How to sow Acer palmatum seeds?

Question:I just received 50 japanese red maple seeds (Acer palmatum) that I bought on ebay. Can anyone give me a heads up as to what the best sowing methods are with this species of tree?

Answers:
Sure can.

First of all, they need to be wintered. In other words, put em in the ground and water them all you want, but they wont take hold.

At this point in the year, you need to do one of two things.

1) Wait until fall, THEN sow them outside. Cover with mulch and watch for them in the following spring.

As a grower, I dont have that kind of time. Heres a trick to fast forward the process and trick the tree into thinking its gone through winter:

2) Get a ziploc container... not a bag! Fill with sterile moss or fine sand. Place the seeds in, and water until JUST DAMP. Cover.

Place in the fridge and leave em there for 90 days. Rewater as needed to keep it moist--too much water and they'll rot, too dry and theyll never germinate.

Check every couple days to make sure none have sprouted.

The bottom line is, they NEED to go through a cold phase or they WILL NOT germinate. Skimp on the 90 days, and youll see that most (if not all) of the seeds will not germinate, or may take up to TWO YEARS to germinate.