Germination..

I'd say I'm quite the experienced smoker, however not so much grower.. I've tried a few times, and I can never get past the germination stage. I put a paper towel in a little container, put some seeds from my stash in (7-8), get it fairly moist with some distilled water, cover it with another paper towel and place it above my fridge. I check on it daily and if it gets dry, I rewater. I do this for a good 2 weeks and then I give up. Nothing.

I don't believe I'm doing anything wrong, so could it be the seeds? I don't have the money to purchase seeds, so I save the ones I get from my stash. I usually get very high grade bud, and seeds are quite rare, which is why I'm upset at how many seeds I've wasted.. It's taken me quite some time to gather up 7-8 seeds. I've gotten 2 more so far, and before I attempt to germinate again, I want to make sure I'm doing it right.

Thanks :thumbsup:

still use the paper towells but throw it in a zip-lock baggie instead of the container, that way it doesn't dry out... always works for me

Is that it? I want a few more responses before I waste my precious seeds again..

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Originally Posted by Twentyinches

still use the paper towells but throw it in a zip-lock baggie instead of the container, that way it doesn't dry out... always works for me

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FUCKING funny, I saw that same trick on a kids show. They were sprouting beans..
Talked to the wife about this topic not more then 20 minutes ago..

i believe they need darkness. the bag trick, i am going to try myself later this week..

uh fuck a paper towel. just grab a small pot(nothing clear. clear containers ruin roots. trust me) wash the pot out with warm water or use a clay pot from a grow store. now fill it with soil(do not pack the soil) and dig a hole about a 3/4 inch deep and plop the seed in and cover the seed hole with dirt. put under a florescent light or a metal halide lamp for about 3 weeks and you should have a plant growing. oh yeah and dont go cheap on lamps or soil. use the metal halid lamp/florescent light for sprouting and use during the veg. states. switch over to a high pressure sodium lamp during flowering. always remember for growing never go cheap. treat them like your children.

Uhh... while a seed isn't sprouted it doesn't need light, nor have the ability to absorb it.

The paper towel method is tried and true. I had seeds spitting out a taproot in 2 days. Some beans take longer due to the strain, age, bean charaterisitcs.

Put all the beans in a glass of water, ones that sink will work. Ones that float probably wont (although i germed a few for kicks and they sprouted, so i handed them off to a friend).

Some beans just take a heckuva long time. I've heard of legit beans taking up to three weeks or so. Id argue that healthy beans sprout faster, but it could be more strain related then individual bean related.

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Originally Posted by r0k

I check on it daily and if it gets dry, I rewater. I do this for a good 2 weeks and then I give up. Nothing.
Thanks :thumbsup:

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NEVER let them get dry. Letting them dry out during germination will kill your seeds. Are you sealing the baggie so moisture can not escape?

I use the 'beans between a soaking-wet paper towel, on a saucer, in a Ziplock baggie, while keeping them warm and changing water daily' method.
Light does not affect this method, and it works 99% of the time.
For stubborn seeds that don't want to open, use fine sandpaper to 'score' the suture of the seed that runs from the pointy-end, to the fat-end, prior to soaking.

dont give up on the seeds

NEVER, NEVER use the damned towel meathod. i have always planted em straight in moist soil, like a seed is meant for.

out of 15 seeds ive ever planted, 12 grew, and the other 3 were just defects (i tested the towel method with em o check)

may as well *try* dirt first if skeptical. worst case, dig em out if you know where they are and towel em. otherwise, theyre at risk when your moving partially grown seeds to soil.

I used the paper towel method with great success, 9 out of 9 cracked in 3 days or less. Put them in a bag and then a dark space in your closet. I turned a heater on for 15 minutes at a time a couple times per day to make it really warm, but not like a sauna. You want to keep it warm and moist. Good luck.

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Originally Posted by klondike_bar

NEVER, NEVER use the damned towel meathod. i have always planted em straight in moist soil, like a seed is meant for.

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That's certainly commendable, but it's also just your preference. The paper towel method is tried and true, and very few growers find it to be an improper method of germination. If you're really feeling cautious, you can add a drop or two of pharmaceutical grade hydrogen peroxide to the water...but generally, distilled (or even tap) water isn't going to cause problems.

Rok: There's nothing wrong with sowing directly into soil, just make sure to keep the soil evenly moist...NOT saturated. But, if you still want to use the paper towel method - and there's no reason you shouldn't - here's a quick step-by-step method that has worked for me, and plenty of other folks:

1 - Take a paper towel, fold it in half, then fold it again...making a square.

2 - Unfold one square of the paper towel, line the seeds up in a row, then fold the square piece back over.

3 - Make the paper towel evenly moist, but not dripping wet. Gently press it between your hands, so that an indentation of the seeds can be seen. This also helps to wring out excess water.

4 - Put the paper towel in a Ziplock bag, and seal it...making sure to get as much air out of the bag as possible. (To prevent mold.)

5 - Put the bag in a warm, dark place. (i.e. - between two plates & on top of a stereo receiver, or refrigerator. Don't let them get too hot.)

Then just check on them every 24 hours or so, remembering not to expose them to any intense light. This isn't to prevent the seeds from getting light, but rather to prevent any taproots that may have emerged from being exposed to it. That, along with the trauma they can receive after being peeled off the paper towel can stunt the plants initial growth. I recommend sowing when the taproot is just a few centimeters long, but different people choose different times. You decide what works best. Also remember to re-moisten the paper towel before it dries out completely.

(I like to line a matchbox with coarse sandpaper, then vigorously shake the seeds up inside the box for 10-15 seconds...and I'll even line my seeds up in the same direction, keeping them positioned so that the taproot will emerge facing down. Some claim that gravity helps the seeds break the shell a little quicker. Anyway, I almost always have 100% germination. If one doesn't sprout, then I consider it a faulty seed...not a faulty method. :wtf: )

Most of your seeds will germinate in under one week, but can sometimes take a little longer. There are plenty of other methods to choose from, all of which are perfectly acceptable, but there's no reason to disregard this one. It works, trust me. :thumbsup: