Why arnt my seeds germinating?

HughDunit

Active Member
I am really frustrated atm. I spent a fortune on seeds late last year from Herbies. La diva, Think Different, Blue Mammoth etc. I ended up buying a shitload and spending over 300 bucks. Now i have successfully grown both autos and phenos and never had a problem with germinating. I grow in terra canna these days.

But in the last 2 months i have had rotten luck, only 2 of the 30 seeds i have tried to germinate have grown andeven then the growth is tiny. I am running 400W HPS.

Most of my seeds pop but then they die! I leave them be in my propergator for 24-48 hours after i remove them from the cup of distilled water i put them in. I mean you see the tap root and the seed wants to open up...then bang dead seed. I have done everything, did the seed in a cup, paper towel, coir pellates, straight to the soil they will be growing etc. Nothing..it all ends in the same way. I am using distilled water and i even ph'd some tap water at ph of 6..and still the same result..tap root is fine i get excited and then 3 days later dead seed.

What the fuck i am doing wrong? Is it that Herbies seeds are just utter shit? The seeds i bought before this lot all germinated and they were from dope-seeds. I used altitude a few times but i found dope-seeds more consistent and a tad cheaper.

The thing that shits me the most is that the seeds are so fucken damn expensive, like every seed that died was like throwing 16-20 bucks in the bin. I am from Australia so after the conversion from pound they are bloody pricey.

I am gobsmacked..really i am and dont know what to do, any advice? Don't order from herbies and just stick to the vendors that worked?
 

ShibaSpeak

Active Member
You said you bought them last year? I know they have a shelf life could they have gone bad.

From everything else Id also guess your 400 watt might be too powerful for them. I go from fluorescent to T5 to MH.
 

HughDunit

Active Member
I should clarify that i put them under sunlight after a few days in my propagator and no lights until i see the first leaves form then they go into my grow tent with the HPS, i have had done this since my first grow with success.

The seeds were also bought november 2012 and i have them stored in a dry dark box.

So dam frustrating!
 

un named

Active Member
How long is shelf life after buying them? because i thought they can last atleast 5 years if sealed in a nice cool dark place?

And funny you say this im from australia to and have got one seed to germ and has now got its true leaves the seed was barneys farm phatt fruity. i tryed to germ 5 seeds which was sensi seeds northen lights x haze and they are 134 for a 5 pack! and only one got a root poped up and the first two leaves just stayed curled up till this day but is still greenish? seeds are so overpriced its stupid
 

HughDunit

Active Member
use the paper towel way.. youre just not a cup of water guy lol
haha i use the paper towel method. They pop and i see the tap root. Then i plant them in the medium i am using and after a few days I see them pop through the soil but then it just stops and dies. Is just been this whole batch i bought.

The two i have had success with the seed shell took a while to drop off. Wheres in the past they fell of within a day.
 

HughDunit

Active Member
How long is shelf life after buying them? because i thought they can last atleast 5 years if sealed in a nice cool dark place?

And funny you say this im from australia to and have got one seed to germ and has now got its true leaves the seed was barneys farm phatt fruity. i tryed to germ 5 seeds which was sensi seeds northen lights x haze and they are 134 for a 5 pack! and only one got a root poped up and the first two leaves just stayed curled up till this day but is still greenish? seeds are so overpriced its stupid
It's such a massive rort IMHO. And then they put that fucken disclaimer about not being able to offer an assistance cause it's you know against the law to sell seeds. They have worked it out well.

I think i am going to try the phenos i bought last year like white russian, crazy miss hyde and use the colloidal silver i bought at the hydro shop and just do a run of breeding so i dont have to line the pockets of some seed bank in england. The missers is thinking i should go back to buying cured stuff as it seems to be cheaper..and i kind agree with the price hikes in electricity and the cost of good growing medium and nutes.
 

Sincerely420

New Member
100% here with the wet paper towel method lad.
It's your medium that's off from what it sounds like.
That and/or you source of water. Those are the only things I could think of that would be hindering you.

