Tropical houseplant seeds
Exotic trees and shrubs from the tropics can be grown from seed and are kept here as container plants for the home and conservatory, often as bonsai too. Here you will find tropical houseplant seeds of many species — from strikingly flowering legumes such as delonix, caesalpinia or bauhinia to neem, kigelia or pterocarpus. Most have a hard seed coat, so soaking and warmth are recommended before sowing.
Tropical houseplant seeds
Many tropical trees and shrubs are easy to grow from seed and, in a temperate climate, are kept as movable container plants that come indoors or into the conservatory for winter. Tropical houseplant seeds bring exotic shapes, feathery leaves and, in some species, splendid flowers to the collection.
A large group is made up of legumes with finely feathery leaves, such as delonix, caesalpinia, albizia, bauhinia, adenanthera, prosopis or pithecellobium. They grow fast and many flower beautifully. Other species are grown for their leaves, trunk or unusual fruit — these include neem (Azadirachta), kigelia (the sausage tree with striking fruit), diospyros, pterocarpus, handroanthus or cordia. Many also lend themselves very well to bonsai.
The seeds of tropical woody plants often have a hard coat that slows germination. It helps to soak them in lukewarm water for one to two days, and if needed to lightly nick or file the coat. Sow into a light, free-draining substrate and keep steady moisture and warmth around 25 to 30 °C, ideally in an indoor propagator.
These are heat-loving, frost-tender plants, so they stay warm and bright all year and go outside only in summer. Give young plants a bright spot, careful watering and enough room for the roots; if you want a bonsai, start shaping it only after a few years of free growth.