Germination problems HELP

So I never ever have a problem germinating local seeds.. But when I buy seeds online I cannot get them going.. I've managed to grow 2 plants out of 10 expensive seeds. . IV tried soaking them for 24hr then in tissue till tap root shows then into soil then a week passes nothing pops so I dig it up and see seed is dead with no taproot.. Wtf

My advice is use seeding mix, and put on a heat mat with thermostat antil there above the soil

Either something is eating the taproot or they are damping off because it's to wet. IMO, if the throw a tap root, the seeds are good, after that it's on you to make the environment right.

I'll use a half paper towel with 30ml of clean tap water inside a sandwich ziploc bag. Put the seeds straight into the bag, no soaking! Place your bag, with the wet towel & seeds on something WARM not hot - top of cable box, internet router/modem, very little heat! Mine pop in a closet on top of security system box in 12/24 hours. Not sure if darkness has an effect but this works for getting a tap root started. Good luck!

upnsmoke13 said:

I'll use a half paper towel with 30ml of clean tap water inside a sandwich ziploc bag. Put the seeds straight into the bag, no soaking! Place your bag, with the wet towel & seeds on something WARM not hot - top of cable box, internet router/modem, very little heat! Mine pop in a closet on top of security system box in 12/24 hours. Not sure if darkness has an effect but this works for getting a tap root started. Good luck!

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After it shoots should I plant it in soil or like a rock wool

I grow in coco. I'll fill a party cup with coco. Poke a hole, just longer than the tap, in the center of coco. CAREFULLY place, tap first, into hole. Then I'll use a syringe to water in. Try to cover the root & barely have the seed casing below the surface. I like to see things happen so some may like them deeper, idk. Don't over water! That tap root wants to find moisture, let it explore. I put a sandwich bag over my cups to hold the moisture in & won't water till the whole cup is drying. I do put slits in the cups for drainage.
Soil is probably close to the same, never done rock wool.

S. African grower said:

After it shoots should I plant it in soil or like a rock wool

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This is what works for me, so take it with a grain of salt. Buy some normal potting soil at any store like Walmart. Once you get a taproot, plant them in the potting soil, and water lightly. I use a mister. Plant them very shallow. Put some plastic wrap over the top until they come up. I find soil like ocean forest is to hot for seedlings. I like the normal cheap potting soil for the first couple of weeks, then transplant in to the good soil.

From what I am hearing you say us that you get tails but they never come up in your cups full of soil. Quick way to eliminate this problem is to go to a root riot cube and put them in a unit like this https://www.amazon.com/Super-Sprouter-Premium-Propagation-Light/dp/B01ISSZZLO/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1537108414&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=seed+starter+tray+heat+mat&dpPl=1&dpID=51EBHlwfX6L&ref=plSrch do not over water, that is what kills most seeds.

If your not getting consistent germination (tails), I have a method to improve your germination rate.

All you need is some soil and small nursery pots. Put seed in soil, lightly water, keep warm, keep damp, wait for seeds to sprout. All this pre-germinating in paper towels and plastic bags is not necessary. Seeds have been germinating in dirt for millennia. Long before paper towels and plastic bags. You also don't need a dome for seedlings. In fact domes can cause dampening off by keeping it too wet. 24 seeds all put in a seedling mix I made of PromixHP, EWC, and vermiculite. 100% germination. Any decent soil will work but some like FF Ocean Forest can be too hot for seedlings.

It really is as simple as putting a seed in soil and letting it sprout.

Coloradoclear said:

From what I am hearing you say us that you get tails but they never come up in your cups full of soil. Quick way to eliminate this problem is to go to a root riot cube and put them in a unit like this https://www.amazon.com/Super-Sprouter-Premium-Propagation-Light/dp/B01ISSZZLO/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1537108414&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=seed+starter+tray+heat+mat&dpPl=1&dpID=51EBHlwfX6L&ref=plSrch do not over water, that is what kills most seeds.

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I'd rather get this 4 bulb 2 ft HO T5 fixture is $52. Use the top of it for your heat mat and once the seedlings sprout you have enough light to keep them from stretching.

I used to have issues germinating seeds I use a simple method now wet 2 pieces of tissue, place the first piece on a small plate (I usually fold the tissue few times so it’s not to thin) then I put all the seeds on the tissue spaced out so there not touching put the second piece of wet tissue over the top and cover with the other plate put in dark place not overly warm but not cold and leave for 2 days by then nearly all the tap roots will be out I then use root riots pre soaked first stick a pencil in the root room to make the hole little bigger and then drop the seed in tap root down put all the root riots which normally sit it there tray into a humidity dome keep it shut and the light over the top I use t5 as it works great spray with plain water daily and within 48hrs you will see results. Good luck bro

With the paper towel method you cant wait till the taproot is too long, by the time you get it in the medium its out of energy, its spent.
I prefer germinating straight in the medium (jiffys or rw cubes) in a warm room, on a heat mat, or out under the sun kept wet. No double handling the delicate sprout.

Since I'm starting some plants for a friend I'll document how I do it with very close to 100% germination rate. In fact the last 40 - 50 seeds I've done this way have all germinated. That includes seeds from seed banks and fresh stock I've made myself. In this case My friend needs feminized plants so I'm giving him some freebies I got.

Gather your soil and pots. Soil should be good and moist but not too wet. I use a mix I make myself from Promix HP, earthworm castings, and vermiculite.




Get everything ready. Seeds, labels, tweezers, mister and filled pots.



Using tweezers insert seed a minimum of 1/8" but no more than 1/4".



Use mister to water the seeds in. Do not soak them. Just get the top good and wet where the seed is.



Put them in a warm location. I use the top of a T5 as a heat mat but any warm location will do. Depending on the environment where you placed them they shouldn't need any water for a couple days at least. But make sure they don't dry out. Seeds should start sprouting in three to five days.

josh5794 said:

I used to have issues germinating seeds I use a simple method now wet 2 pieces of tissue, place the first piece on a small plate (I usually fold the tissue few times so it’s not to thin) then I put all the seeds on the tissue spaced out so there not touching put the second piece of wet tissue over the top and cover with the other plate put in dark place not overly warm but not cold and leave for 2 days by then nearly all the tap roots will be out I then use root riots pre soaked first stick a pencil in the root room to make the hole little bigger and then drop the seed in tap root down put all the root riots which normally sit it there tray into a humidity dome keep it shut and the light over the top I use t5 as it works great spray with plain water daily and within 48hrs you will see results. Good luck bro

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I do the same thing as you do except I keep them at actually 78 degrees and use distilled water.

Hope this helps.
https://www.rollitup.org/t/dynamos-method-for-seedlings.967818/

Rep+ to xtsho for a great write up

Just plant to soil and forget any other method.

A heat mat isnt needed as this seed germinates in cooler weather.

I would forgo domes or anything that allows the air to stay too moist or stagnant, this will create mold at in the top layers that can abort a seedling google - watermolds.

If straigjt germination in soil isnt working out for you then work out why. Buy cheaper seeds, sensi skunk fems from herbies and there freebies is a cheap ass heavy indica strain and there will be others. Price is irrelevant, plenty shit hot cheap seeds

Update:

Three have popped out of the soil completely and the one on the bottom left is starting to break through the soil. These were free seeds and likely old stock. But they still popped. They're a little yellow from being on top of the T5 and only getting ambient light in the tent. Once they go under the light they'll green right up. Have them outside in the sun right now.

I use the paper towel method. Soak 3 layers of pt, seeds on top, then 2 more layers of soaked pt. Put in large sealable baggie to keep them from drying out and you should have close to 100% germing after 3 days.

Good luck, BigSteve.