They are pretty hardy with that hard outer coat. I have some from this season, if you want to trade or share what you are getting :). The outer seed coat needs to be scored (I used a dremel and it took a while to cut through) and then soak them in water ~24 hours and they will double in size. Plant them and voila...sprouts.

I also have some that have recently sprouted that I could try to ship.(never tried shipping them before and have heard they don't like to be transplanted)

I want anything herbs and/or wysteria.

Thank you for the offer, Pizzahaulic. I appreciate it, but my trader and I have already agreed to postpone the trade until I can get fresh seed later this year (it's easy to get with all the mtn. laurel trees around here ~ just not this time of year) and (s)he can get fresh seed of what I wanted. But it was awful generous of you to offer without knowing what I was getting in return. :)

And for the record, I cracked open the seeds and soaked them, but they quickly fell apart ~ some shattered as I cracked them, some later that day as swelling started to happen, and some in the coming days. I think they were just too old and dried.

sorry to hear it. i have a ton i just harvested, as they are dangling from the trees here in Texas. if you want to send me an SASBE and 4 stamps, I'd be happy to send you a bunch. They are heavy and bulky and that is why the extra postage. I recently sent some and got gouged at the PO.

A gauge of how old they are is the dot where they were attached to the seed pod when growing. If it is still white, they are likely less than a year old and very viable. If it is black then they are over a year old and/or pretty dry, but I have still had great success with older seeds.

Thanks for the offer, Pizzahaulic! But a friend found some from last year still on a tree in Austin and have a bag full now. I'm still going to wait and get some fresh seed this year, too ~ the trees at work are blooming now. Don't you just LOVE the smell?

Say, have you seen the gray-leaved Texas Mountain Laurel? We just got some in at work. The leaves are covered with a gray fuzz like the seed pods. Wild.