Per the Wet PT Method...
-Get a quality paper towel and fold it a couple times so there are layers to it.
-Sit it on a plate(folded)and wet it just enough so that the whole paper towel is wet, but not dripping wet.
-Open the paper towel up and put the seed in the middle. Then close it up seed inside.
-Get your ziplock bag ready by putting the wet paper towel in it, and the blowing some air into it before you seal it up.

Presto.. <-If you're doing this you'll get a taproot. Anything happening passed that is a prob with you water or the medium.

You can also pull the stuck seed shells off the cotyledons if they need help busting out. I've done it without a prob.
Good luck mate :joint:
 

HughDunit

Active Member
100% here with the wet paper towel method lad.
It's your medium that's off from what it sounds like.
That and/or you source of water. Those are the only things I could think of that would be hindering you.

Per the Wet PT Method...
-Get a quality paper towel and fold it a couple times so there are layers to it.
-Sit it on a plate(folded)and wet it just enough so that the whole paper towel is wet, but not dripping wet.
-Open the paper towel up and put the seed in the middle. Then close it up seed inside.
-Get your ziplock bag ready by putting the wet paper towel in it, and the blowing some air into it before you seal it up.

Presto.. <-If you're doing this you'll get a taproot. Anything happening passed that is a prob with you water or the medium.

You can also pull the stuck seed shells off the cotyledons if they need help busting out. I've done it without a prob.
Good luck mate :joint:
I have success getting the taproot. It's the next stage when i plant it. I prepare my soil with ph water, i have it at 6. I also lighty spray the soil after i plant them and the first week let just water them lightly. Usually within a day i see action and smooth sailing from there. I ahve grown ak47, jack, white russian, dr feelgood, nyc disel ryder, cristal storm and miss hyde with success. Currently chilled on the dr feelgood. :joint:

I used the same methods i have been using the last few grows and were a success hence why i did a big order. These are all autos btw.

But my babies are dying. I suspect its my water, i live in a regional town.

Thanks for the reply. :joint:
 

Sincerely420

New Member
Yes sir! You def. don't wanna do ANY feeding of ANY SORT until I'd say halfway thru week 2. And then you wanna go EXTRA LIGHT on anything.
The first week don't water them daily. Spray them around the stem whenever you're around them just to get tht top layer of soil moist.
The soil that you plant the seed in (after you've gotten the taproot to emerge) should be already damn but not sopping wet. Maybe water it the night before. That's what I do.

And I don't give a goof watering until the seedlings start on their second sets of true leaves.

I can't think of anything else I do bro...But those steps..Maybe it'd help to say I let my water sit out for like 5 days before I use it too.
That helps evaporate cholorine and chloromine. Seedlings can't handle to much of either of these chemicals so they say.
And I put mine under 18/6 light as soon as I drop it in the soil..

Think thats it tho. You've done all those things then it's DEF. the water. :joint:
 

*BUDS

Well-Known Member
Throw away the propogater and the cup of water, your drenching the embryo and rotting it in the mega humid chamber. Germinate the seeds in jiffy pellets or rw cubes , when the sprout surfaces reduce watering and no humidity domes, this way you will get around 90% which is better than your disgraceful strike rate you have now..
 
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Boooman

Member
If you spent that much on seeds, you should really get a germination-heat mat to keep ideal temps while germinating! I experienced the same results until I forked out the dough for a mat and I'm glad I did, about 90 percent successful now instead of 10 percent with no mat, not to mention cuttings root a week earlier! Also never touch with fingers! Good luck mate!
 

DST

Well-Known Member
Agree, you need to be careful with rhizotonic, I stopped using it as well a good while ago. I think Buds hit the nail on the head. Too much humidity is going to rot them.

Other than that, change your medium, this is the stage you seem to be failing at. So first thing to change up would be that. Good luck.

And p.s not all bean banks are pricey;)
 

srh88

Well-Known Member
dont use ANY nutes at this point man lol, just whatevers in the soil.. that little baby will let you know when shes hungry..
its like trying to put gas in an already full tank... also i let my taproot get about 1/4"b4 i plant
 
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