How to Germinate Seeds Faster - Melissa K. Norris

A simple definition of seed germination is when the seed sprouts and begins to grow. Check out my step-by-step seed starting post or this ... Someofthelinksbelowareaffiliatelinks,whichmeansIwillearnacommissionatnoadditionalcosttoyou,ifyouclickthroughandmakeapurchase.Regardless,Ionlylinktoproductsweuseonourhomesteadorbelievein. Ifyoufindyourselfwithorwithoutalonggrowingseason,learninghowtogerminateseedscanbeofbenefittoyou.  Thisstep-by-steptutorialincludestwomoremethodsbeyondusingadamppapertoweltotakelesstimebetweenthedayyouplantandthelong-awaiteddaywhenyou’llbeputtinghomegrownfoodonyourtable.  Whetheryoudirectsowvegetableseedsorstartseedsindoors,youdon’twanttomisslearningthesemethodsandtipsonhowtogerminateseeds! Listenintothefullepisode(#175)ofthePioneeringTodayPodcast,wherewedon’tjustinspireyou,butgiveyoutheclearstepstocreatethehomegrowngarden,pantry,kitchenandlifeyouwantforyourfamilyandhomestead. HowToGetTheMostOutOfYourSummerVegetableGarden Whenyouthinkofabig,summer,vegetablegardenplantedfullofsquash,tomatoes,lettuce,peas,andbeans,yougenerallythinkofallofthosethingsbeingplantedatthesametime.  Wetendtothinkofplantingandgrowingthesecropstogether,andthatleadstowaitinguntilthelastfrostdatehaspassedbeforeputtinganythingintheground.  However,whenyoupracticeseedgerminationandafewothertipslistedbelow,vegetablegardeningcanbetakentoawholenewlevelofsuccess. WhatIsSeedGermination? Asimpledefinitionofseedgerminationiswhentheseedsproutsandbeginstogrow.Checkoutmystep-by-stepseedstartingpostorthisinformationalpostoncoldseedstratificationtolearnmoreaboutthesciencebehindseedgerminationandhowtodoboth. Germinationrateisbasicallythepercentageofseedsthatsproutoutofthetotalnumberofseedsofaspecificcropthatyouplant.Soifyouplant10tomatoseedsandallofthemsprout,thenyouhavea100%germinationrate.  However,ifyouplant10seedsandonlysevenofthemsproutandgrowintoplants,thenthat'sonlya70%germinationrate.Simpleenough,right? WhatDoSeedsNeedToGerminate? Acommonquestionaskedis“Doseedsneedsunlighttogerminate?”Thegerminationprocessactuallyrequiresnosunlight.Itisnotuntilthesproutbreaksthesurfaceandbeginstophotosynthesizethatsunshineisrequired.Therefore,seedsneedjustthreeelementstogerminate. Water–Consistentmoistureallowstheseedtoswellandstartthechemicalprocessbeginningthegrowth.Oxygen–Theseedsneedoxygensotheycanhavetheenergyforgrowth.Temperature–Warmandcooltemperaturesspeedupandslowdownseedgrowth.Thisprocesshelpstobreakdowntheseedcoatingwhichsendsthemessagethatit’stimetostartgrowing. HowLongDoesItTakeForSeedsToGerminate? Asfarasgerminationtimeisconcerned,someseedshavealongergerminationperiodthanothers.Someseedswillgerminatein3-4days,butotherstake10-14days.  Sometimes,wegetinahurry!Whowantstowait10-14daysifyoucanspeeduptheprocessandhavetheseedsgerminatefaster? Ifyouhaveidealconditions,learnhowtogerminateseeds,andhavegoodgerminationrates,you’llbeabletoharvestsooner.You’llalsohavealongergrowingseasonwhichcanmeanmoreproductionandhigheryields. SuppliesNeededforGerminatingSeeds  DirectSowMethod Seeds–Anylargeseedwithathickcoating(suchasbeans,peas,corn,andradishes)willbenefitfromgerminationpriortoplanting.Ittakesthemlongertorehydrateandgerminate.Forreallytinyseedslikecarrotsandlettuce,pre-soakingisunnecessary. Water–Donotexposeseedstoheatthatishigherthan95°F.Soakingseedsallowsthemtofullyrehydratesincetheyaredryfromstorage. CuporTray–Thesizewilldependonhowmanyseedsyouhave.Theywillneedenoughroomtospreadoutinasinglelayer. IndoorSeedlingMethod#1 SeedTray–Atraywithindividualcellshelpstokeeptheseedlingssupportedandseparated. PottingSoil–Welldrainingpottingmixisbestwhenstartingseedsindoors.HeatedSeedMat–Growlightscanalsobeused. IndoorSeedlingMethod#2 PaperTowels–Papertowelswillneedtobemoist,butnotdrippingwet.PlasticBags–Aziptopbagworksbest. HowToGerminateSeeds–TipsForFasterGermination Whendirectsowingvegetableseedsintogardensoil,youwillneedtowaituntilthesoiltemperatureis60°F.  