How to Grow Native Australian Orchid Seeds

Sterilize a work space by wiping it down with a 20-percent bleach solution. Set up a pressure cooker with enough water to cover baby food jars. Immerse the jars, and place the lid on the unit. Put the pressure cooker on the range at a high heat until it steams. Allow the cooker to steam for 10 minutes, and then turn off the heat. Let the jars and water cool naturally with the lid still on the cooker.

Sterilize the Australian orchid seeds. Place the seeds in cheesecloth, immerse them for one minute in a 10-percent bleach solution, and then lay the seeds on a sterile surface to air-dry.

Mixing 2 to 3 ounces of prepared orchid medium and 1 ounce of agar in each baby food jar. Add enough distilled water to soften the granular mixture until it has a gel-like consistency. Put the lids on the baby food jars and sterilize them in the pressure cooker again, this time for 20 minutes. The medium will solidify more after it cools.

Sow the Australian orchid seeds on the surface of the medium using sterilized tweezers. Perform this step in a small, sterilized area, and don't leave windows open or allow pets inside. Keep the conditions as clean as possible.

Put the lids back on the jars and tighten the lids completely. Place the jars under fluorescent lights for 12 hours. Australian orchid seeds have little to no energy storage, unlike most other seeds. This is why they need the agar as a supply of food while they germinate. Temperatures in the growing room should remain 75 degrees Fahrenheit.