How to Grow Oleander Plants From Seeds

Create a temporary starter bed or container of sterile sandy soil mixed with peat moss, compost or well-rotted manure. Perlite, vermiculite or sphagnum moss are also acceptable growing mediums. Sterile mediums may be purchased or heated in an oven if only a small amount is used. (See the Tips section for more information.)

Sprinkle the seeds from oleander seed pods lightly over the top of the prepared soil. Do not push the seeds into the soil, instead rake the surface with a small garden tool or larger rake (depending on the size of the area).

Water the seeds lightly, making both the seeds and the growing medium moist, never soggy or muddy.

Maintain consistent temperatures of 75 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit. Unless you live in a warm climate, outdoor temperature maintenance is difficult. Consider starting your oleander seeds indoors and transplanting the seedlings outside once the weather is more conducive.

Provide the seeds with full sunlight. This means about eight hours of direct, strong sunlight daily. If this is not possible in your climate, consider providing your indoor seedlings with an ultraviolet light set up for at least 14 hours each day to simulate sunlight.

Adapt the seedlings to outdoor life once they germinate. Even container-grown oleander may end up on a deck or patio at some point, so it is imperative to transition every oleander plant to outdoor life to preserve its good health. Decrease the amount of water provided to the plants while increasing the amount of light they receive to harden them up for the outdoors.

Transplant the seedlings to larger containers as needed. Transplant the seedlings to outdoor beds once weather conditions are warm and favorable with no chance of frost. In either case, choose a container or growing area large enough to hold the plant in the container it is already in plus a few inches of room to grow both outward and downward. Use the same type of soil used to grow the seedlings, and continue to water in the same manner you have been.