Seed Germination is the process by which the inactive plant material stored within a seed is activated & encouraged to begin growth.

You must keep in mind that while a hard seed is essentially in stasis and can survive for long periods with little care, a germinating seed is coming back to life and the initial stages of this life are fragile.

A seedling trying to emerge from its shell needs the same things that all plants do, except light & nutrients. Moisture, heat, & oxygen are the most important factors in your seed's germination time.

We'll discuss these three factors and the best way to provide such for the seeds.

Moisture: Seeds are almost completely dry, with the exception of some essential oils, and a dose of H2O is the first step towards waking them up. I recommend the cup method, as it has shown me the easiest & best results. Alternative methods include the sealing your seeds inside plastic bags / bins that contain paper or cloth that has been soaked in water, but this can cause problems in early growth. Seeds send out their taproot first, and this root seeks a rooting media, if it finds your paper or cloth, it will attempt to root into this material, which can lead to the loss of micro-roots when you extract your seed from the cloth.

Heat: Seeds are fetal life forms, essentially, so they require protection from the environment, especially in the form of cold. Cold will slow germination, and even kill seeds, however, too much heat will simply cook them. Most seeds enjoy temperatures between 80 and 90 degrees for germination.

Oxygen: Seeds need to breathe too, despite what you might think. An oxygen supplement for your seeds is always a wise thing to do, whether it is in the form of H2O2 dosage or an airpump. Seeds left for too long in a closed environment without oxygen supplements will suffocate.

So, now that we've discussed the factors, let's conclude with how germination should run.

1. Heat your water to an initial temperature between 80 and 100 degrees, you can range as high as 100 because you're going to lose heat from the time you remove the water from the heat source until you've placed the water into a new heating environment.

2. Add H2O2 (dosage of 5ml for each 120ml of water) or an airline (aquarium stones are preferable, large bubbles can strand seeds along the side of the cup) to your water container. An optional supplement that can be used for each germination is 1 drop of SuperThrive for each batch of seeds, added directly to the seed cup, this supplement contains many different vitamins and hormones which can help stimulate germination.

3. Add seeds to container (I prefer a Travel Coffee Mug w/lid), close, & place in a warm, dark place. If you don't have an existing area of your home that puts out enough ambient heat (Older model Refridgerator/Freezer, Hot Water Heater, etc), then a seedling heating mat may be used with the same results. When using the mat without a thermostat, simply place the entire setup into a cardboard box and close the top. The cardboard provides just enough insulation to keep the ambient temperature high enough without retaining enough heat to cook your seeds.

4. Wait. What we're waiting for is one of three things, either your seeds sink to the bottom of the cup, they split open, or they go all out and begin growing taproots. You're going to be waiting for a period that ranges from 24-72 hours. I like waiting for the entire batch to finish, but you can open your container periodically after the first 24 hours to check for the emergence of taproots, transferring them to rooting media as they pop. Don't be afraid if your seeds don't split open, if they sink to the bottom of the cup when you disturb the surface of the water, then you're in business.

5. Transfer germinated seedlings to your rooting media. I like plain old soil, or peat pellets, and usually place my seeds no further than 2cms into pre-watered soil, or directly into the pre-made hole of the peat pellet not shoved inside, but simply placed atop the pellet with its taproot poking into said hole. If using soil, make sure to water before adding your seeds, because as you water your soil will re-settle, sometimes carrying your seed too far downwards to reach the surface. In both cases, make sure the tap root is always pointing down. If your seeds have not split, make sure that the more pointed end, not the blunted end, faces down, because this is where the taproot will emerge.

Generally, seedlings should be placed into at least medium-sized pots (1/2-1 gallon size), as they can remain comfortably in that pot until they sex. Remember that initially seedlings like plain soil and no fertilization beyond background ppms in your tapwater. If you're using seedling trays or cells, you can place your seedling heating mat underneath your tray in order to accelerate their emergence from the soil. I personally don't use trays for seedlings unless I have a huge number to germinate, because every time the root mass of the plant leaves a container and travels to a new one, a form of shock is induced, slowing growth, and the move from tray to initial pot is one I like to skip for ease and simplicity.

