doing a bit of searching for fruit of Syngoniums, I found out that the natural range of Syngonium podophyllum is in Mexico. Of course that could be bad information, but that explains the plant having fruit as it has natural pollinators near.
Noel Calvert

I went back out to the nursery yesterday, here's a pic of the syngonium pods on the vine.




I asked if I could have one and they picked the one farthest down, also the reddest. It came off the vine really easily so I think it is ready. I brought it home and it is sitting here on my desk, I'm a bit unsure how to start this. The guy at the nursery told me to just cut it open and plant the seeds inside. I was looking for something to show the size and put a 5 peso coin next to it, then I realized that would not be very helpful for many of you. The coin is slightly smaller than a US quarter if remember the size of a quarter correctly, it's been many years since I've seen one of those.



So, do the experts here agree that I should just cut it open? I'm nervous.

Hello Jonna.
Here is what I did after reading an article by LariAnn about planting aroid seeds.

I open the fruit, & extract the seeds by gently squeezing the fruit until they simply pop out, but his fruit may be different. I have not seen a Syngonium fruit that was mature. I am still waiting on mine to be ready.

The next step depends on if you have distilled water or not, but basically you clean all the fruit residue off the seeds, & soak the seeds in distilled water. I soaked mine in regular tap since I did not have a source for distilled water.

The next step is actually most important unless I miss my guess. Planting the seeds depends on what kind of seed these have. If the seed looks like it has a green spot developing inside already, you want to sow these in mos or something absorbant, but above ground so you do not prevent light from reaching them. The seeds need light to grow. Some don't, like the monsteras I planted, so you will just have to look at the seeds.

Water frequently to keep moist with a diluted balanced fertilizer & there you have it. If LariAnn adds anything, or has something contrary to say, obviously listen to her as she is the expert, & has planted Syngonium seeds many times before I am sure.

OK, I have RO water, I can use that. I have been thinking that in nature they would fall to the base of the tree they are climbing, lodging in a lot of what is basically compost. What do you think of putting the seeds on a bed of compost and keeping them damp by spraying? It's very hot here right now, but there is a "cold" front coming in this next week and temps should go down into the 80'sF instead of the 90's that we have now. I think I could keep them on damp soil, sitting on top instead of buried, and hope they germinate.

Your right about how they act in nature. Palms have the same type of fruits as monsteras, & they basically explode from the middle throwing the fruit with seeds a couple of feet at most from the base. Most of these plants grow in dried leaves & compost material above the actual "soil" the roots of most of them never even reach the soil until they have climbed a tree & sent down air roots. Even those mostly just attach to dried leaves & compost. I would suggest putting the seeds in a composted medium in one of those plastic packs you sometimes find vegetables in at the grocery store. it stays closed, has air holes, & is easy to keep moist. I would keep that mix in a shady area (not dark) that does not get direct sunlight as that would simply cook the seeds. Put them in a basic germination area like you would any other seeds that like a little light & warmth to germinate, & your seeds should be fine.

I did it. It was a bit scary to cut it open but it seems to have worked so far. I took pictures during the process so I could share.

The fruit had opened a little more sitting at the house. It didn't seem to be a problem, let's hope.



Inside the red exterior was a soft pod.



and inside the pod, a gel like substance surrounding seeds.



I scooped it out and put it in a strainer to clean.



The seeds after washing off most of the gel.



I planted them in a plastic box that tomatoes came in, good suggestion Noel. I ended up using regular potting soil because I didn't have any compost around and I didn't want to wait any longer. I sprinkled a little more dirt over the seeds after I took this picture.



Finding a place for them was a problem. It needed to be where the dogs and cats couldn't get to it and where there was light but no sun. I ended up putting them in the guest bathroom. It has a skylight for light and the door is always closed to keep the cats out. Plus, it is easy to get to so I will remember to spray it and check it.




I hope some of them sprout. I'm not great with seeds, they intimidate me and I don't have a lot of experience with growing from seed.

