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Our City Forest's Narrow-Leaf Milkweed Seed-Planting Instructions

Phil Higgins, Mountain View City's biologist we collaborate with for this project, attended a workshop for planting California natives, organized by the nonprofit Our City Forest. Here's his report back about their instructions for planting narrow-leaf milkweed seeds:

They placed them in a paper bag or glass jar that was sealed, and left them in the fridge for about two months before planting them. This is to simulate a cold winter period.

They used a potting mix of half potting compost and half perlite. They put both items into a basin and watered it until it could be lifted up and formed a ball, so as not to over saturate but enough to keep sufficient moisture.

They then placed the mix into pots and placed 3 seeds in each pot. They place them in a glasshouse and they have an automatic mister water them four times per day for approximately 60 seconds each time. Again, they do not recommend saturating the seeds but keeping them moist.

I asked about growing milkweed seeds at home without a glasshouse. They recommended placing a plastic container over the pot to simulate a glass house and maintain a moist environment and watering them with a spray bottle at least 4 times per day.

If all three seeds germinate they remove 2 of them so one will be healthier.

This was a nursery preparing plants for purchase, so they are probably more inclined to make sure everything looks nice and neat. I have seen other instances where they remove extra seedlings to ensure the healthiest individual survives. Also, this is just one person’s personal seed preparation method, I am sure if you went to several classes on seed preparation they would all vary somewhat.

It's best to try different methods to see what works, then I presume potting, compost, watering schedule, and exposure to light will all have an impact, so what works for one volunteer may not work as well for someone else.