Thanks for the response. I ordered these seeds for exactly the reason you stated. Mandala has the respect. Maybe that respect is based on the quality of their strains and not the quality of the seed. This is my first grow with Mandala, but definitely not this first time I've had seeds that have performed like this. I have also had bad seeds from Dr. Feelgood, Buddha, and Kera. I have planted over 50 Seedsman and all 50 were up in 3 days. I have planted 10 Dinafem and all were up in 2 or 3 days. Seedsman and Dinafem had the vigor.
My post above hopefully addressed any questions about my ability. Particularly this part: I control temps and moisture and when I have good seeds they are up within 3 days. In other words, I know what I'm doing.
I have high expectations and can't accept that properly grown and harvested seeds should ever look like this at 8 days. My experience is that cannabis seeds are one of the simplest to grow.
If they are good seeds they will emerge within 3 days with no soaking and they will need no help until transplanting. The
best cannabis seeds I've planted emerged in two days.
My experience with bad seeds like this is that if I leave them alone it is a solid two weeks before they start normal growth. That's not how it works with good seed and not my default expectation for seeds. I don't need an extra two weeks of veg time just to baby along some bad seeds. They should be up and going in 3 days and if not something is wrong. That is why I perform surgery on the bad ones... if they are going to stay in the garden they need to be on point and on schedule. If they aren't up in 5 days I dig and check the seed. If they haven't even popped yet, good-bye. If they show even the tiniest bit of potential I'll get that seed coat off even if it means some are killed off. I'd rather know where I'm at with the next round so I can have my 60 days planned rather than doink around waiting to see what happens over a two or three week period and then still need to pop in some new ones that could have already been vegging that whole time.
I think part of the problem is the cannabis culture of low expectations. Spotty quality control is just how it is so we accept it. I don't know which, if any, seed breeders use the basic skill of separation. Commercial agricultural breeders maintain quality by sifting seeds. (
http://articles.extension.org/pages/18350/organic-seed-processing:-threshing-cleaning-and-storage) The smaller seeds are sifted out because "
there are differences in size, shape, and density between good seed, poor seed, and other debris."
(
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/faculty/davies/pdf%20stuff/ph%20final%20galley/Chap%206%20-%20M06_DAVI4493_08_SE_C06.pdf). Another method is air separation, which removes lighter under-ripe seeds from the fully developed ripe seeds. Another method, one recommended in many cannabis growing tutorials, is the water method. Questionable seeds float. It is very rare that properly produced and sifted seed will ever float.
An agricultural seed house like Johnny's or Territorial would never even list seeds like this for sale because they would run a germ test, have the results hit under 95% of their benchmark for that particular plant, and then refuse to buy them from the breeder. I don't know which, if any, cannabis breeders and seed banks run germ tests and refuse to sell anything that is less than 90%.