Who Cracks Seeds in H2O Before Soil Grow?

[TACOE]

sorry for all the long posts.. the information in them could be summed up in a sentence.

Even incredible growers over think this simple aspect of growing. It's viable or its not. You can't fix it if it's not.

Get out ur brick weed.. pick out a few seeds and try it yourself. practice!.


I hope i've made my point. Though i'm sure it wont be taken too seriously.

 

[MileHighGuy]

I put all my seeds in a plastic dixie/solo cup with bottled water, i keep the cup in a dark cupboard til the white taproot comes out (usually 2 days) then throw them in a rooting cube.. I dont recall a ever losing a seed or one not sprouting. I've done this for years with all my 10 packs and its the only way i'll ever sprout things til i learn something that will make them sprout overnight

add a heat mat.... overnight success!

 

[TACOE]

NO HEAT MAT.. I'm sorry to keep jumping in and challenging ppl.

but NO HEAT MAT, NO DOME... (unless it's that cold, or that dry) like i said, just look up optimum germination temps.. then look it up specific to marijuana. If for some reason your temps/RH are not relatively close (w/in like 10 degrees), then consider using one of those.. I understand playing it safe.. really.. but doing more is not playing it safe here... it is experimenting or gambling. Yes, the seeds like to be warm, but they dont have to be, and by providing a mat you run the risk of over heating which will lead to other issues. Same with humidity.... in fact throw the whole dome out... you dont need/want it for cloning and you def don't want it for seeds.

It is really hard to argue about germination, cause its just easy, and it usually works whichever way you go about it. Many ppl will have 100% germ.. its just THAT easy.
- still doesn't mean it's the right way.. (arguably not the "wrong" way) but certainly not the safest.. which is what i shoot for with 100 dollar seeds.

So yeah, a magazine, or book, or gardener may suggest the TP technique... but that's usually IF ALL ELSE FAILS... or with seeds that are difficult to germ without natural forces (i.e. some seeds NEED scarification; seed slipping thru dirt or going thru the digestive system of a bird... and even a few seeds need FIRE believe it or not.. but we dont go burning our pot seeds)


Note: (far more botanists and ppl with degrees and shit write about/study LEGAL plants.. so that is what you should read about first if you ask me... )

 

[guest2012y]

I take a ziplock and put a bit of water in,drop the seeds in and pin it to the wall with a thumb tack where it's warm. Easy to look at.

 

[Greenheart]

I use a 3 cent 8.5oz dixie with 2 dozen skewered holes in the bottom and some airy soil mix. (coco, peat, vermiculite, and perlite)

My first seeds were done with a damp papertowel till they cracked.

My friend throws his in a container of water until they crack.

All of these methods have had good success.

-GH-

 

[redneck shogun]

I feel the need to crack them first so I am not planting a bum seed, then I know if it doesn't come up it was my fault and not the breeder.

 

[rrog]

Clearly there are many roads to Rome. The area that I have available for this operation is in a basement so it's cool down there. I have a heating pad that I've used for previous seed incubations (paper towels) and they sprout very fast. I have left them to get big tails which I will not do again. I tried it and don't like it.

I have my seedling containers (standard 2" x 2" flats) with Promix in the incubator. I have three temp probes just to see what's happening. One probe under the seed flat, one probe on the ceiling of the incubator and then an instant read thermometer to test the soil temp. Again, I have all these thermometers anyway, so I'm just curious.

I don't want to damp off the seeds and don't want the medium to dry, either. So I'm running Promix with no seeds for a few days until I get the right balance of temp and moisture. THEN I'll start the seeds.

Obviously there are several "right" ways to do this, no one is right or wrong because they make it work. I just need to gain a better perspective on temp / moisture and I'm doing this by not risking seeds while I learn for the next 2-3 days.

 

[budlover123]

paper towels in airtight containers, in a dark spot. Really soak the towels in the container, then dump out the excess water. Let them breathe now and then. If you don't seal it the towel might dry out, often killing the seed. Plant after the root is exposed, don't wait for it to get long.

seen my friend do this with MJ with great results, just used it in my vegetable garden with equally good results on 8 different fruits and vegetables.

 

[rrog]

OG that's a similar method to soaking in a glass of water. As I mentioned I used to do that, except I waited for longer tails. That worked OK for when I did chem hydro, but now I'm doing aerated soil, it's a little trickier for me somehow.

I can absolutely see the paper towels working to crack the seeds. I may just do that again, as I had great success with that in the past.

Does anyone thing starting in a warmed paper towel then moving the cracked seeds to a cooler Promix seed starter mix might not be good? The temperature change, I mean...

 

[redneck shogun]

I don't want to damp off the seeds and don't want the medium to dry, either.

This is where I have my most problems. Germination is a cinch with any method. There can be so many variables from this point on like how fast does your medium dry out with that particular pot size and do you know if you are watering evenly because peat likes to resist getting wet from a dry state. I started in hydro years ago and rockwool was very forgiving.

 

[heady blunts]

I don't soak. 100% germ last round.

They may still pop even if they float.

Don't complicate things that work.

Handling a seed with a root hanging out isn't good. And roots that aren't in soil are no good.

MJ seeds are not usually difficult to crack.. Scarify if they are known to be difficult to germ, but thats it...

yup

 

[rrog]

Exactly my case. I'm trying to test the variables you mentioned.

 

[Corpsey]

i got 33 out of 34 to germinate on my last round by just putting the seeds straight in seedling peat mix with light and water. took anywhere from 48-96 hours for them to break above.

granted i lost 4 after they came up because my heater broke, but that was just bad timing.

 

[rrog]

Did you heat them during germination?

 

[Corpsey]

oh yeah i forgot , i used a heating mat.
but really it didn't do much, because once i had problems with the furnace they stood no chance with the temps hitting 50 in the house. so really it was the ambient temps in my house that kept them warm, about 68-73

 

[Budgina]

Im somewhat of a noob to growing. What is scarifying? is that like scuffing?

 

[rrog]

I believe it's a light sanding of the seed seam. Makes it thinner and easier for the seedling inside to crack. easier for water to get in and trigger the seedling to grow.

I've read that you should only do this with problem seeds. Obviously in nature there's no sanding of seeds...

An observation: Most people seem to do some sort of pre-soak etc. Some just put the seed in the dirt and go with it, however most do some sort of soak in water, paper towels, etc. That doesn't make anything right or wrong, just an observation.

 

[Budgina]

thanks rrog

 

[guest2012y]

I know of a guy here who recently popped 17 year old seeds pulled out of the freezer....he didn't scar them.

 

[rrog]

That's such a cool story. Hard to imagine you can freeze seeds. Cells generally explode when the water in them freezes. Obviously seeds all over the world freeze every year and grow. Amazing