I thought it might be a good idea to start a thread about germinating procedures for other types
of (non cannabis) plants. Cannabis seeds are quite easy to germinate compared to loads of other seeds…annuals or perennials. Some seeds need light, some dark. Warm or cool. On top of the medium or 1 to 2 inches deep. Some seeds are teeny tiny or weird shapes.
I have very limited space, however, I have rationalized starting some more seeds.
My strategy depends upon whether or not the weather is favorable for my plan.
I hope I can get most of my plants outdoors consistently. Worth a shot.
Tithonia aka Mexican Sunflower is one of my favorite annuals. They thrive in ground or in large containers, producing nice flowers almost all summer long…as long as they are deadheaded regularly.
Poor soil is not a problem.
They are a little tricky to germinate, they need very little soil covering the seeds.
I put the seeds on top of some moistened ProMix in a small flat.
Mist the seeds lightly with water. Very gently press the seeds down into the medium…just sort of seat them a little.
Sprinkle a very light covering of dry Jiffy Mix seed starter over the seeds.
Mist the slight layer of the Jiffy Mix with water until saturated
Place flat into larger container with water in order to bottom water the soilless mix.
Cover tightly with clear plastic wrap and rubber band.
Place in warm lighted area and wait for seeds to pop.
Remove the plastic wrap when and if seeds start to sprout, put under bright light or sun.
I used pelleted seeds many years ago, but I don’t recall having any problems with germination.
Some gardeners prefer pelleted seeds because they supposedly provide more accurate placement,
thereby minimizing thinning.
Some seeds are so tiny that the pellet makes them easier to handle.
Thanks for stopping by, and indulging my obsession with growing plants.
The tithonia seeds started on Feb 28.
I noticed them popping up against the plastic wrap yesterday morning.
They were in the dimmest location under the feeble lights. They have stretched more than I like, but
they will straighten out and fly right if I can get them under the sun soon…weather providing.
I have them much closer to the light today.
I lost about 1/2 of my sunflower starts to damping off & insufficient lighting, plus some fungus gnats. If I’d waited they’d be fine but needed to grow something.
I totally know what you mean! I feel like I HAVE to grow something too or something is missing! Luckily, sunflowers grow like weeds once that sun comes out… on the down side, you lost some babies and on the up side you didn’t lose any time cuz those suckers will grow like mofos once they hit soil and real sun. I’m way too darn impatient for summer right now, want to see everything in full bloom, but I hate the heat… lol
So I watched an interesting video the other day about black locust seeds. The guy used a technique to scarify the seeds that involved bringing water to a boil. Then he dropped in the seeds and took it off the heat and let it sit. The seeds almost doubled in size and he had great gemination rates. Blew me away.
I might give it a go this year. Tree seeds can be a bear to start as they are meant to go through a couple seasons before sprouting.
Sunflowers seeds are as easy, or easier than ganja seeds to get started.
I grow them every year, they sure do grow fast, you can almost watch them grow in ideal conditions
I’ve got 3 different types I’m gonna grow this year… Mammoth giants for seeds, Ms. Mars (some red ones) and some italian type that look more like large daisies with more delicate petals that only get about 3 ft. My neighbor had some mammoths last year that were huge. At least 11 feet. They were awesome!
The Mammoths produce gigantic flowers. Spectacular…but because the flower is so huge, when it nears maturity it becomes quite pendulous, staking them up is necessary if you want to protect them from windy storms, they can snap at the base easily.
I prefer the multi flowered, shorter varieties. That Ms. Mars looks awesome, gotta try it,
Burpee has a nice one I have grown many times, Chianti…
So, I have 2 plants that I have had a really tough time germinating. Petunias and English Lavender. I tried 3 times with the Petunias and twice with the English Lav in the greenhouse. As soon as I took everything out of the greenhouse and stuck them outside I got one lav and a couple petunias popping. The only problem I’m having now is watering. These sprouts are practically microscopic like the seeds and I already dislodged the lavender by watering. Really bummed. Now with the petunias, I’m not sure how to water them from fear of the same. Any suggestions?
Yes, just place whatever container your tiny sprouts are in into a larger tray with some water in the bottom.
The water will wick up into the container, no problem for the micro sprouts. Bottom watering is the way.
Good luck.
When I deal with very tiny seed I use a 60 ml cath tip string and literally place drops on top with a slow precise push of the plunger but a quick dunk is another way iv had success in the past as well
@Meesh
I forgot to mention that if your plants are in the ground, so that you cannot bottom water,
you could simply mist them gently with water using a sprayer of some type set to fine mist.
I never tried the technique mentioned by @Tinytuttle but I think it would work quite well
I bought some seeds last year from OSH when they were still around from a company called Renee’s Garden. They have outperformed all of my seeds from Burpee’s. I planted 2 different colors of sweet peas on each side of the trellis, one from renee’s and one from Burpee’s. The Renee’s are twice the size. Same experience with some zinnias. I’m gonna try and look up this company on the internet and maybe buy all their seeds in the future. Just an FYI
Here’s my tomato lineup for 2019 trying an online seed company this year seemed a little pricey imo but hope they perform as well or better than $2 packs at Walmart
