Germinating in paper towel or dirt?

Ever since I started messing around with growing this stuff I have wondered something... Why do most people germinate their seeds in a paper towel or something instead of just planting them in saturated soil?

because we feel like doing it that way.


i duno, its what i started doing and it works for me

just like most things we do here is cause we get better results,,,, tryed and tested........................

besides,,, seeds need to stay moist to crack so wouldnt it be much harder to keep the top inch or two of dirt moist...... Im just sayin....................

Not really I germinate my seeds in a wet paper towel inside of a closed zip lock bag.. The seeds stay nice and damp and I know there are good when they go into the dirt.

I have had great success with the paper towel method. I like because you know the seed is germinated before putting it in the dirt....

GhanjaBuck said:

I have had great success with the paper towel method. I like because you know the seed is germinated before putting it in the dirt....

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I used it last time and I ended up losing 4 seeds... I am certain this is mostly because I am clueless... can you guys tell what I let happen to them? This picture is of a sprout about 4 days after coming out of the paper towel and being put into organic soil...

https://www.rollitup.org/marijuana-plant-problems/47600-sprout-problems.html

https://www.rollitup.org/marijuana-pics/index.php?n=12720


Thanks for your responses!

I've done both, less chance of contamination when you just stick a seed in the dirty, ive had better sucess with staight to dirt, but some say its better in paper towel, try both with some bagseed and see what works better for you...

1puff2puff3puff said:

I've done both, less chance of contamination when you just stick a seed in the dirty, ive had better sucess with staight to dirt, but some say its better in paper towel, try both with some bagseed and see what works better for you...

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What do you do with your lights and fans when you're germing in the dirt? You just leave it all off to keep everything from drying up?

No, just put it about a quater inch into the dirt, just barely covered, water, right under the light, in about 2 days water again carefully, and in about 3-7 days total you'll have a sprout...

I put 27 dry seeds in soil in a propagator in the past 5 weeks and 27 have sprouted

I think its better too, less steps.... If you want you can soak seeds in a glass of phed water for 6-24 hours then throw in the dirt, it will speed up the process a bit....

Im with you puff, I have for some reason having HORRIBLE trouble getting germinated seeds to sprout after I put them in soil..

Im making sure temps are warm enough, and the medium is moist, not drinched... So not I just soaked a few test seeds over night, and planted them today..
Cut off a 2liter top, and made a humidity dome out of it.. Will see how this work.. I think I will have better luck this way..
I never had any trouble getting germinated seeds from a paper towel to sprout till now..

They will crack, and I plant, root down ofcourse.. Nothing even pops up, so will keep my fingers crossed, and hope for better luck this way

Found something strange the other day.. I was digging down to check on a germinated seed that never sprouted, and found a tiny little worm..
Almost transparent, sitting right on top of the seed, and was very near the cracked opening..
Im only using top soil, but Im overseas, and how know wtf is in their top soil over here.. I only know its top soil because it is only english on the bag..

I havent even seen a worm like it before, it was very small.. About half the length of the seed, and thin as a hair almost...

If I wouldnt of been so creeped out, and pissed off I would of saved it for a pic..
To see if anyone else ever seen anything like em before..
I just threw its little ass in the trash can..
Damn SOB worm, wonder if it could of maybe killed my seed somehow.. Probably not, Im sure its gods fault... LOL

joeblow420 said:

Damn SOB worm, wonder if it could of maybe killed my seed somehow.. Probably not, Im sure its gods fault... LOL

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Great... this isn't hard enough already, now God is working against us? ... Shit on a stick...

I just started 5 new seeds straight in the dirt, we'll see how we do...

u also germinate in water seen is has no nutes at all that wud harm seedlings, soil contains nutrients thus possibly damage young sprouters

GrimReefa said:

u also germinate in water seen is has no nutes at all that wud harm seedlings, soil contains nutrients thus possibly damage young sprouters

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Thats why people use seedling/cutting specific soil

natmoon said:

Thats why people use seedling/cutting specific soil

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What's the best seedling soil?

when germinating in a paper towel you can always lift a corner to check on their progress. If they are in dirt, you'll never know (well after waiting a week, lol) Usually, you can see the sprout thru the paper towel since it's wet, it's now partially see-through. It's faster to tell if they grow or not, that's my reason.

faralos said:

when germinating in a paper towel you can always lift a corner to check on their progress. If they are in dirt, you'll never know (well after waiting a week, lol) Usually, you can see the sprout thru the paper towel since it's wet, it's now partially see-through. It's faster to tell if they grow or not, that's my reason.

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My seeds were sprouted with leaf growth after 3 days in soil from dry