paper towel them or chuck em straight in?

If done right, planting the seeds directly into a moisture controlled substrate (I prefer rockwool where I can control the PH and PPM much closer) is much more efficient and will result in faster growth simply because you minimize any transplant shock.

However; that logic really only applies if space and time are not an issue and/or all of your seeds are completely 100% viable.

The problem is that no seed is 100% sure to pop and none of us have unlimited space or time. Especially if it's been shipped halfway across the world.

So knowing all that... I still like the paper towel method because I like to be able to see that the seed has popped and can be completely sure it is viable within 2-5 days. Then I transplant it into rockwool before the tap root gets as long as the thickness of the cube. I just split it and sandwich it in there.


Or to put that in an outline...

• If you paper towel it then you can be sure that all seeds you plant are 100% viable.The major risk is that you may damage the taproot or stunt the plant during transplant. This method is best if you have only a few seeds to germinate.
• But, If you plant it into the rockwool and skip the paper towel (and it does indeed germinate) then you probably will cut a day or more off the entire time versus if you paper-toweled it due to the reduction of transplant shock and better nutrient availablity from the beginning. This method is best if you are planting many seeds and you don't care if a few of them don't germinate.