Snowwood (Pararchidendron pruinosum) is a rainforest tree that is native to the east coast of Australia including the Sydney region. It is related to Acacia and Mimosa.
Seeds of this species can be difficult to germinate in regular seed raising mixes, so plants are often grown by putting the seeds in the garden instead, usually under a thin layer of mulch to retain moisture.
I have recently had success germinating the seeds in two different moist seed raising mixes with the warm summer weather. I believe these mixes were successful because they more closely mimic the germination conditions in the forest where seeds fall into soggy organic matter on top of the free draining coastal soil.
The first setup that I had success with was a pot containing a mix of perlite, vermiculite and perhaps filtered native potting mix. The seedlings grew perfectly in this mix and the depth of the pot nicely accommodated the strong tap root.
The second setup I had success with was a typical seed tray with a 50:50 mix of washed sand and peat. Many of the seeds quickly germinated in this setup with the warm summer temperatures. However, the setup did not reliably produce as nice seedlings. When the seeds germinated, they expanded to three or four times their size while still staying quite flat. This larger seed could not easily rotate in sand/peat mix and produced a right angled step at the seed. The rigid tap root also ended up with a right angled bend at the bottom of the seed tray.
While I only have a small sample size so far, I would recommend growing snowwood seeds in a deeper seed tray with a seed raising mix that is loose, airy and significantly damper than usual. A good start is a combination of perlite and vermiculite with a third finer ingredient to improve contact with the seeds and provide nutrients. The mix should still be free draining, but stay wetter than typical seed raising mixes. I will continue to experiment with mixes and report any improvements.
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