By Michael Smith (Veshengro)
From the 23rd of September to the 23rd of October it is Seed Gathering Season
The Seed Gathering Season is upon us once again and for a month from the 23rd of September to the 23rd of October we are being encouraged to go out into the “wild” and to gather seeds, fruits and nuts to plant.
As it has started on the autumn equinox and lasts for a month, finishing on October 23rd you will have plenty of time to get out there and start collecting seeds for replanting.
Seed gathering is great fun and pretty useful too as you will be restocking your local area with its appropriate trees, it is a good excuse to go for a brisk autumn walk and is a superb way to get children involved in nature. Many parks around the UK are holding seed gathering events- click here to find one near you. The one seed not to be bothering with in the South of England will be the Conker, the fruit of the Horse Chestnut as, because of the bleeding canker it will be more than useless to replant anywhere with Horse Chestnuts. Sweet Chestnut is the alternative, as they are not related, and this is what is being done on many estates.
If there is no event near you or you are unable to go to one then visit the Tree Councils page on Seed Gathering Season for tips on the best times to collect seeds, how to collect and prepare your seeds, how to encourage your seeds to germinate and how to nurture them along the way.
Also check out the BBCs gardening page for some seed gathering and planting tips. Remember to label your seeds as you go along, to store seeds in dry conditions and don't forget to plant your seeds once spring comes around!
Alternatively you could start your seed off in pots on the windowsill at home and nurture them along till they are a year or so old seedlings and then plant those. They then have a much better chance of establishing.
© 2011
