Germinating old seeds ??

[makoman]

Hi All ,a mate gave me some nice buds that have some nice looking seeds.I know that they are a few years old ,I have tried all the usual methods to germ the seeds but nothing !!
Has anyone got any suggestions ???
Cheers

[9fingerleafs]

yes, gotta clean them first. take water peroxide or rubbing alcohol and hold a little on the palm of your hand, then place the seeds in your palm and move them around with your finger for 5 seconds, then dry them with a piece of paper towel, then place the seeds in a small container with the cleanest water you have access to, check every few hours and move gently the container, when the seeds sink theyre ready to take out and place in a slightly moist paper towel. the problem with old seeds is usually they take longer to germinate because theyre dryer than fresh seeds so the bacteria around the seed grows faster and kill the seed, they thend to get darker and slimy

[makoman]

Awesome !! I did the soaking in a jar with ph'd water and after 24hrs the water started to turn milky .I will try your method and let you know how that goes.
Cheers

[9fingerleafs]

yes thats how you know theyre done soaking, when they sink to the bottom cause it absorbed water

[9fingerleafs]

dont ph the water, water buffers are strong acids and bases that will harm the seed, clean water is fine (:

[makoman]

Could I use bleach??

[9fingerleafs]

you could but it has to be very diluted, like a drop or two in a cup of water

[makoman]

Awesome I'll give the bleach a go ,
Many thanks

[Farmall]

This should be interesting... I found a stash that has to be 37-38 yrs old. Tried the seeds but nothing... I did not expect anything but it would be amazing to try and see what happens... I know they are OLD

[makoman]

Yeah I tried all methods the usual way but the seeds just went black so we will see ,I've done the bleach wash and they are in water now 18 hours to go ..

[9fingerleafs]

how those seeds doing? they sink to the bottom already?

[DW2]

Howdy makoman, I have germinated seeds that were several years old. I have determined that placing them in the freezer for a couple of weeks helps somewhat. I would not recommend using bleach as a pre soak, I use the general Hydroponics FloraShield (diluted as per label) as a pre soak rinse, then I use water pH'ed to 5.0. I place the seeds on a folded paper towel in an aluminum pan with just enough of the water to cover the towel. I place the seeds on the towel in contact with, but not submerged in, the water. Cover the pan with clear plastic wrap (so that I can check on their progress) and aluminum foil, and place them in a warm place. This has worked well for me.
Good luck with Your grow.

[makoman]

Hi Guys ,all 8 seeds have sunk ,9finger.Dw2 I haven't seen any of the general hydro products in my country mate ,I have read that if you boil up some lentils and soak the seeds in the cooled liquid the enzymes in the liquid help germination so I will try that as well .