Seed soaking solution

Smantha, I use it consistently for watering or spritzing any seedlings and then every other time for watering until they are large enough to transplant. Even then I keep an eye on them and if I lose one, I start the HP solution again.

Possum_Eater.

Since I rely on the other great answers from these great people. I can only touch on why you are still up. And that would be your addiction to Daves Garden and the wonderful people (friends) here. And the adiction to learn more and more to grow more and more and more and more.

Atleast that speaks for me.

Don't you love this place?
I do.
Sandy

Sandy,

Yep DG rocks! Certainly worth the 15 clams to support the site.

Joseph

I just bought some "Seed Sprout" from Select Seeds to play with! Oh boy!

What is seed sprout?

It's pre-mixed GA that you soak your hard to start seeds in to get them to germinate. Here's a link:

http://www.selectseeds.com/cgi-bin/htmlos.cgi/02195.4.4812064715216990722

Joseph

oops it doesn't have GA I just read the description on www.megagrow.com sorry.

Cool !!! They have something to start roses in on the site too.I'm working on both seeds and cuttings this year.
Thanks,Jody

LOL I just learned from the VP of the manufacturing company of Seed Sprout that there is a small amount of GA-3 in the gel. I got lucky LOL.

you lost me; what's ga-3?

There's some kind of chemical I saw that improves germination.... now I just have to remember where I saw it..

gibberellic acid?

darius,smarty pants,lol.
now what does it mean,can I buy it?

All there is on Gibberielic Acid in Plant Terms is it's a crystaline acid used for the malting of barley.
Darius was that your answer, or a question of possibility from you.

No, that was my answer even though I misspelled it (Gibberiellic Acid), just didn't want to look like a "smarty pants" LOL.

It's certainly not for the average gardener, and I wouldn't even attempt it. However, here are few websites to check out. The third one is a Science Project using GA3.

http://www.crfg.org/tidbits/gibberellic.html
http://www.megagro.com/gibberellic-acid/gibberellic-acid.html
http://www.all-science-fair-projects.com/science_fair_projects/50/650/15cb8cf69ab20ab4a016d6fa733d77ca.html

Darius, this whole unfolding of these post have been a hoot to me, cause I started out to ask you the question, while double checking sources, someone else did. You answered, lol, now we're getting the real down skinny on GA3. Thanks

It's getting to deep for me.lol.Jody

Yes, the second site sells it and aqua rocks. I'm curious about both, but financially challenged right now.

Yes, GIBBERELLIC ACID. I just remembered where I saw it and went back to check. They sell em in kits. Kind of pricey though, 17 bucks.

I didn't read the whole page b/c I get bored easily, but won't your hydrogen peroxide solution basically do the same thing? Break down substances that inhibit germination, and prevent deseases and fungus. Or is there something else that I missed?

GIBBERELLIC ACID is like giving growth hormones to horses. I knew a breder once who ruined a $10,000 horse because of too much, too fast.

I think there was some discusssion on here a couple of years ago... has anyone interested in GA done a DG forum search for GA?

Here's one with 307 post
http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/414428/

Sidney, I didn't bother to seek out old posts because using GA doesn't interest me. Thanks for doing it for newcomers, though.

Well, I was curious myself. I have QVC's Spray-N-Grow and wonder what it is. I have a 40" tall impatient just blooming away, and many of my supposed to be 18" - 24" Coleus were 30"+.
I'm just curious about all this. Sidney

Sidney, I DO believe that some commercial products that contain a bit of GA are fine, I'm just opposed to messing with straight GA myself and trying to figure what's an appropriate amount. Horse of a different color, LOL.

Yep.

I'll let you know how it works on my Thunbergia fragrans. It's a difficult one for me to germinate.

thought this thread could use a "bump" with all its useful information on seed starting

I'm trying to decide between the H2O2 or kelp solution for some daylily seeds and other seeds. Anyone tried both of these and compared?

I only soak the harder shelled seeds like daylily seeds. With daylily seeds you can keep them in peroxide water, changing daily, until the white tails come out. I call them spermies at that point, cause they actually look like lil sperm cells when the white tails come out. Anyway i got off topic here ...lol

I take 1 cup peroxide( 3%) to 4 cups H2O, pour that together into in a 2 liter bottle and store it in a dark/ cool place. I then take small cups like yogurt cups or small butter containers or anything small i can get my hands on that holds water .... lol
Place my seeds inside the cup, label what is it the cup then pour my mixture into the cup, half way. I keep them then on top my fridge, on the TV or someplace with heat to provide bottom heating but air circulation. After a few days i usually see spermies in each cup .... i then plant the spermies and go from there!!!

I have had seeds, daylily, sitting in this mix, changing daily, for over a month already with sowing success ..... but this might not work for everyone i hear!! Try it and see what is best.

hyer- do you give the daylily seeds a cold treatment first?

yes i do for at least 6 - 8 weeks first. The best time to start germing daylily plants is now so mine now have been in the fridge since summer of 08 ... should be ready to grow!!

I would love to tag this so can refer back to it. How do I tag this please? When I "watch" thread, it disappears unless someone comments back on it - HELP :)

I recently read that adding the gibberellic acid to the soaking water can speed up the flowering. http://www.crfg.org/tidbits/gibberellic.html Has anyone compared this yet?
Right now I'm doing an experiment comparing water soak and H2O2 soak in dogwoods, Jap. maples, and daylilies. It will be interesting how it goes. I didn't use food grade peroxide, though, so I'm gambling on the stabilizers not affecting germination. I've had mixed results with just the water the past few years, so I'm branching out.

Here is a website that tell all about G. acid. Also sell seeds very reasonable and germination info.

http://www.jlhudsonseeds.net/GibberellicAcid.htm

Interesting page, thanks! makes me wish I had my GA before I started soaking some of my seeds. I could have tried some of that in addition to the different soaks, etc. It's been hard to find info on the strength required for some of the tree seeds I want to try. Then there is the whole question about whether to soak them before warm strat, between warm and cold strat, or after cold strat. I didn't even know that was an issue. Sigh. Too many questions, not enough answers.

Since my last posting on Feb 22, I have tested some forgotten perennial seeds from 2004. I usually sow in my coldframe, but it is full and I was not sure if these old seeds were any good.

Boy, was I surprised!!

I used the moist kitchen paper towel method, then inserted each into a ziplock baggie. Some went into my refrigerator for stratification, other on top of my refrigerator where it is warmest. I used no GA or anything else to encourage germination.

My biggest surprise was Hibiscus moscheutos. I nicked, soaked overnight, the placed the seed in moist paper towel on March 1, 09. I checked the seeds tonight and in 2 days this is what I found. See photo. I tried to sow this variety from the same package of seeds in sowing mix when I purchased them from Parks in 2004. That resulted in one germinated seed.

Those are not the only seeds I have germinated with this method. Helianthus, Swamp Weed, Datura, and others have germinated with the same method.

Proves that seeds don't have to be fresh to germinate. Also a great method for getting as many, or less, plants that you need without oversowing.

Caption: Hibiscus seeds 2 days after plancement in paper towel. Now transferred to a flat.

Here is my seed flat of Helianthus maximillian that sprouted using the the moist paper towel method then planted in a seed flat. Some have not broken the soil yet. These were not old seeds.

This message was edited Mar 4, 2009 1:59 AM