Germination

Hi, since i have tried once the rockwool method i never fail a germination. I suggest you to try! The only thing to pay attention whit this method is to not over water the rockwoll, that absorb a lot of water, personally, i sink the rockwoll in water than i squeeze It ti remove the excess. I big pro of this method is that after the germination you can transfer the rockwool whitout any stress for the plant wherever you want, soil, coco, hydro or even on a cat etc... Hope you the best for tour project!

Organoman - just for the record, the pot size you mentioned, 4 inches by 5 inches, is what I consider a tiny pot. Im pretty sure the ones I use for my jiffy pellets to go into are 6 inches by 8 inches, Or I use the next size down to sow seed directly. .. but agree- decent sized pots are a must. get lots in diff sized and shapes too and see what works best for you. I had access to landscaping waste so I have dozens of diff sized pots. For the last few years im trying to figure out if im insane or if square pots VS round pots with same volume seems to be growing better seedlings... at least in small pots its so far working out that way, but need more data to confirm this. Anyone else finding this to be true??

Seeds prepped in water is most sure fire way I have obtained a high germination rate. It is the oldest and simplest way with great results. Paper towel method takes way too long. Too much handling of sprout. Chances of contamination. I have noticed lighter color seeds tend not to sprout at all.

I use a cup of water for 24 to 48 hours. Seed in dark cup in warmth of grow room. I usually have a tap root in 24 to 48 hours. If I don't the likelihood it will sprout drops greatly. I plant in substrate once a tap is going with a dome. Till sprout and husk falls off. 3 to 4 days for whole process.

A)- Direct in a seed raising (soil) mix. B)- Drowned in water too long, there is no need to soak them in water. I have found through extensive experiments, pre sprouting seeds in paper towel and then transplanting them actually delays growth by 2-5 days on average, compared to sowing them directly in soil. Using tiny cups with limited soil is also not conducive to good root development, the cups are just waaaay too small. Just because "everyone else does it" does not make it right! Pots about 4 inches across and 5 inches deep are much superior and provide enough room for 3 weeks of development, easily. If you want to see the root system of a 3 week old seedling and why deep pots are so important, go to week 7 of my diary "cannabis conundrums" and you will find many pictures of this. This might give you an insight as to why tiny cups are totally inadequate for anything more than 3-5 days of growth. Buying decent plastic pots may cost more, but with a bit of care and washing between cycles, will last many years and reduce garbage going to landfill dumps, making them far more environmentally friendly too! Hope this helps, Organoman.

Most popular seems to be paper towel method. It lets you see whats going on and also allows for a good balance between moisture and oxygen. Soaking a seed in a glass of water for anything over 24 hrs is asking for trouble, there is no need if the water isnt too cold (i.e dont have the glsss of water in a cold room) 12-18 hrs is plenty as u only want to soften the seeds shell, anymore than that is risking drowning if she cracks open and fills with water. I either soak seeds over night and then they go into a moist jiffy pellet or just put the dry seeds directly into a sopping wet jiffy pellet and keep it wet for a few days then allow it to dry out a bit more and keep it moist til seed sprouts. I use that method as that way if something happens and I cant get to the seeds in paper towel for a few days, I dont lose em to rot. Or I plant sees directly into tiny pots with soil if Im doing Photoperiod plants outside or for friends and the weather is on my side at that time of year. But generally prefer the jiffy pellets. If u over water em, they dry out pretty fast so less likely to get root issues. 49mm-55mm size works well.

if you are insecure, do the paper towel method (lol) if you are confident, just pop it in substrate. i guess you shoudl put the crown facing down which creates extra leverage as root goes down and sprout goes up. I've always just put it in sideways. that way it gets a little leverage and also faster route to break ground. The last time i planted 22 seeds and i didn't even look at how they went in, lol. worked out fine. if you do direct in substrate, be consistent about depth and how you tamp it down... the time at which it takes will be more consistent. some people pull out the retard strength when tamping down and it takes 9-10 days to burrow through. don't use huge chunks of perlite or large logs/woodchips near top etc etc.. few more things to be comfortable with, but less chance of infection and damaging a tap root by needlessly handling it. in the end i doubt there is significant difference in %-success... probably more impacted by age of seed and those types of factors we don't control. it's just one of those things hobbyists really obsess over even though there is virtually no difference in the sophistications.... like 25 different bottles of supplements for a damn plant, lol...

I use a combination of techniques and they seem to work well for me. lightly scarify the seed with an emery board and score its fat bulbous end. Soak it in bit of warm water with a drop of h202 for 10 min then fresh water for 12hrs, poking it at the 2-4-6 hr mark till it sinks. place directly in hole if the seed has cracked at all before the times up, or soak a bit longer if its not cracked. line the hole with Mycorrhizae and water with microbes, helps out complete the bad microbes in the medium. optional: place a clean clear cup on top of where you planted the seed to act as a humidly dome if your RH is low, remove it once it sprouts or cut the top part of the cup off to act as a humidity well, not to moist but not to dry. I do not like the methods where you grow out a long tail as it gives it more chances to be broken when transplanting and it can pickup paper towel if left to long complacpting things if the medium is prone to molds. 32hr soak seems a bit to long to me. could do a single 24hr and directly in soil. Good Luck!

During your 32 hours in water, or if your paper is too wet and close too seeds, they may lack of oxygen and « drown » or « melt ». That’s why many breeders don’t recommend this technique. But many growers use it to have a visual control. I used to do it too. But I have better results with only a night in water and directly in soil in the morning. And way less unbreaking shell issues.

Put it in the ground and give it one last chance. My favorite method is a glass of water with a splash of hydrogen peroxide. Then I've tried all sorts of things.... Just know that not all seeds have a regular life. A sprout once came completely out of my seed and shocked me. Other times I've had single bud plants come up. The beauty of nature, beyond the genetics.

Hey Growmie The most popular way to germinate would be the paper towel method, and there could be a lot of reasons why a seed might not sprout from them just being old, to them being in an area where it isn't warm enough and sometimes the area could be too cold, and the list goes on and on. Feel free to shoot me a holler if you ever need any help, I'd be honored to assist you. Hopefully, this was helpful, and remember ... "Happy Growing" and "Free your mind one puff at a time".