# Germinating with aeroponics



## cyborg (Jan 18, 2009)

How yall doin? I was going to start an aeroponic grow. I am aiming for something with no medium at all. No rockwool, no hydroton, or anything else. I will use neoprene collars to hold the stems, but i have a question about seed germination. People usually grow a mother plant in soil and then just take clones and put them in aeroponics. People that use medium start it in the medium obviously. Is there any technique to germinate seeds within the aeroponic system? I've read about seed disks but I'd prefer not ordering anything online. Also, if anyone has used the seed disks then how does the stem thicken when its in those small mesh holes? Thanks in advance for any input


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## cyborg (Jan 19, 2009)

No one knows???


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## nunof (Jan 19, 2009)

I think you are going to need a medium dude.....its worth some experimentation, but most people here use the tried and true methods to get things going.


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## cyborg (Jan 19, 2009)

Well say i use rockwool. the roots inside of it wud be too wet. When the roots grow out of it a little and i start to water them, the rockwool would just be overflown to the max and the roots would drown. How do u surpass this? 6 of my widows died while being seedlings the last time i tried it.


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## nunof (Jan 20, 2009)

Rockwool is tricky. I say go for organic peet plugs, they seem to be easy to use. Personally, I just pull out one of my AeroGarden sponges and dump the seeds in there, not to say go buy those things....I just have an abundant supply because I use my AG for actual veggies (and the occasional clone).


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## spike1499 (Jan 20, 2009)

root riot cubes do well with aero.
i use them with an aero probogater for clones and seeds and never had a prob.
but thats only my personal experience.

growem green---------------spike.


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## Picasso345 (Jan 20, 2009)

cyborg said:


> No one knows???



I think we know, but you don't like the answer. Most people use something like Rapid Rooter plugs which are my choice.

If I'm understanding correctly, you are asking for a solution that doesn't use items specifically designed and made to do exactly what you want, but rather uses parts a person would find lying around?


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## Eharmony420 (Jan 20, 2009)

anyone ever use cotton? I saw it done legitametly somewhere. I think it was on the volksgarden website for their other product.


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## nunof (Jan 20, 2009)

Cotton won't work. It will loose its air pockets with water and drown your seed.


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## drynroasty (Jan 21, 2009)

Hi. Check out my thread (link at bottom of page). I am using a coffee can to start my roots with no medium. I am using neoprene colars to hold stems as you will be doing. 11/22/08, and 12/12/08 are the dates you are looking for. I am very new to this and am learning too, so don't quote me on anything, I'll deny it... loL. This is working for me and I have gotten strong roots 2 times in 5 days. I've tried 

Hope it helps.


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## cyborg (Jan 21, 2009)

no picasso. i have all the specific things, but i was told that aeroponics uses no medium meaning just air and water, and something to hold it steady. i got the steady part, but if i had my timer 1minute on and 4minutes off then wouldnt it drown the seed or seedling?


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## cyborg (Jan 21, 2009)

i meant in root riot or whatever


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## drynroasty (Jan 27, 2009)

I cannot answer that question because i have not tried that specifically, but I imagine 15 every 60 as suggested might be a starting point but I really couldn't say with certainty.

In a few weeks you'll be the guy answering that question for someone else, so get started already... lol. What ya gotta do is get some bagseed to experiment with.

What type of timer do you have that you can set to come on 1 minute every 5 minutes??? I need one of those...


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## Picasso345 (Jan 27, 2009)

They are called recycle timers. A few different once out there. They just repeat whatever you set them for.


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## drynroasty (Feb 1, 2009)

Picaso, thanks I need ... lol


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## it's about the trip (Sep 1, 2009)

When germinating seeds for an aero system, it cannot be done without some kind of media. I tried germinating seed using only the neoprene plug and the seeds germinated, but only roots developed. With no actual plant, they quickly died. I also tried germinating using moist paper towel and a ziploc bag. The seeds germinate well, but I get less than a 50% mortality rate within 2 days of transplanting into my aero system, and almost a 90% mortality rate after a week. I think the reason is that the sprouts cannot draw out enough water from the fog as the root system is almost non existant this early in development.

What I am trying now is germinating the seeds in paper towel, then filling the netted pots with expanded clay pellets around the roots and part of the stem of the sprout. The idea is to keep the roots of the sprout very moist while the root system develops. Once the roots have developed, and start sticking out of the clay pellets, the benifit of the nutrient fog takes over. The added bonus of the clay pellets is that you do not have to order hundreds of neoprene cup lids as the clay pellets support the plant. The clay pellets are also reuseable. Just remember to wash them in a H2O2 solution, then rince with distilled water between grows. I hope this helps.


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## plebe (Oct 27, 2010)

I have the same question. Bump.