6. Now just grow your new plants! If emergence is slow, make sure to wait for the surface of your soil to become relatively dry before adding more water, as seeds are quite easy to drown.

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Son, that had better not be the walking dead I hear up there! < ClickMe
"No Dad, it's not, and I said I was sorry about last time!" < AndMe
There are no apologies with the walking dead, boy! < MeToo

brilliant HOW TO , well done,

100% clear easy info

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-3rd Grow Of 2009 - DO U LOVE THE WEED OR THE MONEY- WHO SAID U CANT MIX BUISNESS WITH PLEASURE ! -

Good info if your trying to get a degree in germination. Learning the ropes by making mistakes is what makes us better. Seed germ'n is almost a no brainer Shite, you can just sick the seed in dirt, water it and let it grow

Heat pads, superthrive, coffee mugs (ha ha had to say it) and all that other stuff just makes something simple very complicated.

I'm sure there are people out there that will enjoy that info ---so if you impact one person then it was successful

No hate

~Boneman

oooh yeah, What does GOD have to do with it? how about - Do a better job than "Mother Nature"? Surely everyone believes in mother nature right?

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Kali Mist/Colombian Red Haze journal

Here's my last grow AK47 and PPP in hempy journal

How is a warm cup complicated? 99% success with seeds varying in age from 6 months off the plant to 5 years frozen is nothing to sneeze at for 5 minutes of setup time. The only method i've seen produce similar success is the cheesecloth (not paper or other towel) method.

Seeds are often costly and scarce for new growers, more success in germination means more plants, and hence better chances of an excellent phenotype. Notice this is in newbie central, not an advanced or general forum. The document is exactly what the title suggests, an Introduction for new growers and those who blindly follow high times instructions on germination.

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Son, that had better not be the walking dead I hear up there! < ClickMe
"No Dad, it's not, and I said I was sorry about last time!" < AndMe
There are no apologies with the walking dead, boy! < MeToo

Anyone who wants to prove me to be a crock of scientific falsehoods can take me up on a challenge.

The most reasonable, experienced, and least offensive seeming challenger will be sent seeds from my personal stock to germinate using their preferred method, if they receive better results than I do with my cup and box, i'll gladly shut up. If the challenger prefers, we can select a commercial brand of seed, both purchase it, post pics of our breeder packs, and then proceed with the challenge as normal without any chance of me having given you "bunk" seeds.

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Son, that had better not be the walking dead I hear up there! < ClickMe
"No Dad, it's not, and I said I was sorry about last time!" < AndMe
There are no apologies with the walking dead, boy! < MeToo

Great how to! Very indepth and detailed. Step by step bravo. Thanks so much I needed something like this.

nicely said +++ rep well written

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Anything I say or post on this website is a figment of my imagination. I never have and never will cultivate, consume, or do anything else with marijuana.

There are no unauthorized contents or challenges here. You must get it approved by Rollitup.
Good idea though.

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Chiceh
Peace, Love & Weed

Challenge is still being conducted, language had to be modified.

If a reasonable, intelligent user comes forward with a desire to prove my methods wrong, we shall conduct the above challenge. Post in this thread if you want to participate, we'll pick the least offensive & most trusted user who comes on in, and this user will mysteriously come into possession of beans which seem to have the same genetics as beans that will mysteriously appear on my end as well, at no time was rollitup.com or any of its Staff or Affiliates involved with any of these mysterious procedings in any way.

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Son, that had better not be the walking dead I hear up there! < ClickMe
"No Dad, it's not, and I said I was sorry about last time!" < AndMe
There are no apologies with the walking dead, boy! < MeToo

i would love to take you up on the challenge and get some free beans. lol 99% success rate would be hard to beat. all you would have to do is throw in a couple beans that wouldnt germ ( like put i micro for a few seconds maybe) and it would be less than 99% and you win.
im just playing with you. i got a decent collection and i would like to try some of my stock before i get more.

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how to use an industrial low bay light fixture
http://www.rollitup.org/do-yourself/...l-low-bay.html