It's time to germinate some seeds!
So I broke out my germination tray, rapid rooter plugs, heat mat, and thermostat.
I place as many rapid rooter plugs as I need into a solution mixed from R/O Water and H2O2. I leave the plugs to soak overnight. This helps to kill any algea or other "things" which might have gotten a start in the plugs during storage. I used .5 ml / liter of 35% H2O2 for this mixture - I pH adjusted this mixture to 6.0.
I then place the plugs as close together as possible - on one end of the tray (I have never needed to use the whole tray). I go thru and make up whatever name tags I need - this is critical when you are starting seeds like this - or you will quickly become confused.
And here is one of the first changes to my process. The Blue Planet High Yield System includes Root Magic Mycorrhizae Biological Inoculum - and you use this on the seeds before they go into the rapid rooter plugs. So I soaked the seeds for about 10 minutes before planting each one in the RO / H2O2 mixture. I placed a small amount of the Root Magic on a paper towel and dropped each wet seed into the powder. This allowed each seed to become entirely coated with the powder.
I have never paid much attention to the orientation when placing seeds into the plugs. But for this run, I placed all of the seeds with the narrow end up. This is supposed to allow the tap root to get started more quickly.
Here is a picture of the germination tray:
And another angle:
The germination tray is then placed on a heat mat, and the thermostat is set to 75 F. I don't use a humidity dome or anything else. I monitor every day and ensure that the plugs don't completely dry out. But my goal is to allow the plugs to get as dry as possible to prevent mold problems at this stage.
I also don't use a light or anything - the tray is just placed in a dark corner of the grow room. Germinated seeds can last two to three days after sprouting without light - so it is never an issue for me.
These were planted on May 9, 2013. It typically takes anywhere from 3 to 10 days for seeds to germinate for me using this system. When I checked on them this morning - I could see the seed head making it's way out on a couple of the plugs. The Bay 11 will likely be the first out of the plug.
So now it is a waiting game...
So I broke out my germination tray, rapid rooter plugs, heat mat, and thermostat.
I place as many rapid rooter plugs as I need into a solution mixed from R/O Water and H2O2. I leave the plugs to soak overnight. This helps to kill any algea or other "things" which might have gotten a start in the plugs during storage. I used .5 ml / liter of 35% H2O2 for this mixture - I pH adjusted this mixture to 6.0.
I then place the plugs as close together as possible - on one end of the tray (I have never needed to use the whole tray). I go thru and make up whatever name tags I need - this is critical when you are starting seeds like this - or you will quickly become confused.
And here is one of the first changes to my process. The Blue Planet High Yield System includes Root Magic Mycorrhizae Biological Inoculum - and you use this on the seeds before they go into the rapid rooter plugs. So I soaked the seeds for about 10 minutes before planting each one in the RO / H2O2 mixture. I placed a small amount of the Root Magic on a paper towel and dropped each wet seed into the powder. This allowed each seed to become entirely coated with the powder.
I have never paid much attention to the orientation when placing seeds into the plugs. But for this run, I placed all of the seeds with the narrow end up. This is supposed to allow the tap root to get started more quickly.
Here is a picture of the germination tray:
And another angle:
The germination tray is then placed on a heat mat, and the thermostat is set to 75 F. I don't use a humidity dome or anything else. I monitor every day and ensure that the plugs don't completely dry out. But my goal is to allow the plugs to get as dry as possible to prevent mold problems at this stage.
I also don't use a light or anything - the tray is just placed in a dark corner of the grow room. Germinated seeds can last two to three days after sprouting without light - so it is never an issue for me.
These were planted on May 9, 2013. It typically takes anywhere from 3 to 10 days for seeds to germinate for me using this system. When I checked on them this morning - I could see the seed head making it's way out on a couple of the plugs. The Bay 11 will likely be the first out of the plug.
So now it is a waiting game...
