Torrey Pine Seed
Question from Alan:
I would like to plant a torrey pine seed and hopefully get a tree from it, how should I go about doing this, what type of potting soil, pot, how much water, how deep do I plant the seed, how long until germination or sprout and anything else you can tell me about planting a torrey pine tree seed, thank you.
Answer from Pat:
Torrey pine seeds are usually grown in long narrow sleeves with the bottom open so their long tap root won’t be harmed by hitting the bottom of the pot, but only stopped by air, but my experience is that they will sprout fine in a gallon can filled with any well-drained potting soil since that has happened by accident at my house (or more likely planted by a jay. Leave the pot out in semi shade at normal outdoor temperatures. Seeds can sprout at any time of year but since most of these trees are planted by scrub jays and not by humans, they usually sprout in winter or early spring after the rains. Consistent watering is necessary so the seed will know it’s had a certain amount of rain, enough to permit the seedling to stick a long tap root in the ground and survive. Many wild seeds won’t sprout until a certain amount of rainfall has passed that seed and gone down into the ground thus increasing soil moisture and guaranteeing the plant’s success.
Or, alternatively, and actually a much better idea, just stick the seed or several seeds, about an inch or two down into the ground—(imagine you are a scrub jay)—right where you want the tree to grow and it should sprout easily over a period of several months if you keep the ground damp or if rains are adequate. You can throw a few pine needles or other debris on top if you want—that’s what scrub jays often do; I’ve watched them!—or a little mulch just to keep the ground from drying out. The best time to plant is right after the seeds fall on the ground and don’t forget it may take several months for it to sprout.
By planting the seed right where you want it to grow you stand a much better chance of growing a good tree with a long tap root heading straight down into the ground. A gallon can will restrict this from happening. Roots will go round and round and may break when you transplant the tree.
You mentioned putting the seeds in long narrow sleeves with the bottom open. Can you be a little more specific? How long and how narrow? Also, how do I keep the soil from falling out the open bottom?
Thanks.
Long sleeves are commonly used for planting native plants. You may be able to purchase them through native plant nurseries or nursery supply stores. The one’s I have seen are 8 to 12 inches long and the roots of the plants hand out the bottom of the pot to be pruned off by air. No, the soil mix does not fall out the bottom. First the container can be placed on a frame covered with hardware cloth, so the wire holds in the soil. Once the plants are growing they can be fitted into boards with round holes in them to hold the containers upright and the plant roots hold in the soil. Ask at native plant nurseries for these containers or make your own.
I grew up in San Diego and love the the Torrey Pine. I have collected some seed to try to plant. I live in Nevada and was wanting to know if they will grow in a soil that has a heavy mixture of clay, gravel, rock and alkali? Would you recomend direct planting or in a pot then trasplant under these conditions?
Torrey pine (Pinus torreyana) cannot grow in Nevada. Your insurmountable problem is not soil, it’s climate zone. Torrey pine is adapted to Sunset Zones 8, 9, 14-24, of which Zone 24 is best, since that is where the pine is found growing wild. Nevada contains none of those climate zones. The main Sunset Climate Zones of Nevada are 2A (cold mountain and inter-mountain areas), 2B (warmer-summer intermountain zone) and Zones 10 (high desert),11 (medium to high desert), and 13 (low or subtropical desert.) Thus, there is no climate zone in Nevada in which the Torrey pine can survive. Always check the climate zone for any plant you want to grow. Successful gardens are well designed and contain the finest easy-to-grow plants which are adapted to their particular area, soil, and climate. Look around and find things you love that grow well there and always choose the best. I sympathize with your desire to grow a plant you love that reminds you of where you grew up. This is a very human and natural feeling. Yearning to grow plants that are not adapted to the place where you live is often humorously called “climate envy”. It’s something any avid gardener might occasionally feel especially when its combined with nostalgia for a beloved plant and place, but there is always some way to create a delightful, perhaps even an impressive garden using plants well-adapted to the climate and soil where you live. The gardens I most admire in Nevada combine hills, rocks, paths, walls, patios and carefully chosen desert plants to create a sculptured and stunning environment that catches the magical morning and evening light of the Southwest in enchanting and inspiring ways. This is such an important skill that I have included detailed instructions on how to create a satisfying desert landscape on pages 340—342 of my organic book.
oh how sad. Torrey Pines is my happy place. However, I am in ….ick….Dallas, TX for a couple more years. 🙁 Since it sounds like my torrey pines seeds will not thrive and grow here (hmmm, i am finding symbolism in that at the moment) is there any pine with a beautiful strong piney smell that I can start here in a container? Perhaps, at least, I could close my eyes and pretend that I am elsewhere. Great Site! Many thanks.
Hi Pat,
I live in San Diego, and I would like to try to grow Torrey Pine as a bonsai. Do you think it will work? Do you have any suggestions?
Thanks
Almost any tree can be bonsai’d. However, some are more recalcitrant than others. My feeling is that Torrey Pine is not a good candidate due to the natural length of its roots and the length and stiffness of its needles. A conifer with shorter and more plentiful needles is going to look a lot better and be a lot easier to work with. Another problem is the growth habit of Torrey Pine since as if grows it drops the old needles annually and grows new one’s. If you want to try anyway then I suggest you attend a meeting of the Bonsai Society in your area and ask advice from old hands. Also read a book on the subject which details the dwarfing procedures you can employ. My advice is to choose a tall pot to accommodate the roots and train the plant by cascading it over the edge and then gracefully outward from the pot instead of upright growth. Bend wire around the trunk so you can make it conform to the artistic shape you visualize. A large bonsai would be easier to do with Torrey Pine than a small one and I would keep it to one branch, so in a sense the trunk would be the only branch. One of the dwarfing techniques to use at planting time is to reduce the length of the roots. Then choosing a strong and bendy root, wrap it all around the bottom of the trunk and then plant it down into the pot next to the trunk. As the root grows thicker, it will squeeze the trunk and dwarf the plant, including the roots. Years ago I did this several times as a demo on my television program (San Diego NBC news in the 1980’s) but the plant I used was a juniper, which is easy to dwarf and looks great when one is done.The next thing I did was prune off all the downward facing foliage so the branch was bare and could be seen.
I read along with everyone and still don’t know what a sleeve is
It DOES Sound like dirt will fall out the bottom which is supposed to have Air, and when do you take the toy pine taproot and put it back in the dirt after it comes out in the air ?
Yes, a planting sleeve has air at the bottom but the soil does not come out. The air “prunes” the roots at the bottom and the way it’s designed roots go straight down instead of out sideways and around and around. This is highly beneficial for such plants as Torrey Pine. When roots reach the bottom of the sleeve it’s time to plant in the ground. Be sure to irrigate.
Hello. I have some Torrey Pine seeds and was hoping if I could grow in Mateo north ATLANTA. We are moving in a year, so I want to start in a 1 gallon bucket. Any soild suggestions? What area of the yard should I focus on for final location.
Torrey pine is native to coastal Southern California, which enjoys a Mediterranean climate. This is a mild climate with a long dry summer and all rainfall in winter and spring. Torrey pine is not well adapted to growing in Atlanta.