starting seedlings

J

jillyBean44

Member
OK.. Im getting closer. Seeds came in and getting ready to begin. Here is my setup
GrowBright 2 Foot 4 Lamp High Output T5
- 4 Grow (6400K) Spectrum Bulbs
- 4 Bloom (3000K) Spectrum Bulbs
3 Gal grow bags
Tent is 20" x 36" x 62"
Exhaust Fan 4in Vent For Odor Control

For seeds: Told these were great for medicinal uses
5 Aurora Indica feminized
5 white castle feminized

Since I am spending $$$ on seed I seriously dont want to screw this up.

Ive been reading about different ways to germinate and honestly I can see myself crushing the little fella putting him where he belongs once sprouted.

Can't I just put them in the soil and let them start from there? I was going to start in the 3 gal bag which I planned on their lifetime home, because there again, I hear transplant stories from hell and thought "lets eliminate THAT step" (this seems harder than my Basil plants)

While in there do I have lights on or wait til sprouted? Using T5's how close?

Im getting anxious about starting my grow journal.
Thanks for your help
Jill
 
canefan

canefan

Well-Known Member
Yes you can put them straight in the soil. That being said putting them straight into the soil can be a bit trickier than some other methods, the problem you can run into if you are not a gardener is keeping the soil at the right moisture level. I like the old papertowel method or those little jiffy pots.
I have found that going to medical supply place and buying a 15 inch pair of tweezers was the way to go. They are wonderful for handling seeds easily, pickings things off your plant (bugs, mold, etc.). I think they were about $20 and one of my best investments for working with the plants and seeds.
Good Luck with your grow it sounds like it have a nice little set up to get started.
 
N

newatit2010

Well-Known Member
I started mine in soil and in paper towels, seems to me it is slower to come up in strait soil from seed. But being I don't have a grow under my belt you might need some one who knows to answer. Good luck
 
klmmicro

klmmicro

Well-Known Member
I soak my seeds in a cup for 12 hours and then transfer them to moist paper towels after that. That phase lasts until the seed has "cracked" and started its taproot. I do not let the tap root get longer than a 1/4 inch before they are put into "starter plugs". From there it is into the humidity dome until they are up and started up towards the sky. Maybe it sounds complicated, but it works every time for me.
 
Anjinsan

Anjinsan

Well-Known Member
paper towel/plate in a dark drawer in a the warmest room dealie here.

I get about 90% germination. The only "losses" I've gotten were from freebies (they use the weak looking seeds in freebies 9/10 times imo)
and when a buddy gave me a 15 year old seed to germinate. (that sucker was deader n dead)
 
hillbillybobb

hillbillybobb

Active Member
jillyBean44 said:
OK.. Im getting closer. Seeds came in and getting ready to begin. Here is my setup
GrowBright 2 Foot 4 Lamp High Output T5
- 4 Grow (6400K) Spectrum Bulbs
- 4 Bloom (3000K) Spectrum Bulbs
3 Gal grow bags
Tent is 20" x 36" x 62"
Exhaust Fan 4in Vent For Odor Control

For seeds: Told these were great for medicinal uses
5 Aurora Indica feminized
5 white castle feminized

Since I am spending $$$ on seed I seriously dont want to screw this up.

Ive been reading about different ways to germinate and honestly I can see myself crushing the little fella putting him where he belongs once sprouted.

Can't I just put them in the soil and let them start from there? I was going to start in the 3 gal bag which I planned on their lifetime home, because there again, I hear transplant stories from hell and thought "lets eliminate THAT step" (this seems harder than my Basil plants)

While in there do I have lights on or wait til sprouted? Using T5's how close?

Im getting anxious about starting my grow journal.
Thanks for your help
Jill
Click to expand...

dude if you want to keep it simple just use jiffy peat pots. their easy, you just saturate them to expand and plant your seed. when seed sprouts remove outer layer and transplant in final pot if you want to avoid transplanting more than once and your done.

IMO rapid rooters are the way to go. i dropped a kandy kush seed in a moist rapid rooter and covered the hole with a small peice of the plug on 12/21 and in 36 hours the seed was above ground. here she is now 9 days after breaking ground.
 

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upthearsenal

upthearsenal

Well-Known Member
jillyBean44 said:
Can't I just put them in the soil and let them start from there? I was going to start in the 3 gal bag which I planned on their lifetime home, because there again, I hear transplant stories from hell and thought "lets eliminate THAT step" (this seems harder than my Basil plants)

While in there do I have lights on or wait til sprouted? Using T5's how close?

Im getting anxious about starting my grow journal.
Thanks for your help
Jill
Click to expand...
Hey Jill, you can just place the seed in the soil and go from there, that's how it's done in nature. Persoanlly, I feel the "paper towel" method is quite pointless, especially if you are starting only a few.. what I do, and have been doing for a while, is soak the seed over night, and then I place it in the dirt, easy. Sometimes I see a small taproot come out while it's soaking but I don't like long taproots. i usually get a seedling from 1-2 days after the seed is sown. Also, transplanting isn't bad, and definitely not hard. It's good to start in party cups for instance, then move from 1gal > 2gal > 3gal etc. Building a rootball can be vital, and transplanting throughout the plants life is encouraged.

