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Rhyzobium

Growing Acacias in extreme Southern Australia (i.e. south of Hobart)

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Dear community,

 

In the interest of furthering the knowledge base relating to propagation and viability of various Acacia Sp. (particularly in the harsh climate of southern Tasmania) I have prepared a short video clip which I believe covers a lot of the information that was a little hard to find several years ago when I started out in this area. If anyone can offer any words of improvement or constructive criticism they will be gladly accepted. I hope you find it entertaining and useful.

 

 

300619_Growing_Acacias_in_Southern_Australia.mp4

300619_Growing_Acacias_in_Southern_Australia.mp4

Edited by Rhyzobium
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Hi Rhyz from a fellow Tas southerner.  Thanks for the informative vid.  Im having a go at growing A.acuminata for the 1st time.  Have you lost any to frost? Which of the species do you feel are the hardiest to frost? acuminata survived last week ok which some minimal leaf damage (although i did move by the 3rd frosty night last week.) The younger seedlings did pretty well.  Hoping once they get taller it wont be as much an issue.  

Peace

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This is really great, i've never heard of rhizobium before so I've learned something new! 

Nicely paced, I think the video is very good.

 

Also nice to see another Tasmanian on here ;) 

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Hi Humbolt, 

 

 Yes I lost a few small plants to frost early in my experimentation (UV causes me more problems though).I can say that the plants are far more vulnerable to frost when younger so I generally leave them inside until they are 500-900mm high.

 

As far as rating which is most or least frost tolerant I'd lean towards them all being roughly the same except for the Obtusifolia which does seem to struggle a bit compared to the others.

 

 

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Thanks Caster,

 

A work in progress - so much more to add when time permits.

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5 hours ago, Rhyzobium said:

Hi Humbolt, 

 

 Yes I lost a few small plants to frost early in my experimentation (UV causes me more problems though).I can say that the plants are far more vulnerable to frost when younger so I generally leave them inside until they are 500-900mm high.

 

As far as rating which is most or least frost tolerant I'd lean towards them all being roughly the same except for the Obtusifolia which does seem to struggle a bit compared to the others.

 

 

Ive noticed the obtusifolia to be less stressed than acuminata.  In fact they seemed very happy about it.  Man they were harsh frosts last week! The bath outside had 2cm of ice on top, the seedling punnets froze solid even though they were inside the shed.  

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Great video Rhyzobium - cleared up a lot of uncertainty I had re how to best germinate & grow my acacias. Quick question - did you innoculate the acacia seeds after germination or before?

 

 

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Thanks for the feedback anrdos88 - I hold of with the rhizobium until they are potted then just mix the culture with water and apply.

I'll add this process to the video over the coming weekend.

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On 30/06/2019 at 10:07 PM, Humbolt said:

acuminata survived last week ok which some minimal leaf damage

Maybe that was a bit premature, sadly a few days on and the acuminata looks pretty burnt despite bringing it in under cover after 2 frosts.

20190707_171340.thumb.jpg.fb263de08388107e2b61be4b1d078004.jpg 

 

 

A. floribunda has stayed out for 5 or 6 frosts now and appears not to have suffered at all.

 

20190707_171355.thumb.jpg.31a763d2b38665acce870cff60346fda.jpg

 

Ps. Sorry about the vertically challenged pics.

 

 

20190707_171355.thumb.jpg.31a763d2b38665acce870cff60346fda.jpg

20190707_171340.thumb.jpg.fb263de08388107e2b61be4b1d078004.jpg

20190707_171355.thumb.jpg.31a763d2b38665acce870cff60346fda.jpg

20190707_171340.thumb.jpg.fb263de08388107e2b61be4b1d078004.jpg

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On 03/07/2019 at 6:14 PM, Rhyzobium said:

 I hold of with the rhizobium until they are potted then just mix the culture with water and apply.

 

Hi Rhyz, couple of questions.  On the vid you selected a mix of type H and type I.  What was it about these inoculants that made you identify theyd be beneficial for Acacias?  Site doesnt go into much of that detail.  And are they suitable for other native species?

 

What application rate did you use? Is it more effective to innoculate after potting?

 

 

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Hi Humbolt, 

 

My research led me to believe that R. Japonica and Rhizobium sp. would be the most suitable (based on the info I could find on the web - links below). There are a multitude of other strains that may or may not be more beneficial but I've only tried these two so far. I must admit that my approach is more trial and error than rigorous science.

 

In summary the path I followed was:

https://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2002/09/19/674726.htm

http://www.cpbr.gov.au/cpbr/projects/wattle-grow/index.html (Note that Wattle Grow was bought out by BASF who no longer produces the inoculant as it was not commercially viable. Also see that bradyrizobium was used in the trial)

https://www.aciar.gov.au/file/68956/download?token=FE44X5Wy (See table 3 on page 32 for a list of bacteria strains)

https://grdc.com.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0014/117221/rhizobial-inoculants-fact-sheet.pdf.pdf (See page 2 for inoculant groups that relate back to the eden seeds website)

https://www.edenseeds.com.au/?name=Category-Info-General&category=Inoculant (Web based inoculant retailer)

 

I understand that they are only beneficial for legumes so not suitable for natives in general.

