Mephisto Genetics Germination Issues? Please read

[MrOldBoy]

I always drop em straight into soil. Moisten is cover with a dome in my only tent. I always have flowering plants in there as well. To keep temp in the mid 80s i use a simple clip on screw in light with a 50 watt highly inefficient spot light. Its only purpose is heat. I keep it about 6 - inches with a soil thermometer stuck in. I hardly ever add more moisture until it pops.

I am with slow most of the germ issues are low temp. Growing up on a farm running tens if thousands of square feet the biggest worry in the cold temps was heat for germination. The second for most is drowning the poor thing. Amazingly they need very little water to germ. And all this handling of them after they popped from paper towel method blows me away. I am quite versed in growing things but it never occured to me to do it this way by choice they are delicate and i am not Lol.

Only thing we ever did pre germ was tobacco seedlings. Long long time ago and that was out of necessitt. Too small to handle to plant beds. so they were pre germed in cheesecloth( trays covered in plastic wrap ontop of the fridge in grandma's house cause the old fridges were warm on top) then mixed into barrels of water and sprayed evenly using a piston pump that didnt do much damage to the tiny specs. Sure some were killed but they were aleays over seeded in case of frost after planting anyway so always had surplus plants.

Temps and moisture are an absolute necessity .... On the farm note - same with grass (lawn) seeds - temps under 50 degrees at nite and your seeds are done - you just wasted your money and efforts - Our plants like 80 - even 85 degrees when young not 70-75 degrees - they might pop,at 70 degrees but won’t thrive so keep them warm and you’ll be fine!

 

[slowandeasy]

Fo sho MOB

Temps and moisture are an absolute necessity .... On the farm note - same with grass (lawn) seeds - temps under 50 degrees at nite and your seeds are done - you just wasted your money and efforts - Our plants like 80 - even 85 degrees when young not 70-75 degrees - they might pop,at 70 degrees but won’t thrive so keep them warm and you’ll be fine!

 

[Disburped]

85°F to germinate for weed ?!?!
That is what happen when breeders don't stick to the basics. In Alaska it's never 85°F in soil, weed is not supposed to grow there sown straight in soil.
50-60°F should be allright cause it's weed!

 

[Disburped]

Temps and moisture are an absolute necessity .... On the farm note - same with grass (lawn) seeds - temps under 50 degrees at nite and your seeds are done - you just wasted your money and efforts - Our plants like 80 - even 85 degrees when young not 70-75 degrees - they might pop,at 70 degrees but won’t thrive so keep them warm and you’ll be fine!

That's just cause you grow some special super smooth golf-course grass dude. I am not trying to minimize anyone's skill of farming, I bet you do great within your setting, surely there is a place for that nice putting grass but you know what, some golf courses are far north and I tell you what, it's grass and it germinate in spring and you know what, grass can take the frost cause grass is a damn tough plant!

 

[Disburped]

Hello again Slow,

I have had 100% success with the paper towel/cd case method, I just put the cd case on top of the router in an entertainment center. Always on, always the same warm temp. Works a treat. However, it does mean handling the sprouted seed, and sometimes extracting the tap root from a penetrated towel. While it has worked well for me, I am going to try your method next time around. It seems to me that avoiding having to handle the seed with a tap root, and potentially breaking a pile of root hairs is a good idea, so why not? Thanks for generously sharing your experience on this issue.

Yes the soak and paper towel method is very good. It's all about getting the seed to know it's spring and time to germinate. After it's germinated it does not matter much if some fine root hairs are damaged when you remove the sprout from the paper cause it will grow out again. However I have found that to let it root in pure vermiculite or vermiculite mix is one of the best methods, it is light and loose and keep the sprout moist. Not all seeds need it but it's a good method. Next on the list to germinate real old seeds is to soak them in giberellic acid but it's just cause I want to be skilled at it, after all if the seed does not germinate the genetics of that seed is lost forever.