Hello Jonna,
Good luck with the seeds. Did you soak them over night like I suggested? These seeds come with an anti-germination chemical in the "gel" that surrounds the seeds. It's natures way of insuring the seeds pass through your wonderful season, or digestive system respectively depending on plant type I suppose. Basically soaking them overnight gives them that wet cleaned environment like passing through a digestive system would I suppose (don't ask me, I'm not a seed)...Either way with a good wash should be fine.

I hope your seeds germinate , & you see some good results in a few days. When I planted Monstera seeds (that is what these look like to me) they were sprouting within 3 days. They also came out of the fruit with a root sprout tip starting. I am not sure if that is typical of monsteras or not. These seeds resembled those to me. Actually quite large for aroid seeds if the philodendron & anthurium seeds I have seen are any indicator. I also just started some colocasia seeds to soaking now. Interesting thing is this plant exhibited traits of being sterile ( it never dropped pollen on a dual sexed inflorescence.

Noel Calvert.

No, I missed the info on soaking them. I always mess something up with seeds. Well, I could spray them with hydrogen peroxide and water? Or just wait and see what happens. The dirt is pretty wet so I was not going to water them again until it dries a bit, I did spray the top with plain water. We have a norte going through so it has been overcast and the highs have only been in the 80's f for a few days, nice for us but maybe it will be better for the seeds when it gets warmer.

Jonna, that's a great walk thru of the process. Thanks. Lovely looking gelatinous mass. I was expecting you'd see a bunch of berries with seed(s) inside. I wonder if this type of infructescence is specific to Syngonium or other genus.

I almost tasted the fruit, it really reminded me of a guanabana (Annona muricata). I thought twice though and decided not to try it. It didn't smell bad but I'm not fond of guanabana so it wasn't that tempting, too many seeds and not enough edible parts.

Evan,
The gelatinous mass is also a monstera fruit type. The seeds seem to be the same basic form too. I am wondering if Jonna saw the same root tip poking out of the side of the seed that I saw with my Monstera pinnatipartita seeds? Have a look at my photo albums to see my seed walkthrough also. Pretty much the same as Jonna's.

Jonna,
I think your seeds are going to be fine. I think the soak is more to sell the seeds as if a mansoon had just passed than for cleaning, or maybe that performs a dual purpose. I am pretty sure your seeds will be fine though. Do not be so hard on yourself about trying something new!

:D

An update. I planted the seeds and the first 2 that sprouted I lost, probably damp off or whatever it is called. I think I was spraying them too often. So, I dumped a bunch of cinnamon on the top and watered them from the bottom and moved them where they get more air movement. I've got many more that have sprouted now.

looking very nice Jonna. keep up the good work!

Thanks Noel, I'm hoping that I will get better and less anxious about growing from seed. Obviously, that's my best option for new varieties here since I can't order plants online. It seems it is a skill I definitely need

I am actually working to change that problem for you Jonna. You know I have access to the jungle proper, & quite a few rare (in cultivation) varieties that I am working on getting to market. I have Syngonium seed now that are hard to take care of, because I have to plant them instead of save them for later or sell them. I am working on getting the permissions to sell them overseas now.

It would be great to be able to order plants more easily. I can order some from Mexican nurseries most of which are in the state of Veracruz or near Mexico City. The variety is not large though and the process can be frustrating.

Here is a pic from a week or so ago of the seedlings. I'm just thrilled that they sprouted and have grown this much. I think I need to transplant them soon but I'm not sure. I want to put some of them in a pot on the terrace so I can watch them closer and others in a pot sunk in the ground in the garden near the wall I would like them to climb. I may take the bottom out of the pot I sink out there, mainly I want to give them a little protection from invasive roots of other plants and from the cats and slugs.

After double checking what the seed parent looks like I'm amazed. Your seedlings look fantastic Jonna! Obviously growing out seeds is no problem for you. I wonder if this kind of variety in seedling leaves is normal? I hope they all do well for you Jonna.

heh! I sweated buckets getting these to grow and not rot. If they die now I'll be crushed so I need to get some advice on whether to transplant them or leave them a bit longer. It is something new to learn, that's what I keep telling myself about seeds.