 

The rate of application I've used is approximately 2.5g (Type H ) + 2.5g (Type I) per 50 seedlings. Just mixed with tap water and applied as soon as the seeds are planted. I usually re-dose after about 8 weeks. Note that the Eden seeds do send a method to dose the seeds prior to germination but I've not tried this so far.

 

I hope that is of some help.

 

4.thumb.jpg.a9bb7e700c347765cb023803212bf1ae.jpg

4.thumb.jpg.a9bb7e700c347765cb023803212bf1ae.jpg

4.thumb.jpg.a9bb7e700c347765cb023803212bf1ae.jpg

Edited by Rhyzobium
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Very nice retrospective video! Thanks for sharing! 

 

For those of us that are not in australia, it would be cool to describe the particularity/uniqueness of Tasmanian climate as opposed to australian climate, to understand better why you point this out. Indicative lowest temps and description of the cold season there would also be helpful to form a better picture. 

 

Also of some use and definately interesting would be to have some small descriptions of the habitat / climate where major species naturally occur, for those of us that are not familiar with australian climate 

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Hi everyone,

Eden seeds no longer stocks H & I inoculant - has anyone found an alternative source to purchase them?

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On 10/08/2019 at 8:09 AM, Rhyzobium said:

Hi Humbolt, 

 

My research led me to believe that R. Japonica and Rhizobium sp. would be the most suitable (based on the info I could find on the web - links below). There are a multitude of other strains that may or may not be more beneficial but I've only tried these two so far. I must admit that my approach is more trial and error than rigorous science.

 

In summary the path I followed was:

https://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2002/09/19/674726.htm

http://www.cpbr.gov.au/cpbr/projects/wattle-grow/index.html (Note that Wattle Grow was bought out by BASF who no longer produces the inoculant as it was not commercially viable. Also see that bradyrizobium was used in the trial)

https://www.aciar.gov.au/file/68956/download?token=FE44X5Wy (See table 3 on page 32 for a list of bacteria strains)

https://grdc.com.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0014/117221/rhizobial-inoculants-fact-sheet.pdf.pdf (See page 2 for inoculant groups that relate back to the eden seeds website)

https://www.edenseeds.com.au/?name=Category-Info-General&category=Inoculant (Web based inoculant retailer)

 

I understand that they are only beneficial for legumes so not suitable for natives in general.

 

The rate of application I've used is approximately 2.5g (Type H ) + 2.5g (Type I) per 50 seedlings. Just mixed with tap water and applied as soon as the seeds are planted. I usually re-dose after about 8 weeks. Note that the Eden seeds do send a method to dose the seeds prior to germination but I've not tried this so far.

 

I hope that is of some help.

 

4.thumb.jpg.a9bb7e700c347765cb023803212bf1ae.jpg

Hi @Rhyzobium, hope things have

been good.  Q. did you have success with using innoculant for germinating A.phlebophylla?  Did you use hot or cold stratification prior to applying?

 

 

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Obtusifolia have a wide range.  The ones which cop light frosts and milder winter temps would be unlikely to survive if grown in the western extent of their range where winter temps get down to -7 or so and the occasional bit of snow.

possibly sourcing seed or plants from particular areas with that species might be helpful .

 

Pictures included are from an area where it gets to those low temps ;)

B1DDD17C-DF2D-4B6B-B552-89DDA46DDAF5.jpeg

D0EA244D-4B97-42A1-9A36-198CEC16E83C.jpeg

B1DDD17C-DF2D-4B6B-B552-89DDA46DDAF5.thumb.jpeg.73defe499d37305be9d0fd1844c8090b.jpeg

D0EA244D-4B97-42A1-9A36-198CEC16E83C.thumb.jpeg.82a2ab55efc3d99a3fcb10f98cd0ba86.jpeg

B1DDD17C-DF2D-4B6B-B552-89DDA46DDAF5.thumb.jpeg.73defe499d37305be9d0fd1844c8090b.jpeg

D0EA244D-4B97-42A1-9A36-198CEC16E83C.thumb.jpeg.82a2ab55efc3d99a3fcb10f98cd0ba86.jpeg

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On 10/12/2020 at 6:09 AM, Humboldt said:

Hi @Rhyzobium, hope things have

been good.  Q. did you have success with using innoculant for germinating A.phlebophylla?  Did you use hot or cold stratification prior to applying?

 

 

 

Hi Humbolt, the Phlebs are definitely much harder to get started. Approx. 50% - success rate vs approx. 90% for most other species I've tried. I have generally followed the guidelines found here: https://herbalistics.com.au/acacia-phlebophylla-cultivation-from-seed/.

 

I will have some fresh seed from my garden in 6-9 months so will continue the experimentation and report back.

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Updated video. Courtii garden now producing 100,000+ seeds per year. PM me if you'd like some.

 

 

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