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Polemonium villosum

Tall Jacob's-ladder

Family PolemoniaceaeGenus Polemonium

Also published as Polemonium acutiflorum. You are in the right place.

A single wiry stem carrying pale blue-violet flowers, standing over burnt ground with grass and young shoots.
The whole plantWalter Siegmund (talk)CC BY-SA 3.0

About the plant

What it is and where it grows — not part of any germination protocol.

The plant

Habit
Perennial, Forb/herbPLANTS Database
Height
3.0 ft90 cmPLANTS Database
Flower
BluePLANTS Database
Blooms
SummerPLANTS Database
Native range
Alaska, CanadaPLANTS Database

Growing conditions

Sun
Shade tolerance: LowPLANTS Database
Soil
Adapted to coarse, medium textured soilsPLANTS Database
Soil pH
5.0-7.8PLANTS Database
Watering
Drought tolerance: NonePLANTS Database

Toxicity is noted only where a source states it. No note here is not a finding of safety.

Source: PLANTS Database — USDA NRCS.

This source reports two treatments. Both are shown.

Protocol 1

DerivedN. C. Deno, 1993

Difficulty Moderate Rated by us, not by the source.

Start around March 19, 2027 for a May 3 last frost.

  1. Sow and cover

    Temperature: 70°F 21°C

No stated waiting before sowing. Then 17 days to germinate.

53% germination in 4–17 days.

Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 2nd ed. — N. C. Deno, 1993 · Ch. 20, Polemonium p. 195Public domain
Show the original text
Polemonium (Polemoniaceae). The following germ: in 2-5 w at 70: P. acutiflorum germ. 70(8/15 in 4-17 d) and 40(2/21)-70(7/21).
Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 2nd ed., Ch. 20, Polemonium p. 195. Quoted exactly. Every value on this card comes from this record, except the difficulty rating, which is ours; the step names come from a fixed list.

Protocol 2

DerivedN. C. Deno, 1993

Difficulty Moderate Rated by us, not by the source.

Start around September 17, 2027 for a May 3 last frost. Too late for spring 2027 — that needed starting on September 16, 2026.

  1. Cold moist stratification

    Duration: 90 daysTemperature: 40°F 4°C

    2/21 germinated in this phase.

  2. Warm moist stratification

    Duration: 90 daysTemperature: 70°F 21°C

about 6 months from start to sowing. Germination time not stated; 21 days assumed.

33% germination.

Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 2nd ed. — N. C. Deno, 1993 · Ch. 20, Polemonium p. 195Public domain
Show the original text
Polemonium (Polemoniaceae). The following germ: in 2-5 w at 70: P. acutiflorum germ. 70(8/15 in 4-17 d) and 40(2/21)-70(7/21).
Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 2nd ed., Ch. 20, Polemonium p. 195. Quoted exactly. Every value on this card comes from this record, except the difficulty rating, which is ours; the step names come from a fixed list.

How each step is done, in Deno’s words, and what Verified and Derived mean.

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