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## corners (Oct 29, 2011)

Im using a daisy cloner and put a seed in one of the collars near the bottm with the seed just barly poking out the bottom. Ive got my collar cockeyed a little so its not evenly tight in the middle. Im thinking the reason only roots developed and no leaf for the person earlier is because it couldn't push itself up through the collar. Just a guess. One of my seeds has already sprouted in less then 48 hours. Hoping it makes it to through the collar provided in the Daisy cloner 8.


plebe said:


> I have the same question. Bump.


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## Toolage 87 (Oct 30, 2011)

If you want to have have a plant growing in Aero you could grow it in soil just for a bit then rinse the soil off the roots then put them into your aero garden.


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## Perforator (Oct 30, 2011)

The way I do it is in rapid rooter plugs. After I see the roots coming out of the bottom of the plug I make sure its good and wet and then just split the plug trying not to damage the plant roots to much. I put the seedling in a neoprene collar and into a 2" net pot and into the cloner it goes. For timers I would definitely recommend against the CAP timers like the picture above. They are pieces of crap and way to expensive. Get two of these for less than half the price of one piece of shit CAP timer.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=220808747825&ssPageName=ADME:L:OC:US:1123


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## FistPumpinJERSEY (Nov 2, 2011)

just throw it in a cup of water than when it pops let it pull out a lil than throw it in the neo...


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## Toolage 87 (Nov 2, 2011)

FistPumpinJERSEY said:


> just throw it in a cup of water than when it pops let it pull out a lil than throw it in the neo...


You can't do it that way because most neoprene pucks for Aerogardens are around 1 inch thick and the seedling like that would not live


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## dankhoe417 (Nov 3, 2011)

Take two toothpicks, superglue them to the sides of the seed, drop it in the bottom of a net pot, put in cloner. When sprout shows leaves, put in neoprene collar. Seen weirder shit done. Oh, don't forget to throw some molasses in there too! LOL


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## backanalien (Nov 11, 2020)

Hi Cyborg, 
I just found your post. I am trying something similar - did you ever work out a simple way to germinate and grow in the aero system?
Thanks


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## rkymtnman (Nov 11, 2020)

backanalien said:


> Hi Cyborg,
> I just found your post. I am trying something similar - did you ever work out a simple way to germinate and grow in the aero system?
> Thanks


here's a hint: click on his username and you'll see he hasn't been here since 2011


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## backanalien (Nov 11, 2020)

rkymtnman said:


> here's a hint: click on his username and you'll see he hasn't been here since 2011


nuttin wrong wiv a likkle hibernation


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## Star Dog (Nov 11, 2020)

Even when rock wool is saturated it still holds plenty of air, if I remember correctly you can't over water it there's always more air space than nutrient with a quality rock wool like grodan.


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## fragileassassin (Nov 11, 2020)

backanalien said:


> Hi Cyborg,
> I just found your post. I am trying something similar - did you ever work out a simple way to germinate and grow in the aero system?
> Thanks


Look through my big posts. 
The short answer is start them in a cup or tray of something loose and dig them up and put them into an aero setup with small collars at 7-10 days from poking the surface.


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## backanalien (Nov 12, 2020)

fragileassassin said:


> Look through my big posts.
> The short answer is start them in a cup or tray of something loose and dig them up and put them into an aero setup with small collars at 7-10 days from poking the surface.



Cheers!


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## firsttimeARE (Nov 12, 2020)

@backanalien I start all my seeds in my aerocloner i made.

Paper towel method it. Wait till you get 1-2" tap root usually 3-4 days and open up a neoprene collar and place the seed.


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## Star Dog (Nov 12, 2020)

firsttimeARE said:


> @backanalien I start all my seeds in my aerocloner i made.
> 
> Paper towel method it. Wait till you get 1-2" tap root usually 3-4 days and open up a neoprene collar and place the seed.
> 
> View attachment 4740491


Just so I'm clear, you are trapping the root only in the collar? 
I've not used a paper towel but I'm assuming it'll be a seed with a tap root like other methods, or is there a pair of cotyledons before you put the collar around them. 

It looks ideal but I'd be concerned about snapping a root with the collar but maybe I'm missing something. 

I made a cloner last week so I'm interested it's something I might try. 
Its a work in progress, it's not 100% finished. 

They're amazing I can take big cuttings without any wilt


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## firsttimeARE (Nov 12, 2020)

Star Dog said:


> Just so I'm clear, you are trapping the root only in the collar?
> I've not used a paper towel but I'm assuming it'll be a seed with a tap root like other methods, or is there a pair of cotyledons before you put the collar around them.
> 
> It looks ideal but I'd be concerned about snapping a root with the collar but maybe I'm missing something.
> ...


No u put the stem between. Look at the picture. It hasnt lost the shell yet. I have forgotten to move them from paper towels once and they had the cotyledons out already. They were yellow from lack of light but they greened up. The hardest part is when the roots twist. It takes a gentle hand for sure. If you got gorilla mitts probably not advisable. 

