Some things to remember when planting seeds

By Melanie Mathieson
Gardening Guru

Starting plants from seed is a fairly easy task but a review of seed science 101 will help to ensure success and keep your work to a minimum. It may offer an answer to why those seeds didn’t germinate a few years ago. Follow the tips below when starting any plant from seed and you will get great results.

Seed Viability – do you have some seeds saved from a few years ago? There are a few ways of testing whether they will germinate. Pour the packet of seeds into a luke-warm glass of water. The seeds that sink to the bottom of the glass have a good chance of germinating. Those that float on the surface of the water are dead and should be discarded. Discard all of the floating seeds and then pour the water thorough a strainer to recover the viable seed. This seed can be planted when damp but if waiting a few days before planting make sure that you dry the seed thoroughly before storing until needed in order to prevent mould. Another method of determining seed viability is to perform a viability test by scattering about 30 seeds over a damp paper towel, top with another damp paper towel. Either place the towels in a tray, keeping the towels moist, or place in a zip-top plastic bag and seal. The towels should be moist at all times but not soaking wet. Use a mist spray bottle to keep moist. After a few days check to see if the seeds have sprouted. Count the total and determine the percentage of seeds that have sprouted. This will help you to determine how much seed to plant in order to get a good crop. You can use the seeds that have germinated by planting directly into potting mix or the garden, if you wish. This is also a good technique to use if you have a few seeds left in a packet. Start them on the moist paper towels and then transplant when they sprout so you do not lose any of the seed. Make sure you use tweezers to handle these small sprouts and handle with great care when placing in the potting mix or place gently in your planting bed.

Hybrid Species – if you have saved seed from a spectacular plant that you had in the garden last year remember that hybridized seed in most cases will not produce the hybridized plant that you collected the seed from. Hybrid plants are crosses between other plants and the seed that develops from the hybridized plant often has the dominate characteristics from one of the plants used in the cross. Also many times the seed produced by hybrid species is sterile. To avoid disappointment make sure you follow the paper towel germination technique to sprout the seeds first and then transplant. These seeds will still produce flowers or vegetables but they will produce a variation of the original plant. This can be a fun exercise if you like garden surprises. Just make sure you mark them well in the garden so you know what to expect come harvest time.

Cozy Spot for Germinating Seeds – many seeds will germinate faster if the soil they are in is warmed from the bottom. Until the seedlings have grown upright and have the first signs of leaves place the tray in a warm spot. The top of the fridge or the water heater is a great place for this. Just make sure you do not cut off the air circulation to the back of the fridge or around the fan on the water heater. Some gardeners place a heating pad in the bottom of wooden tray (set to low for a few hours at a time) and then place the tray of seedlings on top. With many homes having radiant floor heating today, the trays can get warmth from below when set right on the floor.

Stratification - some seeds need a dormant cold treatment before they will sprout. This process is called stratification. Check the instructions on your seed packet as the stratification period can vary from a few weeks to a few months. For those that are only a few weeks you still have time to pop them in your freezer until spring thaw. Place the seed packets inside a plastic bag, seal and pop in the freezer until planting time. You may want to mark your calendar with a reminder so you don’t forget them. You can also plant these seeds in a tray with a moist mixture of 50% peat moss and 50% sand, place try in a plastic bag, seal and then place in the freezer for the required time. If you have some seeds that require months of stratification you can store them in the freezer until next spring or save them until fall and sow directly in the soil in mid-October and let mother nature do the stratification for you. Mark this area well so you don’t mistake these seedlings for weeds early next spring. (Seeds that need stratification; bells of Ireland, bleeding heart, columbine, most evergreen trees, many shrub species, cotoneaster, daylily, euonymous, juniper, hellebore, lavender, lupines, peony, phlox, primula, trillium, viola; NOTE: the seeds only need cold treatment not small plants you may purchase)

Scarification – some seeds have a very heavy, hard seed coat that needs to be penetrated before they can germinate. This process is called scarification. You can scarify large seeds by making a weak or thin spot in the seed coat, by nicking the seed coat gently with a knife or rubbing a spot with a nail file, emery board or fine sandpaper. Where you treat the seed will be where the sprout will break through the seed coat. For a less labour intensive treatment or a great way to treat small seeds soak the seeds for twenty-four hours in hot water ( 190oF water temperature at a 6:1 water to seed ratio). Seeds that benefit from scarification are; apples, beets, beans (all varieties), canna lily, carrots, celery, impatiens, lupins, morning glory, sweet peas, pansy, peas, parsley, fruit trees whose seed is a pit, trees or shrubs whose seed is a nut.

Deterring Bacteria and Fungus – many seedlings fail because of infection from microscopic bacteria or fungus. To minimize seedling failure treat all seeds with a hot water bath (75oF) for 30 minutes before planting. You can also buy a commercial fungicide (ex. captan) that you can apply to seeds before planting. This will help to prevent soil moulds and bacteria as well as damping off in your seedlings.

Starting plants from seeds for transplanting at a later date or sowing directly into your garden is a great way to save money. Following these tips will help to ensure that the plants that you sow from seed get off to the right start and you only have to do it once, which will keep you on budget and on transplanting schedule.