 

[Disburped]

Been soaking seeds in a light solution of B1 or EM1 and rain water -24-36 hours - then direct plant into soil - all this is done inside a humidity dome with a four bulb T5 providing the heat - I add a heat mat under the humidity dome if basement temps drop too low otherwise the heat from the T5 keeps soil right around 76-77 degrees as inside dome is 85 degrees which is controlled by height light and vents on dome - wet rags or open bowls of water as needed for humidity - here’s a pic - dome is inside a homemade enclosure with open to - T5 hangs from joists in floor above - in a corner with electric on a table inside the enclosure .....

On left there is a pot with a seed - note plastic and lid over top - will check and when seed pops off comes the covers - the plastic is then transferred and sits on top of dome so as to dim the light a little for the new one and I also sit plant under the ends of the light - not in the middle

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This is a great method for germinating all seeds but it's just not natural at all. Where on earth is it 85°F and RH way up there? Rainforest?
The seed should not stay dormant at 70°F cause it can grow at 60°F, natural selection would make such a seed sprout too late and become a runt cause other plants has germinated months earlier and is shading the runt. So why do we use these methods for weed?
It's most likely cause breeders use these perfectly tweaked methods, the seeds with the vigour and health can't dominate and shade it's brothers and sisters, hence no selection for dormancy.

 

[OttoCBD]

An Aerogarden with Rapid Rooters and a heat mat under the one gallon res works wonders.

 

[slowandeasy]

This is a great method for germinating all seeds but it's just not natural at all. Where on earth is it 85°F and RH way up there? Rainforest?
The seed should not stay dormant at 70°F cause it can grow at 60°F, natural selection would make such a seed sprout too late and become a runt cause other plants has germinated months earlier and is shading the runt. So why do we use these methods for weed?
It's most likely cause breeders use these perfectly tweaked methods, the seeds with the vigour and health can't dominate and shade it's brothers and sisters, hence no selection for dormancy.

Not sure what to take from your posts, but 80-85F is optimal germ heat for all Cannabis seeds. If you dont believe me, please try my method vs 70F. 80-85F will germ faster 100% of the time and you will have consistent failures at 70F. Anyone who attempts to germ at 70F will def see natural selection, because you wont be germing many seeds that low of temp no matter where you live at 70F. Good luck with whatever it is you are doing. Peace, slow

 

[Disburped]

Not sure what to take from your posts, but 80-85F is optimal germ heat for all Cannabis seeds. If you dont believe me, please try my method vs 70F. 80-85F will germ faster 100% of the time and you will have consistent failures at 70F. Anyone who attempts to germ at 70F will def see natural selection, because you wont be germing many seeds that low of temp no matter where you live at 70F. Good luck with whatever it is you are doing. Peace, slow

I have germinated my current seeds from Kalashnikov Seeds strain Babushka Black at 70°F, they can go much lower than that I am sure of cause they are covered with insulating trichomes from day 1. It's to protect against the frost, not the heat. The bottom line is that the temperature is how the seed know when to wake up from dormancy. In nature it is crucial to wake up at the right time, too late and other plants will shade it and it will be a runt, it only has one chance. It's heavily influenced by genetics and it's just how it is.

 

[CBgrower]

I have germinated my current seeds from Kalashnikov Seeds strain Babushka Black at 70°F, they can go much lower than that I am sure of cause they are covered with insulating trichomes from day 1. It's to protect against the frost, not the heat. The bottom line is that the temperature is how the seed know when to wake up from dormancy. In nature it is crucial to wake up at the right time, too late and other plants will shade it and it will be a runt, it only has one chance. It's heavily influenced by genetics and it's just how it is.

I dont think no one said they wont germinate outside that range. Seeds will germinate outside of optimal range. Do the test see what temps germinate faster and stronger for yourself.

My last two seeds ideal temps germinated in less then 24 hours straight sown into moist soil. No pre soak no paper towels. Popped up and opened up the same day.

2 before my temps were low 70s took a full 5 days to pop. Slow growth. Took 3 more days to open up and grab light.

Ask me what temps i strive for?