Trying something new..rapid rooters

The only other time I used rapid rooters was for clones but now I’m trying to completely cut out using coco in my growing. So all my new mothers I want them to start from seed with rapid rooters. Anyone here put their popped seeds in rapid rooters and started their seedlings in a flood in drain hydroton cup setup?

I’m looking for advice on the process y’all had success with it. I have 50 seeds that’s about ready to go into the rooters now

i start my beans in RR's in a small aero unit. once they get a decent set of roots, into the waterfarms they go

but i start my tomato and other veggie seeds in RR's in ice cube trays. then into dirt

keep them covered until they sprout. then uncover, re-orient some seeds that have tap root going up not down, and let nature do the rest.

I been using rapid rooters for cloning for over 15 years. I rarely have a cutting that doesn't root. I love them. The root riot plugs don't work as good, so I avoid those.

If I start seeds I do the paper towel method then I split the rapid rooter down the middle, put the sprout in with the tap root down, close the rapid rooter up around it and then put a piece of twist tie around it to hold the rapid rooter back together. Works like a charm.

I've been starting seeds in rapid rooters for decades.
I don't pre-germinate.........just put it in the hole.

I just started some seeds in them, two popped in 2 days, fingers crossed on the other two. They are great if you don't over saturate them-there is some bad advice floating around that you should let them sit in water---NO! I don't use a humidity dome with seeds but I do with clones. I have to water them about 3 times per day, just a little each time to keep them sponge moist. They are harder to overwater by hand than soil which is why so many people start in them-they are very airy. My best advice besides that is to keep them warm, 78-80 is perfect. I start mine under t5s for the warmth, heat mats are fine too if you have a thermostat, but always keep an eye on the temperature at seed level. I have a cheap but accurate temp probe that I stick into a moist rapid rooter so I know exactly the seed temp. Also, I soak the cubes for a few hours before putting in the seeds, in ph adjusted water with added fulvic acid (ful power) and Kelp to aid in germination. GOOD LUCK FRIEND!

Rurumo said:

I don't use a humidity dome with seeds but I do with clones.

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Agreed. Keeping them too humid when they are young can cause damping off and it makes them sensitive to lower RH% thus they need to be hardened before you can totally ditch the dome.

Rurumo said:

My best advice besides that is to keep them warm, 78-80 is perfect.

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Agreed. This speeds germination and root development. When I start seeds in paper towels in a zip loc I set it on top of the refrigerator where it stays warm. Once they pop I put them in rapid rooters and set them in the grow room under indirect lighting.

So much great advice, do y’all think I should keep them in trays untill they start getting some solid roots or they would be ok to go in cups filled with hydroton. I’m talking about after germ stage and before second set of leaves.

I always use a RR when I grow from seed.
Clones get stuck in 1" rockwool cubes.
They always work for me.

They definitely work but I don't like growing the little sprouts in them. My germination success rate is just as good with them but it seems like I cant get sprouts to take off as fast for some reason when I use RR's. I just stick to my tried and true paper towel germination and the straight to soil/coco.

I'm with @MickFoster . I just put my seed in the hole.

All kidding aside, Rapid Rooter's are great. No need to mess with anything else. The quality of your seeds will determine how fast they sprout. I've had 6/6 pop in 24 hours and I've had 1-2 day over the course of three days.

Most if not all of the germination methods you've read in this forum and other places on the 'net work. It's up to you.

What do y’all think of final potting from the rapid rooters, I have them in cups now, I wanted to be able to put them on the flood table but they instantly started floating lol..I would have them in 1 gallon pots any extra moms I would move them to a bigger pot.

budman410 said:

What do y’all think of final potting from the rapid rooters

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not sure what you are asking?

if things are growing correctly, you'll have roots out the rapid rooter that you don't want to mess with after week 1. transfer once.

rkymtnman said:

not sure what you are asking?

if things are growing correctly, you'll have roots out the rapid rooter that you don't want to mess with after week 1. transfer once.

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That’s exactly what I was asking, I have my seedlings at my old house rn so I can’t check on them multiple times a day. Took 2 days to get the temp right in the room..was getting to hot..I can tough it out for a week.

Is rapid rooter good for autoflowers? Or would this be recommended for Photoplants?

peterk426 said:

Is rapid rooter good for autoflowers? Or would this be recommended for Photoplants?

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Rapid Rooters work well for plants. Try Rapid Rooters, paper towel, shotglass, direct seed. Then you can decide what works best for you. What's the worst that can happen - You lose a couple of seeds?

lost so many beans to properly soaked rockwool cubes that I now just put them into RR and wait. I honestly think im in the 90% success rate with RR. Ive done shot glass, rockwool, matchbox with sandpaper before the shot glass tek.. all that. RR is by far the best.