HowtoGerminateSeedsforDirectSowing Soakingseedsbeforeyouplantthemspeedsuptheprocessofbreakingdowntheseedcoatingandallowsthemtogerminatefaster.This,however,isnotarequiredstep.  Theplantedseedswillgerminateinthegardensoilundernaturalcircumstances,butifyouwanttoknowhowtogerminateseedsquickly,thisisit: Placeseedsinacuportrayofwarmwater.(Makesurethewateriswarm,nothot). Soakthemfor8-16hoursrightbeforeplanting.  HowtoGerminateSeedsforIndoorStarts Seedscanbegerminatedinsideinacontrolledenvironment.Dependingonwhatgrowingzoneyoulivein,someplantsNEEDtobestartedindoorsbecausethegrowingseasonisn’tlongenoughtoallowthemtoreachmaturityoutside.  Pepperandtomatoseedsarecommonlysownandgerminatedinside.Twogerminationmethodsare: Method#1 Usingaseedtray,filleachcellwithseed-startingpottingsoilmix.Pressseedsintothesoilandputtheseedtrayonaheatmatorundergrowlights. Method#2 Moistenapapertowelandplaceseedsonhalfofthetowel.Covertheseedswiththeotherhalfofthepapertowel. Placethepapertowelsinsideaplasticbagandkeepitinadarkroomatroomtemperatureuntilyouseesproutingseeds. GerminationTipsToMaximizeHarvest PlantCoolerWeatherCropsEarly–Anotherwaytospeeduptheprocessistoplantcoolerweathercropsearly.Thiswilldependontheoutsidetemperatures,butaslongasyoukeepaneyeonthenight-timetemperature,youcanpushtheenvelopeabitandplantthemearly.Theywillbegrowingandproducingearlierandgivingyoufreshfoodforyourtable.Examplesofplantsthatcangoinearlyarekale,afewlettucevarieties,Brusselsprouts,onionsets,radishes,andsnowpeas.ChecktheWeatherForecast–IknowIknow,theweatherforecastisn'talways100%accurate.Itcanbeatooltohelpknowwhentoplantthosecoolercrops,though.Intheearlyspring,warmandsunnyduringthedaycanmeanclearskiesatnight,whichmeansI'mgoingtobehavingsomefrost.Butthesoiltemperaturewillgetreallywarmduringtheday,whichisperfectforplantingthosecold-weathercrops.Icansoakmyseedsovernightinwarmwaterandthenplantthemoutlateinthemorningwhenthesunisoutwarmingthesoil.Then,onceIplantthem,they'regoingtohavealldayinthatniceheated,warmsoil,andbeabletowithstandafrostduringthenight.CreateWarmPocketsAndMicroclimates–Forseedsthatneedtobedirectlysownintheirpermanentspot,ortogetajumpstartonstartingwarmweatherseedsindoorsandthentransplantingthemoutside,createwarmpocketsandmicroclimatestoencouragegermination.Agreenhouse,hightunnel,orusingrowcoversinthegardenisagreatwaytocreatethisspace. MorePostsYouMightEnjoy WheretoBuyHeirloomSeeds–Heirloom,Hybrid&GMODifferencesColdStratificationofSeeds–Why&HowTheUltimateSeedStartingGuideWhatAretheBestSeedStartingContainersPottingUpSeedlings&HowtoSeparateSeedlingsDirectSowYourGardenSeedHowtoGrowFoodYEARROUNDUsingCovers(Hot&ColdWeather)SeedPacketInformation–HowtoReadSeedPacketsforGardeningSuccess MelissaNorris MelissaK.Norrisinspirespeople'sfaithandpioneerrootswithherbooks,podcast,andblog.MelissaliveswithherhusbandandtwochildrenintheirownlittlehouseinthebigwoodsinthefoothillsoftheNorthCascadeMountains.Whenshe'snotwranglingchickensandcattle,youcanfindherstuffingMasonjarswithhomegrownfoodandplayingwithflourandsugarinthekitchen. ReadmoreaboutMelissa RelatedEpisodes Comments: I’minterestedinyoursite Reply IloveallthatIamreadingforthefirsttimetoday. Ibelieve,thatitisfaiththatsomehowIendeduponyoursite.Ihopetostartreceivingyournewsletter Reply Ihavebeengardeningforalongtimebutthepastfewyearshavenotbeensogreat!Mysuccessratehasbeenprettymuchnothing!IjustreadyourarticleongerminationandIamthinkingthatyoumightbeabletoteachthisolddogsomenewtricks.Thankyouforallyouradviceandtips.Iamgoingtotakeallthisinandprayforabetterharvest.Myproblemisnotthegrowingjusttheharvesting!Myplantsgrowbutitgetssohotdownherethattheyfrybeforetheyproduce.Ihopingforbetterluckthisyear.ThanksMelissa.Happygardening2022!! Reply Leaveusareply:CancelreplyYouremailaddresswillnotbepublished. RecipeRating RecipeRating Signmeupforthenewsletter! Δ 100 shares Facebook 100Pinterest Email [class^="wpforms-"][class^="wpforms-"][class^="wpforms-"][class^="wpforms-"] FYI,weusecookiesonthiswebsite.Ifyou'reokaywiththat,youdon'tneedtodoathing!Justclick"Ok"andkeepbrowsing.Ok