Posted by zxcvbob on March 29, 2011, 1:56 am
I have some very old pepper seeds that I'm trying to grow mostly for
a seed crop to keep the variety going. I've planted them twice
already; I put them in a damp paper towel on a heated bathroom
floor, and they germinate *very* quickly. But they are weak, and
when I move them to a little flat of seedling mix they die almost
immediately. I'm not sure if they can't push through the dirt, or
if they can't get out of the seed coat, but I think it's the former.
The fresh seeds (a different variety) that I handled the same way 2
weeks ago are vigorous young plants and ready to be transplanted to
individual pots already.
How about starting some in sterile gelatin? (I have enough seeds to
try this 2 or 3 more times if necessary) Would that work? Or
agar-agar from the Chinese market? I could put them under the
growlights a lot sooner that way too -- they would receive light as
soon as they sprout, even while under the surface of the gel.
What do you think? If it works, it might be an easier way to plant
begonia seeds, etc.
I've also heard of treating hard-to-grow seeds with potassium
nitrate, but I'm not sure what that's for. Fertilizer, I suppose.
Maybe I should put one or two drops of KNO3 solution on the wet
paper towel before this current batch dies...
-Bob
Posted by Brooklyn1 on March 29, 2011, 9:14 am
wrote:
>I have some very old pepper seeds that I'm trying to grow mostly for
>a seed crop to keep the variety going. I've planted them twice
>already; I put them in a damp paper towel on a heated bathroom
>floor, and they germinate *very* quickly. But they are weak, and
>when I move them to a little flat of seedling mix they die almost
>immediately. I'm not sure if they can't push through the dirt, or
>if they can't get out of the seed coat, but I think it's the former.
>The fresh seeds (a different variety) that I handled the same way 2
>weeks ago are vigorous young plants and ready to be transplanted to
>individual pots already.
>How about starting some in sterile gelatin? (I have enough seeds to
>try this 2 or 3 more times if necessary) Would that work? Or
>agar-agar from the Chinese market? I could put them under the
>growlights a lot sooner that way too -- they would receive light as
>soon as they sprout, even while under the surface of the gel.
>What do you think? If it works, it might be an easier way to plant
>begonia seeds, etc.
>I've also heard of treating hard-to-grow seeds with potassium
>nitrate, but I'm not sure what that's for. Fertilizer, I suppose.
>Maybe I should put one or two drops of KNO3 solution on the wet
>paper towel before this current batch dies...
What do you mean by "very old"? Sounds like those old seeds have been
damaged by improper storage.
Posted by zxcvbob on March 29, 2011, 11:27 am
Brooklyn1 wrote:
> wrote:
>
>> I have some very old pepper seeds that I'm trying to grow mostly for
>> a seed crop to keep the variety going. I've planted them twice
>> already; I put them in a damp paper towel on a heated bathroom
>> floor, and they germinate *very* quickly. But they are weak, and
>> when I move them to a little flat of seedling mix they die almost
>> immediately. I'm not sure if they can't push through the dirt, or
>> if they can't get out of the seed coat, but I think it's the former.
>>
>> The fresh seeds (a different variety) that I handled the same way 2
>> weeks ago are vigorous young plants and ready to be transplanted to
>> individual pots already.
>>
>> How about starting some in sterile gelatin? (I have enough seeds to
>> try this 2 or 3 more times if necessary) Would that work? Or
>> agar-agar from the Chinese market? I could put them under the
>> growlights a lot sooner that way too -- they would receive light as
>> soon as they sprout, even while under the surface of the gel.
>>
>> What do you think? If it works, it might be an easier way to plant
>> begonia seeds, etc.
>>
>> I've also heard of treating hard-to-grow seeds with potassium
>> nitrate, but I'm not sure what that's for. Fertilizer, I suppose.
>> Maybe I should put one or two drops of KNO3 solution on the wet
>> paper towel before this current batch dies...
>
>
> What do you mean by "very old"? Sounds like those old seeds have been
> damaged by improper storage.
They've been stored just fine, but they are 9 years old. Five years
is about the limit for pepper and tomato seeds. (Onion seeds are only
good for 1 year.) I had some fresher seeds of this variety 2 years
ago and planted them for a seed crop and had a total crop failure due
to rabbits and poor weather. I found this other packet from 2002 over
the winter.
-Bob
Posted by Boron Elgar on March 29, 2011, 3:05 pm
wrote:
>They've been stored just fine, but they are 9 years old. Five years
>is about the limit for pepper and tomato seeds. (Onion seeds are only
>good for 1 year.) I had some fresher seeds of this variety 2 years
>ago and planted them for a seed crop and had a total crop failure due
>to rabbits and poor weather. I found this other packet from 2002 over
>the winter.
>-Bob
Have you tried putting a couple directly into potting medium? I find
that can sometimes help propagate & keep alive seedlings that would
otherwise go into shock from being transplanted.
I am a collector of seeds, myself, and try all sorts of workarounds
this time of year.
Boron
Posted by Gunner on March 29, 2011, 1:25 pm
> I have some very old pepper seeds that I'm trying to grow mostly for
> a seed crop to keep the variety going. I've planted them twice
> already; I put them in a damp paper towel on a heated bathroom
> floor, and they germinate *very* quickly. But they are weak, and
> when I move them to a little flat of seedling mix they die almost
> immediately. I'm not sure if they can't push through the dirt, or
> if they can't get out of the seed coat, but I think it's the former.
> The fresh seeds (a different variety) that I handled the same way 2
> weeks ago are vigorous young plants and ready to be transplanted to
> individual pots already.
> How about starting some in sterile gelatin? (I have enough seeds to
> try this 2 or 3 more times if necessary) Would that work? Or
> agar-agar from the Chinese market? I could put them under the
> growlights a lot sooner that way too -- they would receive light as
> soon as they sprout, even while under the surface of the gel.
> What do you think? If it works, it might be an easier way to plant
> begonia seeds, etc.
> I've also heard of treating hard-to-grow seeds with potassium
> nitrate, but I'm not sure what that's for. Fertilizer, I suppose.
> Maybe I should put one or two drops of KNO3 solution on the wet
> paper towel before this current batch dies...
> -Bob
Don't know if this info (OTHER AREAS FOR RESEARCH, pg 4-5) would help
your decision Bob but if you D/L the Deno reference PDF file from
USDA archives just know it takes a while as will the 2 supplements to
it.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/49881480/Gibberellic-Acid-3-GA-3
XML site map
>a seed crop to keep the variety going. I've planted them twice
>already; I put them in a damp paper towel on a heated bathroom
>floor, and they germinate *very* quickly. But they are weak, and
>when I move them to a little flat of seedling mix they die almost
>immediately. I'm not sure if they can't push through the dirt, or
>if they can't get out of the seed coat, but I think it's the former.
>The fresh seeds (a different variety) that I handled the same way 2
>weeks ago are vigorous young plants and ready to be transplanted to
>individual pots already.
>How about starting some in sterile gelatin? (I have enough seeds to
>try this 2 or 3 more times if necessary) Would that work? Or
>agar-agar from the Chinese market? I could put them under the
>growlights a lot sooner that way too -- they would receive light as
>soon as they sprout, even while under the surface of the gel.
>What do you think? If it works, it might be an easier way to plant
>begonia seeds, etc.
>I've also heard of treating hard-to-grow seeds with potassium
>nitrate, but I'm not sure what that's for. Fertilizer, I suppose.
>Maybe I should put one or two drops of KNO3 solution on the wet
>paper towel before this current batch dies...