I open the neoprene collars up far to give it some flexibility and reduce inward pressure and gently place it in the slit


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## Star Dog (Nov 12, 2020)

firsttimeARE said:


> No u put the stem between. Look at the picture. It hasnt lost the shell yet. I have forgotten to move them from paper towels once and they had the cotyledons out already. They were yellow from lack of light but they greened up. The hardest part is when the roots twist. It takes a gentle hand for sure. If you got gorilla mitts probably not advisable.
> 
> I open the neoprene collars up far to give it some flexibility and reduce inward pressure and gently place it in the slit


Thanks for that, I've not got the lightest touch anymore (very frustrating ) I'll just leave it, but it's an interesting method though I like the minimum intervention lol


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## firsttimeARE (Nov 12, 2020)

Star Dog said:


> Thanks for that, I've not got the lightest touch anymore (very frustrating ) I'll just leave it, but it's an interesting method though I like the minimum intervention lol


Yeah not for everyone. I like having the ability to run seeds and clones in the same system


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## Larry3215 (Nov 14, 2020)

firsttimeARE said:


> The hardest part is when the roots twist. It takes a gentle hand for sure. If you got gorilla mitts probably not advisable.


 I found a trick to help with that. I put my seeds in paper towels as normal, then put the paper towel inside a DVD case. Put the DVD case standing on edge someplace warm. I put mine on top of my light. The new roots will grow straight down. Makes it much easier.

Lately I have taken to folding one side of the paper towel down part way through so the seed heads are free from the towel. Dont know if this is helping or not. Ive just started playing with this technique.

The other thing I do is cut down my foam pucks so they are thinner. That leaves more root down in the mist zone. Later I will switch them to full size pucks.

Im running AA aero so I always make a point to over mist for the first few days.


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## firsttimeARE (Nov 14, 2020)

Larry3215 said:


> I found a trick to help with that. I put my seeds in paper towels as normal, then put the paper towel inside a DVD case. Put the DVD case standing on edge someplace warm. I put mine on top of my light. The new roots will grow straight down. Makes it much easier.
> 
> Lately I have taken to folding one side of the paper towel down part way through so the seed heads are free from the towel. Dont know if this is helping or not. Ive just started playing with this technique.
> 
> ...


Great tip. Ill try it next time I start seeds. Are you on overgrow? Name sounds familiar. You used to frequent my thread. This is SquirtleSquad


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## Larry3215 (Nov 14, 2020)

Well howdy friend! Yup, its me - same user name


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## Queenbees (May 21, 2021)

Larry3215 said:


> I found a trick to help with that. I put my seeds in paper towels as normal, then put the paper towel inside a DVD case. Put the DVD case standing on edge someplace warm. I put mine on top of my light. The new roots will grow straight down. Makes it much easier.
> 
> Lately I have taken to folding one side of the paper towel down part way through so the seed heads are free from the towel. Dont know if this is helping or not. Ive just started playing with this technique.
> 
> ...


This is a very nice tips to get the straigt root startup.

So i started experimenting germination with this aeroponic method since im really having difficulties with rockwool for my 1st n 2nd grow, but i still havent found the best answer for the pump time interval for seedling.

One article says 1min on 60min off ,
Another says 30min on 30min off all the time,
Another 1min on 7min off

Any1 ?


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## Scuttlywag (Jan 16, 2022)

I just ran across one of those fake aeroponic systems they sell at Walmart on clearance and though it might try to sprout a few. Here is where I'm at now


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## Scuttlywag (Jan 16, 2022)

Also this is my first attempt to use auto seeds and transfer to an aero unit. Feeling less and less love towards the autos though so might just go back to photos.


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## Star Dog (Jan 16, 2022)

Fake you say lol it only needs to bubble or spray nutrient. 

Do you have a picture of the inside?


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## Scuttlywag (Jan 16, 2022)

I actually put in a bubbler, but it's not real aero. Not gonna say it's not working though.


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## Scuttlywag (Jan 16, 2022)

Your using cutting though, can't do that with autos.


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## Scuttlywag (Jan 22, 2022)

So have tried alot of different trials, well 3 with different media. Grabbed up some rapid rooter and cut it down, used the the miracle grow media it came with and cut the bottom a little as to not drown the seed and finally a mix. So the auto didn't do anything, but the photos are both doing ok. Just transfered them into 2" net cups and put a foam seed starter plug to keep them upright.


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## Scuttlywag (Jan 22, 2022)

Oh all went directly in, no germinating in a bag


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## rkymtnman (Jan 22, 2022)

Scuttlywag said:


> So have tried alot of different trials, well 3 with different media. Grabbed up some rapid rooter and cut it down, used the the miracle grow media it came with and cut the bottom a little as to not drown the seed and finally a mix. So the auto didn't do anything, but the photos are both doing ok. Just transfered them into 2" net cups and put a foam seed starter plug to keep them upright.View attachment 5071919


yep, that's what mine look like when i transfer them. i love those rapid rooters in my aero unit.


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## Scuttlywag (Jan 22, 2022)

rkymtnman said:


> yep, that's what mine look like when i transfer them. i love those rapid rooters in my aero unit.


Great tip! I appreciate it.


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