Help with SEED STARTING

I scuff my seeds in a pill bottle lined with sand paper. Then put em in a cup of water , letting them float until they have 1/2" long tails and then plant them. Usually 72 hrs.
I just did this with 210 seeds and got 100% germination and all but 3 are above ground after 4 days in promix.

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Me too but that’s when I wasn’t putting them in a small container with a lid to keep the paper towel from drying out

That’s funny I literally just got one of those like a hour ago

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My little setup…I’ve been batting 1000 since just putting them straight into soil on an 18/6 light cycle

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Let’s try without too much words.
I never touch the seeds with the hands during the whole process.

  • Soaked in total dark.
  • Always 24H
  • Always with H202, extras or not.


  • Placed in seed sprouter, settings at 18°C-28°C/64°F-82°F.
  • Water or Solution changed each day.
  • During 2 days to weeks … depend on the case.

  • Transplanted when they start to “twist & dig”.

  • Standard seedlings pots.
  • First layer (bottom) normal NPK soil for gardens, then generous spraying with water
  • Second layer (top), light and fine soil for seedlings, then generous spraying with water
  • I make a hole with the tweezers and I place seeds inside with them.

  • Seedling’s pots placed in greenhouses, vents barely closed.
  • Sprayed daily, fast and fine mist, just to moist the surface.
  • Static water in bottom of the greenhouse : Never. Hell no.
  • 2*18W T8 neon placed literally on the greenhouse “roof”. 24/0.

  • Ready to fire and to be transplanted in the transitional veg pot (often 2 to 3.5 quart gallon, 2 liters-3liters)

The most important step for me is the H202 soak and the “greenhouse/neons” step. Everything else is just tunning.

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I soak them for a day or two, and then I put them about 20mm pointy end down into propagation trays . I use a sandy seed raising mix, and put the trays into a clear plastic storage crate as a terrarium. They don’t need any light to sprout but they need it pretty much as soon as they pop or they stretch like crazy, I often put mine on the outside edge of the of the tent where the light is weaker if I’m doing it indoors, or in indirect light if outdoors. The substrate should be damp and not wet. Use a spray bottle to keep it damp. If you have the seeds to do it, plant many times what you need and thin them. Sterile seed raising mix is worthwhile, especially for older seeds that may take longer to hatch.

These type of trays are good.

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Seen this a WalMart !!! but ProMix offer a better soil that has Myco + in it (forget the name of that ProMix soil. Seen many great using this soil (many professional use this) BUT Ocean Blend with Happy Frog mix (1/2 part each) does work excellent also
@Gonzo you will find one method that works for you ( if unsure of methods run some :junk" seed for germinating testers !!! help save seeds you spent money on sure hate it when I send money on seeds and 1/2 of them germinate or less

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I guess I’m a wild man.
I germ in paper towel into solo cup of soil method (FF OF ) with great success. Probably better methods but why change something that isn’t broke.

I would say my only problem is that I want to water my seedlings like my flowering plants haha. Learned the lesson in this last grow.

Once you find something that works, dont change a thing. I’m running the seedlings under my 100w phlizon on just over 50% power. My temps are typically around 70 for all my seedlings.

Hope this is semi useful information. :grin:

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Well, I usually just simply place the seeds in a ¼ to ½ inch deep hole in ProMix or Jiffy Seed Starter Mix.
The medium is pre moistened and after placing seeds in holes, I gently cover ‘em and water ‘em in very gently. Only if I suspect the seeds are older or not fully viable, do I then scarify them and put them in a small glass of water in the dark for 12 to 24 hours and subsequently place the seeds into the medium and water them in gently.

I use plastic wrap with rubber bands over the 16 to 20 oz styrofoam cups, or an inverted clear plastic cup/glass over the styrofoam cups. For outdoor germination under direct sun, I never cover the medium in the containers with plastic wrap, domes or plastic cups, only spritz them with a spray bottle of water in order to keep them moist until they pop up

This has worked well for me.
Best of luck improving your germination rate.

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I find most folks who struggle
Kill them with kindness.
Lots of ways as described above.

Now the soak 24 hours is my thing.
Just like kids on a trip saying are we there yet, I find my OCD is satisfied
Buy checking to see if they cracked.

This way you know, other ways I’m hovering over the seed starters
Or whatever.
Ambient light in a sunny room
Will do the trick for a day or so
After they Crack.

I can get cuts to root in 7 days on a widow sill in summer, Mind you
A shady one.

If i use led for them I set my lights
To lowest veg setting and hang them 2 feet at least above them.

Old t12 work great, and CFL old style are sweet to.

Since I made my own seeds
I have chucked a handful
In dirt lol
But I get when folks buy, or they are
Special we all get antsy

You set up looks like it’s going to
Be successful.
Gl

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You got this bro…. If this doesn’t work I’ll coach you on my methods. We each gotta find what works for us as there are so many variables that go unmentioned. Mine is second nature now and the only screw up I’ve had in ALOT of years was when trying to add new methods to the mix, you’ll find yours. If you want I’ll send some beans to practice on as well? Let me know either way but I’ve got high hopes no intervention will be needed @Gonzo :facepunch:t2:

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almost forgot, i put them on 16/8 for first 2 weeks then 18/6. ive left them on 16/8 for a few weeks longer and didnt notice any diff in the growth :laughing:

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:rofl: the router trick is classic.

