Top tips to start seed off

Need to know the best time to plant?

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Primrose
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Does it help to soak runner and French bean seeds for a few hours before planting them?
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Geoff
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I would say definitely not.
PLUMPUDDING
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I'd say no too, they easily go rotten if they are too wet.
Westi
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Courgettes, leeks & sweetcorn have been pants!

3rd sowing of the courgettes during the week, but pumpkins all germinated. Only the 1st pot of leeks came up, so maybe 20 or so, but weirdly same seed & compost etc in the first 2 pots, but no show in the 2nd pot. 2 out of the 24 sweetcorn sowed have emerged & they were sown 3 weeks ago. The sweetcorn seeds are still in the pots so can't blame mice, not damp, soft or anything, pretty much just how it was when it came out of the packet! Again very strange.
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Monika
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Sally Wright posted some brilliant advice on soaking/sowing bean seeds on 26 March this year under the title "Getting good bean germination" - I printed it off and have followed it successfully. You can find it using the search option.
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Primrose
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Sally's advice repeated here again. I think where I have gone wrong is possibly using water from my water butt to water them , which is very low now and possibly has a concentrated build up of fungus In it.

Re: Getting good bean germination
by sally wright » Sun Mar 26, 2017 6:42 pm

when planting bean seeds (I am assuming the non hardy kinds here) there are one or two things that may increase germination. Open the packets now if they are foil packed. Seed suppliers will over dry beans beyond what is natural for the beans. This is done to make them last longer. The thing is that by the time the bean has absorbed enough water to start growing the fungi in the soil have got a head start on rotting out the seeds. By opening the packets in advance this will allow the beans to take on a little atmospheric moisture and become adjusted so they will be able to germinate at their natural speed. If you forget to do this then you can sow the beans in their pots and just wait 24 hours before watering them in.
Always water seeds with fresh tap water; water borne fungi that will be present in rainwater and stored water are the ones which will do for your beans.
Add some sand to your potting mixture; beans need a lot more drainage than you might think.
Water thoroughly when you have sown them and then wait 2-3 days before you do so again.
Do not expect 100% germination from beans; it ain't gonna happen, so sow at least 10-20% more than you think you will need.
Don't sow too early two to three weeks before planting out is quite soon enough.
Don't sow too deeply; the depth of a short fingernail is quite sufficient.
Try to save your own seed; most beans come true from seed and the advantage of this is that you are using genetic material that has already survived your germination regime once. Remember most seeds we buy to grow here are imported from very different climates.

For sowing direct outdoors, if you have forgotto open the packets early and have only opened them on the day of sowing, water the holes before putting in the beans and backfill with dry soil. Before putting in the beans you can clean the outside of the seeds by soaking for a few minutes in a weak solution of bleach (about one teaspoon for a litre of water should be sufficient) or some liquid fungicide this should be long enough to coat the seeds and prevent the fungi from attacking for a few days. Don't bother with this if they have a coating on them already.

Most of these points can also apply to other large seeded plants such as sweet peas, peas, broad beans, sweetcorn, squash, pumpkins, cucumbers etc. In the case of the squash family (cucurbitacae) I would lay the seeds on the surface of the compost and cover them with a 1cm depth of vermiculite as this allows the seeds to receive light which will aid their germination.

Regards Sally Wright.
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I agree Monika, excellent advice, and the only suggestion for soaking is for a couple of minutes in dilute bleach solution to kill any fungal spores. I wish I'd done this as out of six varieties I've sown the Cosse Violette have all rotted off after germinating and growing a couple of inches. They are all planted in the same deep module tray, have had exactly the same treatment and all the others are growing nicely, so that variety must have been contaminated.
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Pawty
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Hi,

I spoke too soon...... the kale have all died in the cold frame and the sweetcorn have suddenly decided to germinate just after I'd started some swift off ...... the life of an allotmenteer .......

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tigerburnie
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Do you know, I reckon we've got duff seeds this year, I'm having difficulty with some stuff germinating and not all of it's because it's last years seeds either. 2 dozen sweetcorn sown and 1 has germinated...................grrrrrrrrrrrrrr
Been gardening for over 65 years and still learning.
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Overturned , my sweetcorn is exactly the same 24 sown 1 germinated
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Primrose
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I son,t think I'll even bother sowing my sweet corn packet then . I'll just soak it and out it on the bird table ! Having exactly the same non germination problems with courgettes.
As a matter of interest are there any Trading Standards rules re the sale of contents of seed packets? Duff ones can cause a great deal of frustration and disappointment.
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Pa Snip
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It would be difficult to prove that any seed could be alleged to be 'faulty'

I am wondering if some of you may not actually be suffering with a seed problem, is the problem the medium the seed is being sown in.

Do all your seed failures involve the same seed variety from the same seed company, chances of that seems a bit slim.

Mrs S has used a completely different compost mix to usual, a lot of her seeds are failing to germinate.

I am doing my usual topsoil & MP compost mix and so far things are not looking too bad.

I have only just started sowing so my germination success rate could still diminish to the same level as Mrs S.

The danger when people start to believe their own publicity is that they often fall off their own ego.

At least travelling under the guise of the Pa Snip Enterprise gives me an excuse for appearing to be on another planet
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Primrose
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Pa, you have a point about possible seed germination being due to the compost rather than the seed but in my case from the same bag of compost I've had good germination of leeks, kale, tomatoes and cucumbers and poor germination of beans and courgettes. Make that what you will. I suspect many of us get an unlucky batch of something for totally unexplained reasons. One of the things that always gets us coming back the next year, I suspect, to try and up our game.
Westi
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It is a strange year indeed & so glad not just me! I think seed not compost as well Primrose - we live all around the country & don't use the same compost but most of us get our seeds from the same companies. Or are they all letting the Chinese supply them as it's much cheaper - I've regaled you with my French garlic coming from China (not doing too well) - is there other seed being produced there now as well?

I think I might be allowing more of my plants to flower & collecting my own reliable seed if it turns out the seed companies have gone for the cheap (well for them, not us anyway). Maybe KG can assure us?
Westi
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Pa Snip
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It is very difficult to get a picture of how seriously germination is failing without some facts.
I threw compost into the equation merely as a possibility since it is something we all use
Are they any more or less compost companies than there are seed companies, yes the chances are we all use the major brand name companies for our seeds
Given that a lot of major names are no longer independent of one another it is highly likely the seed originates from the same source despite the name on the packet

How about instead of just saying " My beans (or whatever) haven't germinated" we actually put the company name and the variety.
At least then we stand a chance of producing a picture

A simple statement of fact relating to current problems may narrow the field down.

The danger when people start to believe their own publicity is that they often fall off their own ego.

At least travelling under the guise of the Pa Snip Enterprise gives me an excuse for appearing to be on another planet
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