# Is this normal? 2 weeks and still not popping?



## Canibus447 (Jan 25, 2009)

Hey hows it going guys, i got about 6 diff strains that im germinating, (k-train, alaskan ice, strawberry blue, violator kush, La Ultra) the problem is that after 2 weeks in a wet paper, only a few seeds have opened up and are ready to be planted. Do u think its normal that it can take that long, i always thought after 1 week they would all be opened by now.

Any advice or help would be greatly appreciated


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## Pothead420 (Jan 25, 2009)

is it new seed stock? i usually have 90% popped in 24 hours in wet paper towels inside ziplock bags 3-days at the most. 
also some seeds are like that for example my 10 pack of purple widow 2 seeds cracked and one lived a male:hairpull: i dont know why if the seeds were old or just breed that way   but they were bunk seeds so it happens.
its just weird its happening to 6-strains were they all from the same vendor if so i would e-mail them and tell them they had bad germ problems they sound like pricey strains. i would tell them and im sure they will take care of you most legit seedbanks will send you some replacements. its worth a try the most that could happen is they say no then you know never to deal with them again


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## Rockster (Jan 25, 2009)

So have the ones that opened up got healthy roots poking out or have they cracked and then not done anymore growing?

They should be put into compost if showing a root.


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## Pothead420 (Jan 25, 2009)

is the paper towel in a bag in a dark warm spot?


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## ShecallshimThor (Jan 25, 2009)

i am currently having problems with cracked seeds not growing any kind of root the temps were mid to low 70 today i moved them onto a heat pad that reads 80 so i hope to see a change bye tomorrow i need help ive never had this problem before


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## Pothead420 (Jan 25, 2009)

ShecallshimThor said:
			
		

> i am currently having problems with cracked seeds not growing any kind of root the temps were mid to low 70 today i moved them onto a heat pad that reads 80 so i hope to see a change bye tomorrow i need help ive never had this problem before


how long have they been germinating for  you seem to be doing it right


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## ShecallshimThor (Jan 25, 2009)

they have been cracked for a week with no growth


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## WeedHopper (Jan 25, 2009)

Did ya keep the Paper Towel wet at all times in a dark place. All I have ever done is put them between a couple paper towels on a plate,,in a drawer. 24 to 48 hours I have tap roots. Sometimes the stupid roots is so long its grown into the paper towel. Never heard of a seeds taking that long to pop.


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## ShecallshimThor (Jan 25, 2009)

they are in a glass of water changed twice a day


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## Canibus447 (Jan 26, 2009)

ok, some of the seeds did crack, only 2 diff strains dint, so it makes more sense to me now. alaskan ice, and the himalayan gold still havnt cracked..


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## Rockster (Jan 26, 2009)

Rockster said:
			
		

> So have the ones that opened up got healthy roots poking out or have they cracked and then not done anymore growing?
> 
> They should be put into compost if showing a root.



 Well?


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## WeedHopper (Jan 26, 2009)

ShecallshimThor said:
			
		

> they are in a glass of water changed twice a day


 
Not quit sure about that method. I ahve heard of leaving them overnight in a glass of water to see if they are sinkers or floaters. But even that I have never tried. Paper towels have worked evrytime for me without a hitch and they arer ready in no more then 3 days. Maybe I just been lucky. But I would use Paper Towels. Thats just me. If it aint broke,,dont fix it.


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## Rockster (Jan 26, 2009)

Me neither CowboyBudsky,

it's ok to put them in water for 24 hours to fully hydrate them quickly and then put into soil but leaving seeds for days in water can invite pathogenic problems.

I've done the paper towel method and tbh it just invites problems like mold for starters and if they root quick and attach to the paper thats a hassle too.  

Seeds are happiest and safest from infection 1 cm under the soil as either God or the DNA molecule intended I reckons!


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## WeedHopper (Jan 26, 2009)

Rockster said:
			
		

> Me neither CowboyBudsky,
> 
> it's ok to put them in water for 24 hours to fully hydrate them quickly and then put into soil but leaving seeds for days in water can invite pathogenic problems.
> 
> ...


 

Never had a mold problem with paper towel method,,but dirt is good.


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## ShecallshimThor (Jan 26, 2009)

CowboyBudsky said:
			
		

> Not quit sure about that method. I ahve heard of leaving them overnight in a glass of water to see if they are sinkers or floaters. But even that I have never tried. Paper towels have worked evrytime for me without a hitch and they arer ready in no more then 3 days. Maybe I just been lucky. But I would use Paper Towels. Thats just me. If it aint broke,,dont fix it.


 
seen it on the germination posts someone here uses this method
they have been able to keep it in water untill it shed it shell and looked like a plant but recommends planting when its 1/4 inch tap root


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## Wiseguy_Chef (Jan 27, 2009)

i my expreince growing SSH i started  with 2 in the paper towle, after a week nothing. put them in a cup. watied another week still nothing. so i put 2 more right in the dirt an they poped up a week later. the first 2 seeds where left in the same cups as the haze i got growing now. so 2 months go by an another super sliver haze plant pops up. all most 3 months after it got planted!!! no bull.


