germination -> seedling

So I've successfully germinated my seed and planted it. I made sure the soil was wet before planting and I've kept it on a 24/0 schedule since then.

Just wondering how long it will take to produce a seedling and how often I should be watering it.

The pot is 3-4" away from the CFL and the root was between 1/4 - 1/2" when I planted it.

days...not many. mb even one. close to light is good. make sure ambient temps are around 70F. or it will stretch. why didn't you just plant it in the soil??? i don't like new growers doing the whole paper towel thing. it's one more thing that can go wrong and often does.

I'd actually change your light schedule to 18/6 or 20/4 because the plants use their stored energy when it's dark to grow.
If you do that then i'd give it 2-3 days till you see it pop out.

Watering is a different story, whenever the soil looks dry, put your finger in it near the seedling. If it's dryish then I wait about 6 hours till I water it because you really don't want to over water her.

Hope it helps!

Thanks for the replies. The reason I did the paper towel method is to make sure the seed wasn't a dud. Nothing more annoying than planting a seed and waiting for it to show and it doesn't.

I did the germination perfectly. Not really any margin for error as long as you're not legally retarded. Clean hands, clean tools and avoid handling the seed excessively.

There are still very fine root hairs on the taproot that can get stuck to the paper towel though, and you wouldn't notice them sticking. Plus you had to handle the seed some-what, exposing the tap root to at least some light, and I also believe it is best not no handle a germing seed AT ALL.

Just germinate them straight into a good soil-less starting mix, in a small (3-4 inch tall) container, such as a 12 oz plastic cup with drainage holes, and water thoroughly. If the seed was a dud it just wouldn't come up, regardless whether it was in a soil-less mix or between paper towels.

Watering frequency really depends and shouldn't be set in stone to a certain amount of water x amount of days or anything like that. Water thoroughly (until you get run-off), wait until the container lightens up... the soil should contain some amount of moisture, don't wait until the mix is bone dry or you'll be hindering root development. Repeat.