Small seeds

On a recent GrowCast podcast a woman named Mary Beth Sanchez was talking with the host, Jordan River, about the trouble she had germinating seeds last year. Jordan agreed with her that some seed purveyors seem to be harvesting seeds too early. This manifests itself in seeds that are small and not real viable. I had great difficulty getting seeds to germinate last spring. I remember looking at some of the seeds and thinking they were on the small side. Is this a problem others are having?

Size means nothing,color is the most important aspect which is the strong indicator of ripe and ready seeds

Different strains have different seeds
Tiny seeds are todays norm but I can recall growing Lambsbreath that had seeds the size of sunflower seeds
No reflection on viability
Now white seeds...

Harvesting seeds too early will affect germination but the seed size will not. Some seeds are small and will not get bigger no matter how long you wait to harvest them. I have found that sativa strains will have smaller seeds than an indica strain that can have large seed and that hybrids of both can go either way. I wouldn't pay any attention to anyone saying seed size is the reason for poor germination. Poor germination can come from harvesting too early but seed size does not affect germination. A viable seed is a viable seed regardless of the size.

The individual having trouble germinating seeds either had bad seeds or was doing something wrong. Seed size was not the reason for their troubles.

cherrybobeddie said:

On a recent GrowCast podcast a woman named Mary Beth Sanchez was talking with the host, Jordan River, about the trouble she had germinating seeds last year. Jordan agreed with her that some seed purveyors seem to be harvesting seeds too early. This manifests itself in seeds that are small and not real viable. I had great difficulty getting seeds to germinate last spring. I remember looking at some of the seeds and thinking they were on the small side. Is this a problem others are having?

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The process of feminizing seeds makes them smaller. Seeds made at home, or seeds that are regular (male/female) will always be larger than feminized seeds you buy from your seed supplier. That being said, look at the colour; light coloured seeds are likely immature.

xtsho said:

Harvesting seeds too early will affect germination but the seed size will not. Some seeds are small and will not get bigger no matter how long you wait to harvest them. I have found that sativa strains will have smaller seeds than an indica strain that can have large seed and that hybrids of both can go either way. I wouldn't pay any attention to anyone saying seed size is the reason for poor germination. Poor germination can come from harvesting too early but seed size does not affect germination. A viable seed is a viable seed regardless of the size.

The individual having trouble germinating seeds either had bad seeds or was doing something wrong. Seed size was not the reason for their troubles.

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100% agree with this. Germinating seeds is an art form. It can take years to really get a method going that works for you every time. Seed size is not generally a factor in how viable they will be.

I received some dinafem ocean grown cookies seeds recently. The seeds are tiny, like as small as tomato seeds almost. They all germed really quickly. As others have mentioned, the color of the bean matters most. Dark woody brown with tiger stripes usually means they’re fully mature

All small seeds are male and typically have problems sprouting.

The tiniest seed can produce a huge plant. It's just starting material.

xtsho said:

Harvesting seeds too early will affect germination but the seed size will not. Some seeds are small and will not get bigger no matter how long you wait to harvest them. I have found that sativa strains will have smaller seeds than an indica strain that can have large seed and that hybrids of both can go either way. I wouldn't pay any attention to anyone saying seed size is the reason for poor germination. Poor germination can come from harvesting too early but seed size does not affect germination. A viable seed is a viable seed regardless of the size.

The individual having trouble germinating seeds either had bad seeds or was doing something wrong. Seed size was not the reason for their troubles.

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Spot on. I agree with xtsho. Some varieties have small seeds no mater what. You can get all sorts of colours from black to a tan colour. Seeds that are white or green or have soft shells no mater if big or small are immature. There are quite afew so called breeders that only let the seeds ripen 4-6 weeks from pollination on a plant wich isnt really ideal. Really it can take from 6 weeks and upwards and the best are usually those that are picked when the plant starts to pop them out its self. Once picked they usually arnt immediately useable and if tried will probably give very low germination rates. They need to be properly dried and cured for about a month to get good seed. Also size shape and colour is not really a indicator of the sex of the seed thats a myth.

twentyeight.threefive said:

All small seeds are male and typically have problems sprouting.

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Sorry but this isn’t true at all.

Homegrown Hero said:

Sorry but this isn’t true at all.

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Unless they have stripes, then they are female.

twentyeight.threefive said:

Unless they have stripes, then they are female.

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Did you know in some seeds if you polish them some of the markings come off. Would that mean the seed would suddenly become male. This is a genuine question, were did you learn this information about male seeds being small and hard to germinate and female seeds only having stripes ?

TheWholeTruth said:

Did you know in some seeds if you polish them some of the markings come off. Would that mean the seed would suddenly become male. This is a genuine question, were did you learn this information about male seeds being small and hard to germinate and female seeds only having stripes ?

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Hes blowing smoke up your ass

That's not true, seed size means nothing,just a reflection of the strain it came from

TheWholeTruth said:

Did you know in some seeds if you polish them some of the markings come off. Would that mean the seed would suddenly become male. This is a genuine question, were did you learn this information about male seeds being small and hard to germinate and female seeds only having stripes ?

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Yes if the seed loses it's strips then it will grow out to be a male. Saw it online somewhere, if I find it I'll link it.

BobThe420Builder said:

Hes blowing smoke up your ass

That's not true, seed size means nothing,just a reflection of the strain it came from

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Yes I agree, but people who dont know start believing in nonsense like that wich is why its a bit silly to repeat it especially when you know its not true. You'll end up getting afew kids following the method and wasting a month or two only to realize it hasnt worked, then may even try again.

TheWholeTruth said:

Yes I agree, but people who dont know start believing in nonsense like that wich is why its a bit silly to repeat it especially when you know its not true. You'll end up getting afew kids following the method and wasting a month or two only to realize it hasnt worked, then may even try again.

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That could be true but the fact is those kids as you call them need to waste their time so they can learn the simple lesson of don't just blindly follow someone's advice. Never just read a comment and run out and do it, information must be vetted before it is acted upon.