A Foolproof Method of Sowing Puya Seed

Puya seed is unusual, in that it requires exposure to sunlight to germinate. In nature, the seeds are carried by the wind, where hopefully they find an exposed medium. In sowing your Puya seeds, do not cover them!

Other Puya growers have invented a fine method of sowing Puya seed using a soda bottle. I like my Dome method best, because the bowls and saucers can be washed in the dishwasher after the seedlings are shifted up to larger containers. They can be re-used over and over again.

First of all, go to your local dollar store and purchase some pyrex bowls. Take them to your local garden center and find plastic saucers (the kind you put under plastic pots) that just fit the bowls. Drill some holes in the saucers for drainage.

Fill the saucers with a good quality potting soil. Syringe the soil with a fine mist nozzle until
it is saturated.

Sow the Puya seed sparingly. If the seed is fresh, germination should be high. The community pot should not be too crowded. Each saucer should host a maximum of 25-50 seedlings.





After the seeds are sown, mist again with the fine mist nozzle, being careful not to blow the seed out of the saucer. Just barely wet the seed.

Please the upside-down bowls over the seed. Place the domes in a warm area (70-80 degrees) in filtered sunlight. In about 4-6 weeks you will see a green carpet developing on the surface of the soil. If you wish, you may lift the dome periodically to check soil moisture.