Hope this helped, good luck and happy new year :D
 
D

djburns1

Well-Known Member
I always soak my seeds in warm water and a drop of superthrive. I use shot glasses and label them if more than 1 strain is used. I let them soak until they sink, about 6 - 24 hours. I then drop them into, pre soaked with 5.8 ph'd water, Grodan rock wool cubes, about 3/8ths on an inch deep. I then put the cubes on a plate and cover them with plastic wrap. I then put the plate on a heating pad set on low in a dark place. I look once a day for the seeds to pop and when I see green I put them under a CFL (about 2 inches away) for a week or so , until I see roots from the Grodan cube, and then transplant into 4" pots and T-5"s - works everytime.
 
J

jillyBean44

Member
Thanks, Ive got them sitting in warm water now. sill start tomorrow morning. Little nervous but nice to have this forum to discuss issues and screw ups :-)
Jill
 
jawbrodt

jawbrodt

Well-Known Member
It's safest, IMO, to germinate them first, then go to soil, especially if you're new to the game. Yes, they'll germinate just fine, in soil, but only if you get it right. Too deep, too dry, too wet, etc....and they're screwed. Going to your final sized pot, is a great idea, I started doing it myself. My only precaution, is that the soil will stay too wet, for too long(overwatering, defined), if you don't have excellent drainage. You can pull it off with straight FFOF, but it's much easier if you add additional perlite. I add another 10-15% to mine, for 20-25% total. The first 2 weeks are the test, after that, the plants will be big enough to process water fast enough to not be an issue(overwatering). Make it that far, and you're home-free. :wink:
 
J

jillyBean44

Member
hillbillybobb said:
dude if you want to keep it simple just use jiffy peat pots. their easy, you just saturate them to expand and plant your seed. when seed sprouts remove outer layer and transplant in final pot if you want to avoid transplanting more than once and your done.

IMO rapid rooters are the way to go. i dropped a kandy kush seed in a moist rapid rooter and covered the hole with a small peice of the plug on 12/21 and in 36 hours the seed was above ground. here she is now 9 days after breaking ground.
Click to expand...
Wow cute. cant believe she is so tall. I will have to google rapid rooters. I just plopped my girls in water, got plastic dixie cups and plan on starting that way. Yeah! Here we go
 
J

jillyBean44

Member
jawbrodt said:
It's safest, IMO, to germinate them first, then go to soil, especially if you're new to the game. Yes, they'll germinate just fine, in soil, but only if you get it right. Too deep, too dry, too wet, etc....and they're screwed. Going to your final sized pot, is a great idea, I started doing it myself. My only precaution, is that the soil will stay too wet, for too long(overwatering, defined), if you don't have excellent drainage. You can pull it off with straight FFOF, but it's much easier if you add additional perlite. I add another 10-15% to mine, for 20-25% total. The first 2 weeks are the test, after that, the plants will be big enough to process water fast enough to not be an issue(overwatering). Make it that far, and you're home-free. :wink:
Click to expand...
OK Jawbrodt.... major stupid newbie question.... FFOF??
 
J

jillyBean44

Member
djburns1 said:
I see you're in NJ and I know that window sill is gonna be to cold
Click to expand...
Sorry djburns... typo... still not sill. LOL Beautiful today 50 degrees but freaking damn cold past few weeks. I have them sitting over a small gas fireplace. Once I get my tent up, those girls are going in there.
 
[420]Haze

[420]Haze

Active Member
djburns1 said:
I always soak my seeds in warm water and a drop of superthrive. I use shot glasses and label them if more than 1 strain is used. I let them soak until they sink, about 6 - 24 hours. I then drop them into, pre soaked with 5.8 ph'd water, Grodan rock wool cubes, about 3/8ths on an inch deep. I then put the cubes on a plate and cover them with plastic wrap. I then put the plate on a heating pad set on low in a dark place. I look once a day for the seeds to pop and when I see green I put them under a CFL (about 2 inches away) for a week or so , until I see roots from the Grodan cube, and then transplant into 4" pots and T-5"s - works everytime.
Click to expand...
A man who knows his stuff, i also do this and have had 99% success, my last batch i only had 1 outta 10 seeds not germinate, it was a dud from the get go as all the others cracked and were in cubes under T8 growlush lamp within 48 hours. + Rep
 
J

jillyBean44

Member
Thanks upthearsenal.... I've seen that soil on the forum alot. Haven't seen it any where need me. Jeesh must be nice to live in a place that has wide variety of supply let alone medical legal
 
klmmicro

klmmicro

Well-Known Member
JillyBean, you could order it from an online outlet. Do none of your nurseries there carry any Fox Farms products?
 
J

jillyBean44

Member
klmmicro said:
JillyBean, you could order it from an online outlet. Do none of your nurseries there carry any Fox Farms products?
Click to expand...
Just found one about 1 hr away... Jersey is the last place to have this stuff. dont know what is more expensive, gas driving back and forth or shipping and handling. SUCKS.
 
J

jillyBean44

Member
ok... OF THE 7 SEEDS I let soak, 5 dropped. 2 of the Aurora still floating. put them all in soil in dixie up after about 20 hours. put plastic let on and have the thermeter in there, it is about 89 degrees. put a little water in bottom to create some humitity. just sitting, waiting and crossing my fingers. Will start a journal as soon as I see them pop up.
 
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