Hard seeds

[ob1]

I have made many fem seeds now with great success.
My problem right now is I just made some AK-47 Auto fem seeds and had a hard time getting them to sprout.
I've had some in wet/damp paper towel in a baggie for over a week an they didn't seem to want to sprout.
I added a few more seeds in the bag and waited a few more days and nothing.
last night I tried to squeeze them and they were hard as a rock.
I finally got them to split on the seam without crushing the insides.
today they all have tails.
has anyone else ever had this happen? Is there a way to have the plant not make such hard shells (ie. less of a nutrient)
I know I can soak them in water to soften the shell but I've never had to do this with really really fresh seeds.

 

[Trichome farmer]

I have made many fem seeds now with great success.
My problem right now is I just made some AK-47 Auto fem seeds and had a hard time getting them to sprout.
I've had some in wet/damp paper towel in a baggie for over a week an they didn't seem to want to sprout.
I added a few more seeds in the bag and waited a few more days and nothing.
last night I tried to squeeze them and they were hard as a rock.
I finally got them to split on the seam without crushing the insides.
today they all have tails.
has anyone else ever had this happen? Is there a way to have the plant not make such hard shells (ie. less of a nutrient)
I know I can soak them in water to soften the shell but I've never had to do this with really really fresh seeds.

funny you bring this up iv had the same issue with some seeds over two three years old very stubborn shells after 6 beans failed to germ i was getting worried cause i have alot more seeds that old just by chance i was listening to the podcast twenty with twenty20 the seed company and he was saying about how he cracks the seeds that wont pop after 48hrs or so with his teeth so i gave it a try put the seed in my teeth with the seed seam vertical not horizontal they made a cracking noise popped them back in the towel all had a small tap showing the next day i was truly amazed it worked this was two days ago two seeds have come up from the coco the next one should by tomorrow

 

[Trichome farmer]

one other thing iv heard a few people mention is that auto seeds seem to have a tougher shell than a photo period no idea why is this maybe something left over from the ruderalis

 

[ob1]

Funny I was just thinking, I had a seed I planted in soil and it never sprouted. After two weeks I went digging in the soil and couldn't find the seed so I sprouted a new seed in paper towel and planted it in the same pot as the lost seed.
After a month of growing this auto, out on the side of the soil pops a plant.
At first I wasn't convinced it was a pot plant so I let it grow.
When I was sure it was I pulled it out and washed the roots and put it in a bucket to try Hydroponics.
This was my first attempt at hydro and it was amazing. the problem is I couldn't remember what kind it was but I was leaning towards AK-47.
I later started an AK-47 to reverse and made fem seeds.
These are the seeds that are hard to crack.
looking back at the lost seed that took over a month to sprout in soil I'm almost positive now that it was an AK-47.
I've never had this problem with any other Auto seeds.
Could be the strain I guess!

 

[Olderfart]

I shake them in a sandpaper tube. Scratching them up helps water soften the shell. You could also deliberately sand the seam area to make the shell easier to split, but I have not tried that.

Good luck with it.

 

[Arthur]

This could be total BS, but it kinda holds out from what I've seen. Seeds from plants we've grown to make bud have a thicker and harder to shed shell. Those that kinda struggle through flower, lacking a little for P&K seem to make much better seeds.

Old trick for stubborn seeds... some 200 grit sandpaper and a matchbox. Line the inside with the sandpaper, drop the seed in and give it a few gentle shakes, then soak.

 

[ob1]

Those that kinda struggle through flower, lacking a little for P&K seem to make much better seeds.

It does kinda make sense and exactly what I was thinking.
In nature they have the available nutrients from the soil and shouldn't really lack anything so maybe this is how all seeds should be and only the strong will get out of the shell.
I have seen over 1000 seeds from 1 plant, if they all sprouted it wouldn't take long for cannabis to take over the world.
I think I'll go smoke one and really think about this

 

[Bmurrciless]

I asked @Fitzy about similar questions and he sent me this link pretty cool and I did something similar by accident playing around and it worked for me. I also use sandpaper. Which I guess is also a way of scarification. Cool listen this I thank Fitzy for it.

 

[Olderfart]

This could be total BS, but it kinda holds out from what I've seen. Seeds from plants we've grown to make bud have a thicker and harder to shed shell. Those that kinda struggle through flower, lacking a little for P&K seem to make much better seeds.

Old trick for stubborn seeds... some 200 grit sandpaper and a matchbox. Line the inside with the sandpaper, drop the seed in and give it a few gentle shakes, then soak.

I just roll the sandpaper into a ~1/2" tube with grit to the inside, tape the tube to keep it together, put the seed in, cover each end with fingers, and shake. Works a treat, and less hassle than fiddling with a matchbox. One tube is good for years.

It does kinda make sense and exactly what I was thinking.
In nature they have the available nutrients from the soil and shouldn't really lack anything so maybe this is how all seeds should be and only the strong will get out of the shell.
I have seen over 1000 seeds from 1 plant, if they all sprouted it wouldn't take long for cannabis to take over the world.
I think I'll go smoke one and really think about this

How goes the thinking? Figured it all out yet? Maybe I should get out the vape and see if I can help.

 

[Mañ'O'Green]

I have made many fem seeds now with great success.
My problem right now is I just made some AK-47 Auto fem seeds and had a hard time getting them to sprout.
I've had some in wet/damp paper towel in a baggie for over a week an they didn't seem to want to sprout.
I added a few more seeds in the bag and waited a few more days and nothing.
last night I tried to squeeze them and they were hard as a rock.
I finally got them to split on the seam without crushing the insides.
today they all have tails.
has anyone else ever had this happen? Is there a way to have the plant not make such hard shells (ie. less of a nutrient)
I know I can soak them in water to soften the shell but I've never had to do this with really really fresh seeds.

You can scuff hard seeds on a match book striker. Just gently slide it across with a little pressure.You need to just scuff past the waxy outside layer once.