[APWG] What caused surprise results in Poppy Project, where seedlings all died?

[craig at astreet.com]

Dear All,

	 

	From my Poppy Project in Palo Alto, California, (Google = Poppy
Project+Arastradero)  I took soil samples from under the poppies
where they had been shedding seeds this summer from locations 10 feet
apart, and put the soil into 4 inch plastic pots.   

	 

	 I watered the pots and within a few weeks, had a lush growth of
poppy seedlings in both pots.  Both pots were side-by-side evenly
watered and neither were fertilized. 

	 

	However, within a month, every single poppy seedling in one pot died, and
you can see a picture of both pots at
http://www.ecoseeds.com/what-difference.jpg.   

	 

	These pot-tests of checking soil samples from the future revegetation
sites have become the standard for Caltrans for their projects, ever
since I taught them classes on the use of native plants 13 years ago, to
discover and correct this problem.

	 

	This is the second time I have encountered this very important issue in
such a dramatic way that is often overlooked, when trying to get native
plants established here in the West---so any guesses of what the
difference was?   

	 

	Sincerely,  Craig Dremann (650) 325-7333

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