Hey guys, so I'm starting my first grow and put some beans in shot glasses with a drop of superthrive. The beans have all sunk, but none of them have yet to pop any tap roots. Should I put them in paper towels? Or would it be okay to put them into soil? Any help would be appreciated since I'm a newb at germing. I've read other threads and searched but some aren't totally clear whether to put them in when they show tails or not. thanks!
Germination
- Thread starter FC89
- Start date
FrodoSackins
New member
I would fold them in between 2 wet paper towels and put them in between 2 plates. Keep them warm, approx 75 deg. F.
Personally, I only soak seeds that are old and low percentage germination, and even then only about four hours. That seems about enough to get most to sink, but leaves me not worrying that I drowned them. I'm curious if my paranoia about drowing seeds is real or just in my mind? Can they really be soaked until taproot shows and then planted or is that another cannabis myth?
I soak 'em until the taproot is 1-2mm out of the shell, then into medium. It's 2-3 days until they surface from that point, and I haven't had one that appeared 'drowned' yet.
Really man, soil is where it is at for germing if you are using soil to grow.
Soil offers everything paper towels do (except one thing) and more. That one thing is the ability to see whats going on.
If your seed is a good seed, it should be able to sprout under soil, if not, pull it out after a few days and attempt to crack it open.
The reason soil doesn't work for some people is because they let it dry out too much and plant the seed too shallow. It needs to be like 2 cm below soil surface, and soil needs to be WET!!!!! Cover it in plastic if you need to.
I get seeds up in soil within two days; they are spreading they fresh green leaves.
I would only use the paper towel/shot glass method for seeds that YOU actually KNOW are troublesome. Otherwise its too much touching/fiddling..
Mothernature took everything into consideration
Frozenguy
PS: They don't need superthrive or any of that. I used to use it religiously. Stopped, and noticed no difference. Just use water now on the soil, which is just lc's mix (no nutes)
Soil offers everything paper towels do (except one thing) and more. That one thing is the ability to see whats going on.
If your seed is a good seed, it should be able to sprout under soil, if not, pull it out after a few days and attempt to crack it open.
The reason soil doesn't work for some people is because they let it dry out too much and plant the seed too shallow. It needs to be like 2 cm below soil surface, and soil needs to be WET!!!!! Cover it in plastic if you need to.
I get seeds up in soil within two days; they are spreading they fresh green leaves.
I would only use the paper towel/shot glass method for seeds that YOU actually KNOW are troublesome. Otherwise its too much touching/fiddling..
Mothernature took everything into consideration
Frozenguy
PS: They don't need superthrive or any of that. I used to use it religiously. Stopped, and noticed no difference. Just use water now on the soil, which is just lc's mix (no nutes)
FC
White, wet-paper towel, dvd case, top of cable box. Always works for me...
K.I.S.S.
White, wet-paper towel, dvd case, top of cable box. Always works for me...
K.I.S.S.
The paper towel will germ seeds, but did you wear gloves when picking them up?
Did you keep the paper towel covered so light didn't hit the tap root or go through the paper towel to the tap root?
Seeds NEED to stay wet. Paper towels dry out very fast, creating extremes in the growing environment.
The towel offers no/little protection against temp changes, where as the soil is a great buffer.
And KISS? That is not keeping it simple, you chose one of the most complicated ways to germinate..
KISS would be: put seed in soil, water, leave.
Right on, and yes of course I wet the paper towel...with tap water. I have never germinated in straight soil. Always use rock-well for beginning until have roots out of the bottom. Have never found a need for gloves...I usually get a 90-100% germ rate sitting on top of the cable box for a day.
hey guys, thanks for the info so far. from what I can tell, 3 of the 4 had popped and had their taproot showing, but 1 was being kind of stubborn, it looks like its about to pop but the tail is very very small and has a black color to it. I hope it pops regardless. So I planted them in 16oz beer cups yesterday in Fox Farms Ocean Forrest. The temp inside the cab is about 80-85. The humidity however is quite low. Id say 20-40 varying. Is this bad? Should the cab have more humidity for the seeds to sprout? They have been sitting in the cab for about a day now. I keep checking the soil every couple hours to make sure its not dry, by putting my fingernail in and seeing if moist. Any help about the humidity would be great guys!
The humidity will effect the soil, which will effect the seeds. The seed should be about 2cm deep.
Cover the beer cup with saran wrap. It will keep all the moisture in there for days. You wont need to check it at all.
reckon
Member
I also "bean farm plant" the sprouted seeds tap root UP, and get lift off in less than 2 days,....the root sensing gravity flips a U turn and heads down, this downward motion of the tap root "flips" the seed case/cotyledons upward, so you take advantage of LEVERAGE, and the plant doesn't have to work as hard to get up(using up it's stores of sugars) and get the cotyledons open so it can start making it's own sugars.
learned that from an old bean farmer.
(or was it old farmer bean?)
good news guys, 1 of the beans has popped its head through the top, there is no seed on it though, guess it lost it somewhere when coming up. Would this be a good time to pull the plastic bag off of the cup? Or should i leave it on a bit to help keep moist? any info is greatly appreciated
It kind of depends on the strain and your environment.
Most of the time, it should be ok if you pull it off. If it really is down at 20% RH, I would keep my eye on her but I keep my vegging ladies at about 30-35% RH (just because that is what my atmosphere is like lol)..
So do it. If she doesn't like it, no big cookies just cover her back up again but I'm sure she will be fine..
And the sooner the better because she is only getting used to this, she should be building up resistance to wind from over perspiration and blowing over.
You could also poke a hole big enough for the seedling to poke through and attempt to put the baggy back over the soil to keep the soil moist but keep the seedling out. I say this because the soil is going to start drying out faster again and that seedling's root can't dry up or its toast. (and you don't want to over water either), so this can be a more fool proof method rather then trying to keep the top part of the soil perfect..
Most of the time, it should be ok if you pull it off. If it really is down at 20% RH, I would keep my eye on her but I keep my vegging ladies at about 30-35% RH (just because that is what my atmosphere is like lol)..
So do it. If she doesn't like it, no big cookies just cover her back up again but I'm sure she will be fine..
And the sooner the better because she is only getting used to this, she should be building up resistance to wind from over perspiration and blowing over.
You could also poke a hole big enough for the seedling to poke through and attempt to put the baggy back over the soil to keep the soil moist but keep the seedling out. I say this because the soil is going to start drying out faster again and that seedling's root can't dry up or its toast. (and you don't want to over water either), so this can be a more fool proof method rather then trying to keep the top part of the soil perfect..
Wooderson
Member
What's rock-well?
rockwool.. its like spun/woven rock dust/fibers or something. Its those cubes of various sizes that you see people cloning in or starting seeds in.