Looks like you got bennies already, my highest recommendation for avoiding root rot goes to Bacillus amyloliquefaciens. It’s good stuff. Other microbes are good too, but B. amy is super useful for avoiding nasties from seed to flower. It really feels like cheating!

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SIMPLE and easy - use same except oly I soak for 12-24hr.s than paper towel then solo cups to final container (no transplanting in different gallon pots ! — reduces stress— But this is something to mention: MAKE SURE your water you use in “warm” not cold water - this does make a difference in germination - have had 100% rate since using “tempet” h20 _FYI Happy Cultivation

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I’ve got southern ag garden friendly fungicide. Pretty sure its just (B. Amy) Should I put a drop of that in my spritzing bottle? Also, will watering that in kill myco? @RatsboggleBiological

@TopShelfTrees1 Thanks man, I’ve got plenty of seeds, these are just the last few SSDD F2 BX1’s i got from HolyAngel so I really don’t want to mess it up. But they’ve already been put in the plugs so, fingers crossed!

@Calyxander Thanks, that sounds super simple, I’ll give that a shot next round.

Thanks everyone for your tips & suggestions. I’ve been growing 1 year now, hopefully this is the last time I need seed popping/seedling advice :laughing:

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The new medium is called The Mean Green seed starter.
For entertainment purposes only. :sunglasses:
image

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My latest tek, which seems to be working reliably, is to soak Jiffy 7 peat pellets in a 10:1 mix of tap water and 3% H202 and then roll and stretch them in my hands to break up the peat into fluffiness. The seeds get scuffed and cracked with mini vice grips, but I need to get one of those micrometers instead, it’s fidgety but I got my practice in and am pretty reliable now at splitting them correctly the long way. After that I give them a 30 second spin wash in 1:1 water and H202, then a 30 second spin wash in plain tap, then twenty minutes in a shot glass of tap water with a drop of Mr Fulvic in it. Then I put them into the plugs after digging out a core and repacking it loosely with tweezers, and place the seed on top, then mound it loosely with the extra peat from around the edges of the plug. Those go into a sealed and sterilized dome/tray/saucers, on a heat mat set to 80F. That lives on the floor of the veg tent off to the side, partially shaded by canopy. I’ve been getting 80-90% germ or better this way with four test batches now, and just as important: not a single seedling damping off from botrytis cinerea!

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Yup, it’s all pretty much the same. Saw you have this: Garden Friendly Fungicide - Southern Agricultural Insecticides, Inc.

Another nice site to use: BONIDE Revitalize Biofungicide | Bacillus amyloliquefaciens

Arbico lists diseases controlled and suppressed:

Suggested Uses:

For use on vegetables, fruits, nuts, ornamental trees, shrubs, flowering plants, houseplants and tropical plants grown in and around home gardens or home greenhouses.

This Product Controls These Pests or Diseases:

Diseases controlled by this product:

Anthracnose (Colletotrichum species), Bacterial leaf Blight, spots and specks (Erwinia, Pseudomonas and Xanthomonas species), Black mold, Brown Spot, Black Crown Rot (Alternaria species). Black Spot of roses (Diplocarpon rosae), Gray Mold, Botrytis blight, Fruit Rot (Botrytisspecies), Leaf spots (Alternaria, Cercospora, Entomosporium, Helminthosporium, Myrothecium and Septoris species) and Powdery Mildews (Podosphaera, Erysiphe, Golovinomyces, Sphaerotheca and Oidium species; Uncinula necator, Oidiopsis taurica and Leveillula taurica).

Diseases suppressed by this product:

Downy Mildew (Bremia lactucae, Peronospora and Plasmopara species), Early Blight (Alternaria solani), Late Blight (Phytophthora infestans), Fire Blight (Erwinia amylovora); Disease suppression only in Pin Rot (Alternaria/Xanthomonas complex) and Scab (Venturia species).

It can be used as a foliar spray or as a rootzone drench. Both ways are very good, but I think technically it lives in the rootzone the longest. You may be able to double your money by dosing a bottle of dilute fish fert with some, I think that is how they propagate it - but don’t quote me on it.

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One time i heard that you start seeds in warm, and dark. If u think about it, dark, of course, cuz where does any seed start? Underground, in the dark.

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I usually first hold the seed between my thumb and forefinger right in the middle of your fingerprint for a few seconds then drop it in small half inch deep hole. That way your green thumb vibes activate the energy within the seed. :stuck_out_tongue_closed_eyes:

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I’ll start mine with about a cup of water and a squirt of hydrogen peroxide. Maybe a teaspoon. I stir it up real good. I put it on top of the hot water heater for 24 hours. From there it goes to paper towel. In a small to go to container. Usually buy the second day. I have some nice little tails. I know sometimes they can be aggravating. Sanding helps. I’ve seen several methods. Best thing to do is to get like some 200 grid, or 400 grid or even finer. Make you a little tube. Fix the ends, so nothing slides out. And just give them a little shake it will sand that shell down a little bit. Just stuff that I’ve done over the years.
To me, you can use coffee filters. I’ve seen several different methods and have done things with plastic bags. Tapwater helps. I know there’s gonna be some people that say no way. I do use filtered water. Just one of the over-the-counter kind. But good luck.
@Toker1 has some great advice I just seen.

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