[stickman]

Yesterday my two boys and I went looking for tree seeds to plant and grow for walking sticks

We found some beach nut seeds,and acorns(already starting to sprout) we put them in a plastic cup with some dirt from my compost pile

when they sprout I will transplant them to a 5 gal. bucket and try to train them to grow in the shapes that I want .

someone on here suggested a wire run through a hose and wrapped around the tree to make a twisted kind of shape .

I will definitely will try it .any other suggestions that would look cool?

or any advice on how to start trees from seed would be helpful.

like what kind of trees start easily? and if there are any tricks to be more successful.


I live in western p.a. if that helps

something that grows fast and carves nice would be ideal.

[wade clark]

Maples grow like weeds, strait and could be bent and tied easily when young. Their seeds are the little whirlybirds that fall everywhere, sprout and try to take over the world. They grow to cane size in one to two years easily. If you drop them on the ground and water them occasionally they'll grow, but in some nice soil an inch or so deep and watered they'll impress you in no time.

[STICKMAN49]

Hello there Stickman,
Stickman49 here don't know if you've got Honeysuckel way up there. But for me part of the fun is finding natures on.I've got permission to look for my sticks on somewhere around 500 acers.But I am courous about how your project turns out.I've been spraying some of my sticks today.Got plans to take some to the flie market in a couple of weeks.

Good Luck,
Stickman49

[stickman]

hello stickman49,
I think we have honeysuckel native to our area.And I alos have a few places to hunt for sticks ,but I thought it would be cool to grow some myself and and as long as I'm puttung in the effort to grow some I might as well try to train them or expirement a little with them.

Wade I think maple woudl be good also except the maples that I have already made sticks of are kind of plain and some of then have dark patches or stains on them after you remove the bark.but they would grow fast and straight .

what about sycamore any body start one from seed?

[wade clark]

Never started one from seed but it's one of my favorite woods.

[Thomp]

5-10 years ago i was told of hanging gardens particulary tomato plants in buckets, hanging off the closeline pole,

i grew cherry tomatoes like this (through a 1" hole in the side & bottom of a 5 gallon bucket) the fruit kept the stem pulled downwards..

BUT, thinking along the same lines, a sapling coming out the bottom of the bucket would naturally bend in a radius upwards, consideration of where to make the hole in the bucket, might provide enough room to plant multibles in the same bucket, much more daily attention is necessary to make sure it stays watered..

• the bonsai trees (little trees) are trained with copper wire, then potbound and then kept on the edge of dying to miniaturize whatever species they want..

• if you plant a tree in a pot dont let it get root bound, that hampers the growth, best to start it in a small pot and shift it up successively bigger pots as its needed..

here in louisiana's tropical climate, i had to move my tomatoes to a place that was in the shade after 2pm in the the hotter july-sep sun because they just got cooked if left in full sun.

• Seeds,

Lots of seeds need to be tricked before they germinate,
by putting them in a paper bag into a freezer up to 2 weeks, even warmer climate seeds can be tricked into thinking they been through a winter...

other seeds hard shelled like, magnolia, dogwood, red bud tree seed, are in a hard shell, like most fruit tree seeds.

Natures design is to offer the fruit to birds who eat the seed and all which passes through the stomach acid of the bird, then deposited in manuree, pre-softened and ready to sprout, with moisture and time..
un-eaten seeds usually never sprout as the shell isn't weakened .
i dont know if pre soaking seeds like you do okra seeds would give you better success in making them to sprout. couldnt hurt...

this state is lousy with sychimore, willow, catalba, alder, cottonwood.
walking a railroad track or an un-attended property should provide many sticks, if dug bare root the cane sized root mass should be formed easier than steam bending,
maybe this is something to do while your sprouting your seeds...

hope some of this helps
thomas

[Eddy Smiles]

Do you have sweetgum or yellow poplar (Tulip) up there? They're relatively quick growing. When ever I walk through the woods in S.E. Tennessee I look for sweetgum and poplar that has sprouted up alongside the bank of a road or creek. Many times they'll start off by growing down and then turn up towards the sun making a ready made cane handle.

[Hi_Ho_Sliver]

How about Paulownia? fast growing, cut it off and it grows back from the stump..

[stickman]

thank for all the suggestions

especially Thomas there's a wealth of info in your reply thanks for taking the time to write it all out for me.

[Thomp]

sorry for being such a jabber wakie, i do go the long way around sometimes,
your welcome

i got 2 sticks tied and 2 girtled with wire progress more information as it grows