Starting Curry Trees from seeds

[pepperhead212]

Back in September, a few seeds finally started ripening on my curry tree - seeds that showed up on the plant way back in June! They stayed green all summer, and I finally got them totally ripening at the end of September.
Seeds of the curry tree, from the spring, just now starting to ripen. 9-15 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

The seeds are actually the fruits of the plant, with a single seed inside, starting to root, by the time they get dark, and soft:
Seed, squeezed out of a curry tree fruit, showing the root already started! 9-29 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

This one is eventually the largest of the 5 seedlings:
Curry tree seedling, growing from a seed. 10-15 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Here are those curry tree seedlings more than 3 months after planting! I had a couple more than the original 3 germinate, and two of these were actually came up late, in the pots with 2 of the others, and I left them, since they were an inch or so apart. I had them under a blue LED light, and they seemed to grow well, though slowly (probably the norm), not getting leggy. I re-potted them today, wetting the mix with some dilute hydroponics nutrients, also adding a few drops of Bt israelensis, for the fungus gnats. I transferred them to sit under a stronger LED 5,000k bulb - I'll see if they grow faster.
All 5 of the curry tree plants, started from seed, re-potted 1-11-21 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Largest of 5 curry tree plants, started from seed. 1-11-21 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

[MissS]

That is so cool. I love a good curry and wish that I could grow curry trees here. I haven't enough light in the house and my climate just is not contusive to this so I am stuck going to the Indian store to get fresh curry. Gosh I do wish that the grocery stores would start to carry fresh curry leaves. It would make things so much easier. I am on restricted shopping since COVID began which means that I have not had a good curry in the past year. Sigh...

[habitat-gardener]

Wow! A neighbor at a community garden in the SF Bay Area was growing one in her plot. She covered it every winter.

In NJ, do you grow it as a houseplant or in a greenhouse?

[pepperhead212]

Here I have to bring it inside - curry trees don't like it much below 50°, and it is the first one in come fall, and the last one out in spring. I grow it on a deck, in the warm season, and in a south facing window in the off-season.

[worth1]

Supposedly they grow wild here.
Seen what I think is them but not for sure.

[pepperhead212]

Didn't do well last year - they just stopped growing about where they were in the last photo. This time I'm trying again, and I had a lot more ripe berries this year. I even sprouted 2 of them in just 2 days in that Instant Pot, and they came up today, but so did one of the 6 that I planted without sprouting them early! Took just over 2 weeks to come up - about what was normal when not started early. Here's a photo - I have it under my new LED, but since it is dimmable, I turned it down, but put it up close. Here are the 3 seedlings, so far:
Curry tree seedlings, finally, on 10-16, planted on 09-29 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

[pepperhead212]

In late October - when I trimmed the curry tree to bring inside - I tried rooting some cuttings, but like is done with many hardwoods, with no leaves. I had a few hints of growth on two of them, but I finally gave up on trying to root those cuttings - even those ones with minute growths never developed any more leaves, and nothing had any roots on them. Maybe I'll try again, if there's a market for them!
Ten curry tree cuttings, and two kaffir lime tree cuttings, put in the soil mix on 10-20, attempting to root. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Amazingly, all but one of the seeds from 9-29 nsprouted, the last 2 much later than the rest. So I got 7 of 8, but two were much smaller, and very few roots, so those I threw out. Those two that I sprouted before putting them in the soil were 2 of the largest, but one of the soil planted ones got the largest mass of roots of any. I transplanted 5 of them - I added a bit of worm castings to the mix, and wetted it down with some hydroponics mix, plus some Bt israelensis, to prevent fungus gnats. I'll see if they grow faster now.
Curry tree seedlings, started from seed. Ready to be transplanted. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

One of the larger curry tree seedlings, showing the roots on it, before transplanting. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Curry tree seedlings, transplanted, 1-14-22 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

[MissS]

I find this very interesting. Seeds are easy but not so much for cuttings. I do see curry trees offered on my local neighborhood website. I would love to try one but just don't have enough light inside to grow much of anything.

[pepperhead212]

Fortunately, I have a south facing window where the curry tree, as well as the kaffir lime and bay laurel tree seem to grow well, in the off season. The curry tree I think is up to 12 years old now.

[MissS]

It's amazing that you have kept that tree so long! You must be doing something very right.

[pepperhead212]

I also have a kaffir lime tree that is 21 years old! Both do ok inside, but much prefer it outside.