Schisandra, Official (Schisandra chinensis), packet of 20 seeds
$4.95
Family: Magnolia (Magnoliaceae)
Hardy to Zones 4 to 8
(Wu-wei-zi) Perennial woody vine. Native to Manchuria, northeastern China and Japan. The odoriferous pink or white flowers give way to bright red fruit which droops down in clusters from the vine. This is known as the many-flavored berry. The taste is sour. Traditional usage (TCM): appetite stimulant, immune-enhancement. Vine prefers moist soils and dappled shade, and really prefers to sprangle on the ground instead of climbing a trellis. Some people scarify the seeds before planting but I find this to be unnecessary. Soak seeds in water overnight before planting. Give 30 days warm (70 to 80 degrees F), then 30 days cold (40 degrees F), then plant in cool shade–requires oscillating temperatures for germination. Light is fine. Protect flats from birds, which like to eat the germinating seeds. Protect the seedlings from mice, which like to chew the bark. Work seedlings up in pots and transplant once sufficiently well-established to survive the rigors of the landscape. Space 3 feet apart.
Packet contains 20 seeds
Open Pollinated, Untreated, NO GMO’s
In stock
Question
teaganmartinez1104 (verified owner) –
While researching i found many sources saying that in order to fruit, schisandra requires both male and female varieties. I’m not sure if the chinesis variety is strictly one sex, and i will have to get another variety to pollinate it? Or can i get fruit from my chinesis alone? Thanks 🙂
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Richo Cech –
Hi! Thanks for writing. Sometimes when you go online and start researching, you just get all jumbled up, because its like being in the desert between tow giant rock faces and beating a drum. Which one of the drumbeats is the actual drumbeat and which one is an echo? OK so listen closely I’ll try to disambiguate. Most sources are going to list Schisandra chinensis as a DIOECIOUS plant, that is has separate male and female plants, like pot. Your thinking that one would have to get different varieties isn’t right, it would be to get a MALE plant and a FEMALE plant. But here’s another thing. The dioeciousness of the plant is not really carved in stone. There will be some female flowers on male plants and vice versa. It does make sense to grow more of them, they will fruit better when cross pollinated by several individuals. More on all this in VOLUME 2 of Growing plant medicine. I’ve already written on schisandra but we’ll have to wait for the publishing of the book to get you the whole story. Without the echoes. Richo
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Question
Linda Albright –
You said the plants prefer to “sprangle on the ground”. Will they fruit if I let them do this?. If so, would I have a chance to compete with the wildlife in finding the fruit?
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Richo Cech –
Hi Linda, In our experience they fruit better when allowed to creep on the ground, but they can also be trellised, both methods work. We haven’t seen a lot of competition from forest creatures for the berries. richo
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Question
Edileuza Benedito –
Voces enviam sementes ai brasil?
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Richo Cech –
Desculpe, não podemos enviar sementes com sucesso para o Brasil.
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Question
Samir Akkari –
Do you ship to Lebanon
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Richo Cech –
Hello Samir, Thank you, if you can manage to order, we will ship. And we cannot guarantee receipt. richo
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Christin E. Holthe –
I am interested in growing this plant in south-east Norway, do you think the climate will be ok? Also, I read that this plant is dioescious, how does that work when growing from seed? Do I need seeds from 2 different plants (male/female) for it to bear fruit?
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Richo Cech –
hello christin, it might make sense to check the zone designation for applicability to norway, but the plant is indeed quite cold hardy, and grows better up north. i know the literature says these are dioecious but they can have male and female florets on the same plant, the reproduction biology is quite complex in schisandra. one grows as many plants as possible. r
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Question
Sara –
is this Schisandra self-fertile?
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Richo Cech –
Basically one falls prey to a lot of misinformation on this. On close investigation both male and female flowers can be found on any plant, so it is self-fertile, but outcrossing is going to improve seed set.
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Sara –
Thank you, what is outcrossing?
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Richo Cech –
this is a breeding habit typical to many plants, involving pollen sharing with a plant of the same genus and species but different parentage. many plants have evolved self-incompatibility to encourage outcrossing. it assures a broader genetic base. richo
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Question
thenaekedgardener –
Hello,
Will you ever sell schisandra glabra, again?
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Richo Cech –
Hi there, This is on the list of desriables. r
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Farisa –
Will grow well in container indoors in Phoenix AZ?
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Richo Cech –
Hello Farisa, I am trying to imagine this and having a hard time visualizing it. People can and will do almost anything with plants and I like to encourage this learning and playfulness. You can try!
Richo
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MATTHIEU SCHMITTER –
Do you know how to discern male and female plant once grown since they need both to produce fruit?
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Richo Cech –
hi matthieu, most scientists now agree, and horticulturalists concur, that the plant has perfect flowers and is monoecious. that said, most plants do appreciate a bit of diversity (obligate breeders) so it makes sense to grow at least three. they do make fruits. richo
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Gareth Graff –
Very Viable
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Olga Buettner (verified owner) –
I had a good result with propagating these seeds as below: 1) soaking seeds in water for 4 days; 2) fill an empty apple sauce cup with barely damp peat moss, add seeds, cover with damp peat moss, and place this cup inside of a zipped plastic bag. Keep at room temperature for 30 days; 3) move the bag (make sure the peat moss is still damp) on a top shelf of a refrigerator (4-5 C) for another 30 days; 4) move the bag inside of a vegetable drawer of your refrigerator (10C). Check for broken seed coat after 2 weeks and when the seed coat is broken, plant at room temperature.
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Admin Richo Cech –
Hello Olga,
This method follows the required warm/cold stratification that is clearly the way to work with schisandra (opposite of normal stratification which is cold/warm).
Good work,
Richo
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Gareth Graff –
These seeds are great; I got incredible germ rates (about 97%)! This is the first time I’ve had success, so I thought I’d share, I know a lot of people have had issues with starting these plants from seed, but, if you get your seeds from Richo, it’s not the seeds, it’s the strategy. Here’s what I did:
1. In mid autumn, I soaked the seeds in room temp water for 24 hours, and then planted them in good, rich organic soil, with a high amount of well-composted compost.
2. Next I placed my flats in an unheated room; in the winter/late fall, the room doesn’t freeze, but it does tend to be around 40-60 F. (Temp fluctuation is key here, sometimes temps would get very warm at first, but then they got cold then warm etc…)
3. I more or less left the flats alone, the only thing I did was to water them from time to time, when they started to dry out (don’t over-water!).
4. As the winter came to an end, the seedlings emerged strong and healthy! (After they are fully up, they’ll be better off with grow-lights or in a greenhouse.)
I hope this method helps you; in my view, it works vastly better than standard stratification methods, because it allows the seeds to breathe more, as they are not sealed in a bag.
Thank you Richo and the entire team!
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robygobeil (verified owner) –
Hi Richo,
Are you gonna have some seeds of Schisandra soon?
Thanks!!!
Roby
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Richo Cech –
Hello! Sorry, not soon, plants currently dormant. Richo
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Ruthann Bader –
I had great success with these! I did nothing special, just planted them in a couple of flats and left them on a table on the deck in the fall. Next spring if they didn’t all sprout and grow, then it was close to it. So exciting! Love Schizandra!
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Richo Cech –
hi ruthann, good idea, let nature do the work for you. r
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