Been doing more research on this one, and it seeems that most redwood seeds are not viable, and they are indeed tiny! As quoted from Sacramento County UC master gardener Liz Haines, "A single tree may produce 6 million seeds a year, but the seeds are so tiny that a million seeds weigh only 8 pounds. Unfortunately, 95 percent of the seeds are not viable and of those that do germinate, very few actually grow into seedlings.
Instead of relying on seeds, the lumber industry propagates redwoods by sprouting redwood buds cut from burls collected from the base of a redwood tree. A burl is stem tissue that forms at the base of young trees. It never elongates into a shoot but is a reservoir of dormant buds that can sprout new growth should the parent tree die.
The burl tissue provides a source of carbohydrates to its growing sprouts and can generate roots. The burl buds are placed in glass tubes filled with a small amount of water. After the small tree is well rooted, it is planted in long fiber tubes filled with coarse compost to encourage heavy root growth. The tree is ready for field planting in late winter when it is about 12 to 18 inches long."
So, instead of rooting heeled cutting on redwoods like I have before, I will try burlwood cuttings. I can use my brother's redwood trees in Portland as sources, and avoid any chance of transporting SOD from CA (also legal).
