Most reliable way to germinate please?

[Crow River]

I'm with the peeps that like to keep to simple. Pre-moisten some soil, put the seed in the soil, cover over with a couple of mm of soil. Keep warm, a heated propagator or unheated one on top of a heat mat or in a warm place (18-22ºC). In a few days, you should have seedlings.

 

You'd maybe only want to do paper towel or shot glass methods if germinating larger numbers of seeds (IMHO).

[AnonyMice]

Last year I done the paper towels, tried soaking 12 hours. Both worked well. This year I’m just dropping them into soil 

[Celtic voyager]

I used to soak my seeds for 24hrs.

This year, I just dropped them straight into the soil, and all sprouted within 4/5 days in the tunnel. 

 

 

 

[AnonyMice]

7 hours ago, Celtic voyager said:

I used to soak my seeds for 24hrs.

This year, I just dropped them straight into the soil, and all sprouted within 4/5 days in the tunnel. 

 

 

 

Tomorrow is day 6 for more.  No green yet, can see a few white roots here n there tho. I reckon another day or 2 they’ll be up. Been pretty cold here most days

[Celtic voyager]

36 minutes ago, AnonyMice said:

Tomorrow is day 6 for more.  No green yet, can see a few white roots here n there tho. I reckon another day or 2 they’ll be up. Been pretty cold here most days

The cold does slow them down a bit.

You cold try the cling flim over the pots, to create a kinds mini greenhouse for the, to retain a bit of heat.

I did it a few time when it was cold and it worked well imo.

 

[AnonyMice]

@Celtic voyager was doing that until we had heavy downpour & then I needed the water to evaporate  I think everything’s on course.. this morning I see some green. Tomorrow I should have some seedlings  

[Celtic voyager]

11 hours ago, AnonyMice said:

@Celtic voyager was doing that until we had heavy downpour & then I needed the water to evaporate  I think everything’s on course.. this morning I see some green. Tomorrow I should have some seedlings  

I just dropped and seed into its final pot this evening, a blue cheese, after a slug ate my last seedling. 

I just fill a 14lt bucket, drilled out, with worm casting compost and 3lts of perlite.

Took a handful out of the center, and fill with pure compost, no perlite, sprayed to moisten, 1/2 inch hole and dropped seed in, covered with clingfilm.

I'll pop her into the tunnel tomorrow, since it absolutely lashing here at the moment 

[CheechChongReturns]

Stage 1 - Soak bean i water 24hrs. shot glass i a box , sat on the router  ( Can fit 8 glasses i my little black box)

Stage 2- Put beans on folded damp kitchen roll, pointy end down and put in a freezer bag . Named. Stand upright in a box or dvd case on the router . leave for 48 hrs.

Stage 3- Take sproutling and put it in a pot. 

 

Just my way of doing it. It means I can do up to 8 strains a day . They all end up in a box like a filofax and I can just flick through and pull out what I want once the root is long enough. Plus, it saves on space and pots that may not be needed . 

[AnonyMice]

2 hours ago, Celtic voyager said:

blue cheese

Lovely smoke, reminds me of when I started smoking. Only around a decade ago but the taste so familiar brings back memories.

I didn’t use perlite last year just compost & had no problems. This year I’m using coco/compost cuz the compost real shitty. Potting soil would be better but I ordered orchid soil instead and definitely can’t use that  puppy chewed a hole in it so no sending it back either fs lol.

[Celtic voyager]

17 hours ago, AnonyMice said:

Lovely smoke, reminds me of when I started smoking. Only around a decade ago but the taste so familiar brings back memories.

I didn’t use perlite last year just compost & had no problems. This year I’m using coco/compost cuz the compost real shitty. Potting soil would be better but I ordered orchid soil instead and definitely can’t use that  puppy chewed a hole in it so no sending it back either fs lol.

I use perlite in the pots, because all of my plants are outdoors. 

It's good for drainage, and stops the compost compacting if they get soaked from heavy rain.

[Underdog]

Oh mate I envy you.

 

I remember the first time I started. I was so excited!

 

Enjoy it mate. Just keep it to yourself in the real world. I remember wanting to tell everyone. (I didn't but I wanted to)

 

Anyway to answer your question. Put them in a damn paper towel, put the damn paper towel in a zip lock bag and put it somewhere dark and a bit warm. (Not too warm) in a few days they should be germinated.

 

[Darknight420710]

I just put them straight in a soaked jiffy pellet inside a zipped sandwich bag and under a daylight 40w bulb in bedside cabinet. 3 to 5 days later she's up and then I'll just move straight into her final pot which usually a 10L 

 

I used to do all the faffing about with paper towels and then f-ing and blinding when I couldn't put the tap root the right way in. 

 

The way I'm now doing it I get 100% success and just repeat the cycle with every seed I go to germinate. I don't think I could go back to paper towels now

Edited September 26, 2023 by Darknight420710

[Sid the Seedkiller]

Float tech. 

 

Drop your seeds into a glass/cup of room temperature water and DO NOT DISTURB for 24/36 hours. Keep in a warm dark place but don't jostle them and make them sink, Any that sink during the process will need paper toweling, but they should stay afloat due to surface tension, and they can still get oxygen as they are not submerged. After a day or so they will split, and then send little tails down into the water, gently pluck them with tweezers and plant then in your favourite medium. I've been messing around with different germination methods for a few years, I personally hate the paper towel method. I've tried float tech twice now, with 24 seeds and 21 have germinated. 

 

Whatever you go with all the best fella. 

[DeltaMelter]

+1 for float tech, works a treat and saves you wasting medium on duff beans. Also the one with the biggest tap root is usually the most vigorous plant too ime - so that one gets labelled #1 when potted up

 

[DutchFox]

On 26-9-2023 at 0:19 AM, Underdog said:

Oh mate I envy you.

 

I remember the first time I started. I was so excited!

 

Enjoy it mate. Just keep it to yourself in the real world. I remember wanting to tell everyone. (I didn't but I wanted to)

 

Anyway to answer your question. Put them in a damn paper towel, put the damn paper towel in a zip lock bag and put it somewhere dark and a bit warm. (Not too warm) in a few days they should be germinated.

 

 

yes and i will add....i hang the ziplocks vertical...the eccses water goes down...and so goes the roots....

 

btw i use the brown coffee pot paper...... near 100% succes...