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## RaoulDuke (Jan 27, 2009)

Biggest hindrance in germination, in my personal experience, is temperature.  Try putting your cup in a warm location like the top of your refrigerator.  You can also try putting them on a heating pad, I have one that was originally for a lizard tank that works perfectly.


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## ShecallshimThor (Jan 27, 2009)

:yeahthat:  pretty much where im at
 ive had 2 seeds in water for allmost 2 weeks one cracked one didnt they will be planted 2morrow and will be given 2 weeks


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## 84VW (Jan 27, 2009)

CowboyBudsky said:
			
		

> Not quit sure about that method. I ahve heard of leaving them overnight in a glass of water to see if they are sinkers or floaters. But even that I have never tried. Paper towels have worked evrytime for me without a hitch and they arer ready in no more then 3 days. Maybe I just been lucky. But I would use Paper Towels. Thats just me. If it aint broke,,dont fix it.




I usually use both methods, I soak the seeds in a glass of tap water for 12 to 24 hours, then paper towel/ziplock bag and i wrap it in a black t-shirt and put on top of my computer tower..it runs 24/7

and within 24 hours every one of my seeds crack....of-course i am no expert, i have only cracked/germed about 30-35 seeds but they all popped, every single one, big name good genetics to my bagseed.

and i do have a point here -  - i soak the seeds before because all seeds are different and some shells are harder than others

i like to think it softens up the shells so they pop easier, whatever it is, i have %100 germination so far



this is my opinion/personal results


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## RaoulDuke (Jan 27, 2009)

On top of PC... Never thought of that... That's a good idea!

And yeah, soak for a day then towel and heat seems to work well for me.  Also works well when planting legumes (peas, beans etc.).


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## WeedHopper (Jan 27, 2009)

Well Im learning a few things about the water in the cup thingy,,but I guess I just never worried about any other methods cause I never had a problem with just plain ole (Paper Towel in a dark warm area) worked for me everytime. Now ya got my interest peaked though,,and Im gonna have to drop a few seeds in a class of warm water. Bagseed of course,,aint experimenting with my Good Beans. Besides I just wanna see what they do and then chunkem.


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## yimmy capone (Jan 27, 2009)

Why not try seed straight to soil?


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## andy52 (Jan 27, 2009)

i had some seeds awhile back that took 15-16 days to pop.i also used to use the glass and paper towel metods.its all a preference thing.i now prefer to start all my clones and seeds in rapid rooter plugs.using the plugs,you never have to touch or disturb the roots.i plant the cubes right into my net pots with hydroton as soon as i see 1 root showing.


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## RaoulDuke (Jan 27, 2009)

yimmy capone said:
			
		

> Why not try seed straight to soil?


You can, if you are growing in soil...


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## diablo_cannabis (Jan 29, 2009)

CowboyBudsky said:
			
		

> Not quit sure about that method. I ahve heard of leaving them overnight in a glass of water to see if they are sinkers or floaters. But even that I have never tried. Paper towels have worked evrytime for me without a hitch and they arer ready in no more then 3 days. Maybe I just been lucky. But I would use Paper Towels. Thats just me. If it aint broke,,dont fix it.



I use the "cup of water" method with much success. Mainly cause my first time trying the paper towel method a few years ago was a pain in the butt making sure the paper towel stayed moist.

I learned this method while I was being taught to grow in soil.

here is what I do:
I will pour about 4 oz of DI water into a cup and place my seeds in, typically they will all float. I just let them float and put the cup in a shoe box in my grow room cause it stays at 73* to 75*. After 24 hours I will check on them and, with a clean bamboo stick, gently push them under the water. (not all of them will stay down, thats ok let them stay in the water) After another 24 hours I check it again and the just about every time the ones that are under water have cracked. I pull out the cracked ones and place them in the rockwool. The once that are still floating, I try pushing them down again and wait antother 24 hours.

I have not had a seed take longer that 3 days to crack. If it hadn't cracked by 3 days I just cut my losses.


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## JBonez (Feb 15, 2009)

First off, you have to know what the conditions are that need to be met before a seed will begin its journey into adolescence and finally adulthood.

here they are:
1. Heat
2. Humidity
3. Darkness
4. Moisture
5. Genetics (i dont believe this has nearly an impact as the others)
Im going to explain how this works, and what you can do to better your odds.

First off, why do we use paper towels or cups of water to get them to crack?
Well, my theory is this, impatience, and wasting soil, or medium.

We dont want to waste time planting a seed if we arent sure it will pop, right?
waste of soil, water and time, not to mention space that could be used for the ones that did pop.

So, we put them in paper towels, that way we can peep in from time to time to give ourselves the satisfaction of seeing the progress. Not to mention, if some dont pop, we can disgard them and do away with the hassle of preparing more medium, imo.

