newbie to growing

Hi Guys, i am new to growing my own, so i apologise for asking dumb questions.
i have germinated some seeds using the paper towel method and seems to have worked, so i then planted the seeds into pots. My question is, how long would you usually wait till you see something sprouting through the soil (now been 3days) and would you then put them under lamps straight away.

i put them under lamps straight when i pop the germinated seeds into the soil. takes 2-3 days. from starting to germinate to seeing a little sprout for me it takes 4-6 days

thanks for the reply, looks like i may have done something wrong????????. think i will give it a couple of more days and see what happens.

I would put them under the light.

First thing first when germinating use what ever method you want but I recommend the paper towel method since you can actually leave them there long enough to develop a 1/4" tap root.

Then plant them in soil root down, keep them moist at this stage, this is why most people use a humidity dome, if the little tap root which will not be very far in the soil dries out the seed is toast. I don't have a little dome thing and just water them often, but not much water each time.

Now you should have little seeds pushing their way above the soil. Here you need to keep an eye on them. Some plants shed the seed shell very easily and 2-3 days later you have a healthy little seedling. Other sprouts at this stage have problems casting off their shell. I have had
to pluck the shell casing from the first set of leaves on my last 5 sprouts.

I have had problems putting poorly started seeds in soil and hoping they would sprout. I actually picked them gently out of the soil and placed them back on the paper towel, then re-planted them 2 days later when the tap root was longer.