What I have been doing with some good success rates (just got 7/8 2015 seeds to sprout) is a scuff of the shell, one minute dip in 3% H202 followed by two minutes swirl in plain tap water. I then plant into Root Riots pre soaked in a weak fulvic and kelp solution along with a little H202. First addition of water to the plugs is E-Z Root from Soil Moist which is an azos and bacillus inoculant with a little NPK from bone meal and kelp. This worked really well! I think temperature is the key component, getting the tray up to 75-80F for the first 48-72 hours really encouraged the seeds to crack, I keep the dome closed for the first week and the heat pad on, though a little lower like 70F. I spray the inside of the seedling tray and dome every day with either PureCrop1 or H202 solution to keep everything mold and pest free, not a single damp-off this time despite rainforest conditions in the dome trying to encourage these African hybrids to pop.
One thing I’ve found with older seeds- they usually have less vigor from using their internal energy stores up over the long storage, so they need some help escaping the shell and the pericarp both sometimes. The fulvic and kelp help a lot with this by providing ready-to use nutrients, same idea with worm castings. I wait three days and if I don’t see any action down in the plugs I carefully pull the seeds with tweezers and separate the shell halves or at least get them started. I find that the holes on RR are a little small for some seeds to fight up through, so I split and rip the hole open more before planting and then pile some little crumbs of plug on top of the seed that will be easy for it to push off.
Nice observation, I found the same thing so I stick a Philips head screw driver into the hole and wiggle it around, seems to work well.
Nice, good idea. I have a whole set of huge technician tweezers up to about 9” long that are probably my most valuable cannabis tool that would be hard to fudge with something else. It’s so handy to be able to grab a different size for things, and I’ve found that the big ones are perfect for both plucking plugs from trays down the edges, and I also sometimes just close them and insert the tip into the plug then let the spring rip it open, it seems like a repeatable action with a fixed force applied?
Mine are from the surplus overstock type store but they’re basically this and smaller versions, pretty sure most auto stores carry these
Nice. My son has something similar for feeding his lizard.
Here’s a tip I haven’t tried yet but comes highly recommended, it’s just a particular way to do the paper towel and Ziploc tek that makes it easier for old seeds to drop a first root out by assisting it with gravity and the natural urge of a seed to orient itself downwards toward the magnetic core of the earth. From what I understand, when seeds are planted upside down and have to turn their shoot around, they are not necessarily just moving away from light, they’re also orienting themselves using gravity and the Earth’s magnetic field.
Another good hack/tek for seed starting as well as a lot of other organic garden things is getting a thrift store yogurt maker or two for $5-10. A complete unit will come with a (usually) clear dome lid and individual cups for each slot, with lids and probably extras. Yogurt makers are specced to keep the inoculated milk at 108-112F (ideally) so it’s a little hot, but by either leaving the lid off and using spacers under the cups, or the addition of a resistor dial plugged between it and the wall you can dial that down to whatever nice warm temp you want. It’s a DIY germination machine! Hope MM is okay out there we haven’t seen him in a while here:
This brings back some memories lol.
I ran his flav cut and supernatural back in 2012.
Good times
“The earth is a giant magnet and its geomagnetic field (GMF) has a huge impact on the productivity of crops. Specifically, the electromagnetic radiations coming from the sun stimulate the growth and development of plants through the process of photosynthesis. The other possibility to increase plant growth could be an alteration in electrostatic balance of the plant system at the cell membrane level, as it is the primary of plant growth. The GMF can influence basic biological functions such as rhythmicity (Wever 1968), orientation (Brown 1962), and development (Asashima et al. 1991). The effects of the magnetic field (MF) on plants, fungi, and microbes can be elucidated by ion-cyclotron-resonance (ICR) and the radical-pair model. These two mechanisms also play an essential role in the magneto-reception of organisms.”
12298_2019_Article_699.pdf (766.3 KB)
Thank you so much! @Dirt_Wizard for the knowledge and insight! I did scuff the seeds with a tiny nail file very gently and let them soak in h202 before putting them in the dilution. They are currently in a dark and warm closet. I can’t appreciate you all enough for being so kind and helpful. Especially with a breeding novice such as myself. 
We got this, friends! Let’s manifest it.
Hah my lady keeps geckos but they just eat brown smelly slop out of little yellow lids, this is Bartholemew:
Some very good news today my friends! And boy what a surprise!
10 out of eleven supernatural seeds have popped a taproot overnight in my hydrogen peroxide and water solution!
I went ahead and placed them in their final homes except for three, which are in solocups for now—excluding the empty one for the 11th unpopped supernat seed.
I’m so happy and ecstatic right now, friends!
Congratulations 
. I know you were worried about this. It’s coming together beautifully
Awesome news buddy, this will be a great sight to see
Off to the races now!
That’s great news! Wonderful! 
That’s awesome!
Wow i seen this trade go down and this is meant to be!
“A journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.”
- Buddhist proverb-
…come on number 11!
Fantastic start mate and impressive germ rate from those old seeds!
Thank you so much, my friends! Now let’s see some babies pop out of the medium. I’m out of town until tomorrow but I made sure the tent was at perfect humidity and good air flow as well. I used halved water bottles as little humidity domes for the little babies. I usually use rice hulls as mulch but didn’t have any on hand. Will have to order some more.
An update with wonderful news thus far! 11/11 Supernatural seeds have popped from the medium! Three had helmet head that I very carefully removed with a little bit of water and a very very fine toothpick. My steady hands helped out a lot in this situation. The others have shown off her cotyledon or are about to show them off!
We have take off!