This to me is pointless, and this is why.
As ive said before, transplanting a plant in veg for example will require about a week to recover, and resume growth.

Why wouldnt a freshly transplanted seed with a taproot from a paper towel, or cup of water do the same thing?

Well, it does. You see, a seed with a taproot is essentially an infant plant, but a plant nonetheless. So germing in paper towels or water until it has a taproot and then transplanting (keyword here) will stress the little guy, causing it to have to re acclimate to its new environment.

Seeds contain enough energy on their own for about a week, they wont use any nutes at this point, they just want to get the main stem to the surface, that way, the cotyledon (first set of leaves) can find the light to begin making energy to promote further growth.

So, whats the best way to achieve this? And a near perfect germ rate? Well, this is how i do it, the only seeds that arent going to pop, are just that, they wouldnt pop if best conditions were met regardless of what you do. The seed may be "defective" or premature, damaged, whatever. So we need to meet all the conditions in order to pop all viable seeds.

You will need to prepare you medium. (soil, soil less mix, peat pellets, or rockwool. Now, im a soil guy, this method will work with any medium, but i find soil to be what mama earth thinks is most natural, so i use that.

You are in soil, so im gonna give you my way in soil.

1. fill container's with soil, all the way to the brim.
2. Get to the store and grab some Distilled water, couple of gallons, just to have.
3. Once your containers are full to the brim, water the soil, heavily until you see a good bit of runoff. (make sure containers have adequate drainage)
4. You will notice the soil settle a bit, giving you about 1/2-1 inch of space between the top layer and the rim of the pot/container.
5. Once saturated, place pots under your light source. Ventilation at this point is not needed.
6. Walk away, what we are doing here is allowing the light to warm the soil, cold soil may shock the seed, and either slow, or inhibit growth.
7. Give a few hours to rise in temp, feel with your finger to determine when the soil feels warm, or at least not cold.
8. Once all of this is done, we are ready to sow our seeds!
9. Using a sterile pointy object (i like a philips head screw driver, cleaned in alcohol) Make a hole about 1/4-1/2 inch deep in the center of the container. Ive found that any deeper will cause the seed to fight its way further up, potentially causing it to give up do to having to use so much of its valuable and precious limitied enery. I usually put tape on the screw driver to indicate about 3/8 of an inch and where i need to stop so i dont make the hole too deep. Not to mention, all the holes will be uniformly deep, same depth.
10. Using tweezers, or a small item capable of doing the job, CAREFULLY pick up the seed so that the tip of the seed is sideways (picture a football sitting on the ground) That is how you want the seed to rest in the bottom of the hole.
11. Carefully, using both thumbs and index fingers, close the soil around the seed. Dont pack it too tight, use your judgement. We want to eliminate light from the equation. (Also, alot of potting soil contains small pieces of wood or clumps of soil that if big enough will not allow the seed to reach the surface, simply to big for the seedling to push out of the way to reach the surface. So make sure it has a clear path to the surface by only having to fight its way through soil and not rocks, wood chips, debris or other matter comonly found in bagged premixed potting soil.

OK, Now weve sown our seeds, what next? Well, weve met a few condtions already, darkness, moisture, heat (from our light source) One thing we need to add is humidity! 100% humidity! We achieve this buy covering the container with a clear material that will lock in humidity and even raise the temp above the soil even more which is a good thing for seedlings. I use clear plastic bottles, cut in half, then placed directly over the seed on the top of the soil. You can use saran wrap, it works exactly the same, i dont like saran wrap tho because the seedling can grow into it if your not watching it, or at work or something, it happens fast, so to make sure i have the clearance, i use bottles.

12. once the first set of leaves are fully opened, remove your plastic bottle or saran wrap, the plant needs Co2 at this point, and you can leave them on longer if you like, just remove the plastic covering from time to time to get some new air in there! But after a week, you should have all the plastic removed.

within 1.5-3 days from sow, you will see that all have sprouted and should be showing the first leaf set

Your done! seed is planted, all conditions have been met and the seed is beginning to realize that the weather is pretty nice outside, and WILL open up to begin its journey.

to date, ive germed about 80 seeds, 100% success. Some of the seedlings were deformed, or mutated or even just stopped growing, but this is out of our control and due to genetics or deformalities. If a seed doesnt pop, then it would never have in the first place, nothing you could do would change that.

I know this is a lot to take in, and we havent even broken the surface, the rest of the journey all the way to harvest is just beginning. So is a new set of rules to follow in order to get those sweet buds. (for example, pretty much the opposite of what we want for a seedling is what we want for a more mature plant, less humidity, less heat but not cold, more on that when your ready.

Sorry if im a little to detailed, i said i would make it smoother than my post, but im bored, and i want everyone to share the same success that myself, and experienced growers already know. (besides, germing SHOULD be the easiest part of the process!

Good Luck Friend!


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