Kitchen Garden Forum

Granny - It has taken mine between 10 - 14 days on a covered dish on my kitchen window sill so I suspect you have a few days to go yet. I was surprised how difficult it was to spot the tiny little white shoots coming out of the seeds against a white kitchen tissue background so do examine them very carefully.

I also have a question about sprouting parsnips. I have sprouted some on some paper as advised but due to other things to do haven't got round to planting them, now its bucketing it down outside, so I was going to put them in paper pots today. Question is, some of the roots on the seeds are getting a bit long, an inch or more.
Should I plant these longer ones, or just the short ones that have just emerged, even if it means sprouting more seeds?
I'm just worried about curly parsnip roots!
Thanks

Do both - the worst that can happrn is the longer ones get damaged.

Hi Primrose,
Re hard to see. I cheated on the last lot I germinated and used a red paper table napkin folded inside the kitchen paper and I could then see things a lot better.
I use tweezers to handle the seeds and you can easily pick them up when planting or simply viewing.
Am getting to the stage with my eyes that I need new lenses every 6-9 months which is an expensive pastime.
JB.
Hi Womble,
I try to plant mine just as the radicle begins to emerge. You will note that the seed swells and you can then see after a few days where the radicle will appear and you can actually note the progress made and you can see the radicle moving down, inside the seed, to the point where it will emerge. That seed has germinated and just so long as we do not have a series of very harsh frost it would be OK to plant direct in the row. It would however be better to plant in Loo Roll Centres or Root Trainer Pots and keep them in an unheated room until you have around 4 true leaves, checking frequently that the tap root has not appeared at the base of the pot, then plant out. Parsnips are said to germinate at a temperature of 4C which is colder than most fridges so they are fairly hardy.
JB.

Johnboy. Good tip about using a red paper table napkin to aid being able to see the tiny white shoots appearing. I'll try this next time. Thanks.

hanks for all help with this. Now I have green shoots coming ut of loo rolls. Hurrah. Penny

I've had mine on a radiator for about 2 weeks and I think I've seen some tiny emerging radicles. I potted up 6 of these 2 days ago. No emerging shoots yet therefore.

mike

I've been trying this paper lark but may be doing it wrong. I laid my paper inside the lid of a margerine tub as I found just laying it on a bit of foil on a windowsill it dried out too quickly (Like an hour or two!) Should the paper-with-seeds virtually float in water, or should one try to remember to add water at least daily? Or does it matter if it goes dry?
John N.

It should never go dry.
I put the seeds on several layers of folded kitchen paper in a shallow bowl so that the bottom layer is in water, but the top layer (with the seeds on it) is not, but soaks up the water from the bottom. I then cover the seeds loosely with another damp sheet and the whole lot with clingfilm. Checked every two days or so for moisture, it should stay damp.
Mine are on the boiler now and the method worked for me very well last year.

Hi I am new to this as well JohnN and am yet to try this very interesting method of development,the chit chat about it is making me want to try it as last year I didnt really have much joy staight in the ground, so I shall do as Monika and many others have done and do mine on a tray with lots of layers, Monika and others should I leave the damp try on a window ledge or put then in the airing cupboard where it is dark and a bit warm - but no to hot as I dont really have the heating on. Energy saving !!

Thanks for the ongoing info & chat ... I now have parsnip seeds with little tails, & like someone else mentioned, not enough loo rolls! I will get more pots for some (I got a bit carried away in how much seed I germinated!) as I won't have room for all in pots.

Do you think I could plant some stright into the ground? Seems a shame to waste them - I have a patch covered in black plastic ... so is warm today - but will it be too much of a shock for them to hit soil?Thanks
Ivy

Skinny-bum, I keep mine on the boiler which is sort of in between, light-wise, and insurers that the temperature is fairly constant. I could imagine that on the window sill it could get pretty cool at night. The airing cupboard might be TOO warm but others may disagree, I have never tried them there.

Ivy, I believe Johnboy has answered this here or in another post, when he says he prefers to put the germinated seed into loo-roll inners, but that you can get away with putting them direct into the soil.

mike