Germination has commenced!

So I'm trying to germinate 3 autoflowering Polar Express seeds right now. I left them in-between dampened paper towel but the paper towel is now just about dry almost 24 hours later. Should I re-wet the paper towel or leave them be?

Spray it with some water. The paper should always be moist. Not soaking wet.

I germinated my polar express seeds directly in soil. if your using soil you can try that. otherwise id rewet the paper towel. the paper towel method is basicly a viability test to see if the seeds will pop good quality seeds from good breeders have a 99% germination rate so its pretty safe to just stick em in the grow medium wet em and wait.

Yes, Adjorr is right. You can plant them directly in the soil. Just not too deep. Put her in the soil and spray 3 mm of soil over and water gently.

Did you put the paper towels inside of something?

Typically, I put them between two plates facing one another, which keeps a lot of the moisture in, but not enough to get moldy.

If your paper towels are dry, yes, add more water. It should be pretty damp, but not dripping wet. It also helps to use four to six paper towel's thickness to keep enough moisture without getting too dry.

Good luck!

Both methods can work fine, the key is not letting them dry out.

So I took your advice and planted my babies just now. Already I'm having concerns about drainage, just how wet should the soil be. No water is hitting the bottom and the dirt is bone dry down there. I'm using Pro Mix soil, I packed it in pretty good I was under the impression you were supposed to have it in pretty tightly packed, maybe I was wrong. Anyways I've got them germinating in their pots for now, is it okay to have the light on, I'm assuming so since they're buried. Anyways, questions or comments or answers to my questions would be appreciated! Hope you guys dig my set up!

you dont need lights untill the break the surface but if temp drops with lights off keep a few on to keep it warm inside.
and its gonna be about 3 days possibly 4 before you see anything. and get the soil nice and wet keep watering untill you have runoff then leave it alone for 3 days

viper2020cobra said:

you dont need lights untill the break the surface but if temp drops with lights off keep a few on to keep it warm inside.
and its gonna be about 3 days possibly 4 before you see anything. and get the soil nice and wet keep watering untill you have runoff then leave it alone for 3 days

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No lights it is. Temp gets down to 65 in the room so I think I may leave a few on. I've given them a good bit of water an still no run off... I'm really worried about over-watering my seeds and killing them. Man that would suck.

When planting in soil (whether I've pregermed or not), I've found it necessary to cover with some sort of humidity dome, as it's so dry here (Colorado). If that's an issue, you might want to consider that (so it keeps the top of the soil moist as well. I just use saran wrap and poke a couple small holes.

Anyway, I hope you didn't pack the soil too tightly, or the seed(ling) will have a hard time pushing up through it, and may not make it. Depending on how much you compacted the soil in the pots, it may cause issues for the roots as well, as they may not be able to grow as easily/may suffer from a lack of oxygen. It might be worth softly and carefully loosening some of the soil above the seed, so it can make it out. It might also be worth using a bamboo skewer or clean pencil to poke down into the soil and loosen it up some/aerate it a bit...carefully.

In any event, good luck!

stevegrows said:

No lights it is. Temp gets down to 65 in the room so I think I may leave a few on. I've given them a good bit of water an still no run off... I'm really worried about over-watering my seeds and killing them. Man that would suck.

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If it's getting that chilly, you might want to keep the light on. Seeds pop best when it's warmer, hence the seed starter tray heating pads. It's also recommended that when popping seeds in paper towels, you place the plates or container the paper towels and seeds are in on top of a cable box or somewhere else warm (not hot) to the touch. I figure it will also provide the freshly-emerging seedling with light, which will help it grow.

Jus Naturale said:

If it's getting that chilly, you might want to keep the light on. Seeds pop best when it's warmer, hence the seed starter tray heating pads. It's also recommended that when popping seeds in paper towels, you place the plates or container the paper towels and seeds are in on top of a cable box or somewhere else warm (not hot) to the touch. I figure it will also provide the freshly-emerging seedling with light, which will help it grow.

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Aerated and lights are on. Very much excited, and it's going to be hard to wait! Drainage is working well now and I think I've got the hang of it haha. Maybe I shouldn't have started this while I was baked! Oh well, thank you for your insightful answers!

moisture dome always works.

manny9868 said:

moisture dome always works.

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I'll try it out! I am having a slight problem with my exhaust set up, unfortunately I have no ways of mounting it properly and it's pretty much held on by duct tape right now. Problem being it will slide into the fan blades and kill the CFM :/ Any easy DIY ideas for securing it better? It's a DIY filter made out of pencil holders and carbon. Hoping it works alright for my 3 plants.

Well that sucks, I really need to go get a 12V AC wall plug to wire to my fan, currently using a 4V AC plug and I don't think it's doing a great job... max temp was 89 but I think it's sitting at closer to 85 F. I know this is a tad high, but does anyone think this will be problematic?

Yes, keep re-wetting paper towels. You should also be using a heating pad under plate seeds are in.

Like this



pictures people, it helps others understand better.

stevegrows said:

So I'm trying to germinate 3 autoflowering Polar Express seeds right now. I left them in-between dampened paper towel but the paper towel is now just about dry almost 24 hours later. Should I re-wet the paper towel or leave them be?

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Once you have put the seeds in the paper towel you need to put the paper towel in a bag. That way it doesn't dry out.

I see what I perceive as a lot of unnecessary stuff in this thread.

Bigby said:

I see what I perceive as a lot of unnecessary stuff in this thread.

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How do ya figure?

stevegrows said:

How do ya figure?

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With personal empirical observation usually.

Specifically with reference to this thread - I have achieved 100% germination and seedlings that developed into healthy plants from my last 20 seeds without using heat pads, foil, saucers or pippets to keep re-wetting. A plastic bag is all that is needed - wet paper towel with seeds in plastic bag in warm place. Job done. My perception, based on personal empirical observation.

However, as a pluralist, I also value those who have, through personal empirical observation, found the methods I deemed unnecessary to be necessary. Which is why I worded the comment you quoted as "I perceive" - not slating anyone, just presenting an alternative.