I germinate them in paper towels because of the low risk of mold. I think if you germinate them in soil they are much vulnerable for mold. But I think that soil is also good. How do you germinate them?

Justin, Try it. You might just get a great new apple. I have planted apple, pear, and peach seeds. Peach seeds or pits, I did plant years ago and got real nice peaches from the trees. Pears and apples I planted them 2 yrs ago, and the trees are still too young to bear fruit--I hope someday they will bear some. Of course, I planted the seeds the lazy--or easy--way. Sometime in the winter (I live in zone 5. Used seeds from fruit I had just bought from a supermarket.) I planted the seeds in the ground, covered them with dirt--the small seeds not too deep, the peach pits deeper. In the spring they sprouted. Just make sure you mark the spot where you plant your seeds; this way, you wont pull them out as weeds--something I often do. I'm sure you are doing this for fun, so enjoy and learn. Hey, After 5 summers, I just got my first flowers from oriental lilies that I started from seed...Most of them look just like their parents...2 look different, but I have seen the same type of flowers in catalogs. Good luck, but most important: Happy Gardening!!!

Give them a moist chill of 2-3 weeks if they aren't germinating for you. If you don't have room for a pot wrapped in saran in your refrigerator, put a tsp or so of sterile moist sand or moist vermiculite in a tiny zip lock and add the seeds to that. When ready to sow, you can just sow the contents of the bag, sand and all. Surface sow, and could take as long as 3-4 weeks to germinate.

I soak the seeds anywhere from a few hours to overnight. The seeds will sprout in just about any type of mix. I keep the soil lightly moist and use bottom heat unless it's summer, then I just stick the tray outside. I just put the seed head below the soil and keep the wing exposed. I occasionally get seedlings that won't shed their seed coat. First I try misting to see if that will loosen it. If that's unsuccessful I take two straight pins and carefully peel the seed coat away. Sometimes I end up decapitating the seedling but it usually works if you're careful. If the seeds are fresh I get almost 100% germination. That number goes down for older seeds though I've had decent germination with year old seeds that weren't stored in the best conditions. Most viable seeds will sprout within 2 weeks. Karyn