Planting Hophornbeam

[tyb525]

I want to plant a few hophornbeam trees in my yard. There are plenty in my woods, and I have already gotten quite a few seeds. My question is, how are they germinated/planted,etc?

edit: To avoid confusion, the hophornbeam I'm referreing to is Ostrya virginiana, the one with the "shreddy" bark.
Not blue beech/ironwood/american hornbeam, or Carpinus caroliniana, which has smooth bark.

[Riles]

You picked a tough one to start on. According to Seeds of Woody Plants in the United States :

"Seeds have an internal dormancy that is difficult to overcome." They went on to describe a very complicated cold/warm stratification technique that only germinated 27 and 65 percent (2 different lots). Oh, and it took more than 200 days.

On the other hand, if you're not trying to maintain that amount of control or want to wait for spring planting,  "In one case seed collected slightly green in August and sown immediately germinated 100 percent the following spring." Prep the seed bed, sow the seeds, mulch, water every now and then, and uncover the seedlings as soon as they germinate.

Eastern hophornbean is primarily an understory tree, so pick good spots in the yard.

[tyb525]

I have planted trees before, but hey, the seeds are free  . I might as well try. Thanks.

[Clark]

I can understand the desire to start some from seed, but....

If you have some woods that are full of them, you should be able to find some that are less than 3' tall fairly easy.  Once you find those I'd just transplant them to where you want 'em and be a year or two ahead (and maybe more, I've no clue how fast the young ironwood grow) of the seed started trees.  Just a thought.

Clark

[tyb525]

Clark, I thought about that, and I think I might do that this fall or early spring. I think I'll be able to find some.

[Riles]

Transplant shock is always an issue, so you don't necessarily get that year or two head start. I bushhogged a pasture and had the state plant 1 year old nursery stock (genetically improved loblolly pine). I had a couple wild run Virginia pine seed into the same pasture area cut again the next year. That native Virginia pine easily outgrew the improved transplant the first two years (three years to the transplant). If you're going to transplant, make sure you get lots of root ball, with the soil intact.

[SwampDonkey]

I planted several on my lawn about 16 years ago and every one lived. I dug them up from the woodlot when they were 3 feet tall in the spring time before leaf out. The lime colored hops are showy and even later when they ripe they are showy to. Very slow growing trees though. They have a pyramid form to their crown and quite dense in the open. Often times when we are thinning hardwoods, ironwood (O. Virginiana) is found growing up through beaked hazel thickets when nothing else will grow.