Seeds that have been frozen.

[bumper55]

Hi everybody newbie here and happy growing. I had a couple of Indica White Rhino feminized seeds that have kept in the freezer for a few years. I know now that freezing seeds is the worst way to store them because ice crystals form in the seed and kill the little plant that's inside, however one did pop. I'm now mid-way through a blooming cycle of my indica diablo plants so the seedling is under 400w HPS 12/12 timer. Is it ok to leave the seedling under this lighting? I'm not ready to start a new grow cycle under 400w MH 24/0 time since I've only got one tent now, but I don't want to loose this seedling, seeds are hard to come by. Any suggestions/advice is welcomed and thanks ahead.

[steve]

They will be OK - plant them !!!!! Use what light that fit's your needs HPS light are for the flowering stage of growth. MH will work best for germination , Seedling and Vegation stages of growth Use 24/0 for germination once strouted go to 18/6

[DW2]

Howdy bumper55, I keep all of my seeds in the freezer until I'm ready to germinate them, in fact, on the first grow the seeds did not germinate. I put the seeds in the freezer for a couple of weeks and tried again. This time I had about a 60 - 70 % germination rate.

[Flockshot]

Any seed that winds up in my hands will get planted, regardless of it's sorted past.

[yamiacaveman]

I don't know about MJ Seeds but some do advocate using a little sand paper to break the seed coat -- here: Iowa University article: http://www.ipm.iastate.edu/ipm/hortn...mtreeseed.html

Perhaps there MJ seeds could use or need a similar process? Lookup stratification

Growing trees from seed can be fun. However, the seed of most tree species won't germinate immediately when planted because they are in a dormant state. Dormancy must be broken before the seed can germinate.

In some tree species, dormancy is the result of a thick, hard seed coat. The seed coat may be broken in a variety of ways and the process is referred to as scarification. Mechanical means, such as a metal file or coarse sandpaper, can be used to break the seed coat. Treatment with boiling water has also been successful for a number of tree species. In nature, the seed coat may be broken by microbial action, passage of the seed through the digestive tract of a bird or other animal, exposure to alternate freezing and thawing, or fire.

[Weasel]

The freezer isn't the worst way to keep them- it's actually the best way. They'll stay viable indefinitely. It's helpful to have the container airtight and put a desiccant pack in there. Moisture tends to get in there from condensation when taking in and out of the freezer

[NebulaHaze]

Very nice seedlings! I've never had trouble with seeds I've frozen in the past, but because it's standard practice I do usually keep mine in a cool, dark place instead of the freezer.

The only problem I see is how wet the seedling starters appear to be. If it were me I'd tuck the top-level tube so it's butted up against the bottom of the net pot instead of having it pour down from on top. You want your seedling starters to stay moist, but they should never appear shiny or wet, as that can make your seedlings mushy ("damping off").

Also if the top-feed is tucked into the bottom of the net pot it will help your new seedling roots find their way down to the reservoir.

The only other thing is to make sure your water line is at least an inch or two under the bottom of the net pot. That small air gap is really healthy for the stem and roots

As far as the 12/12 schedule, you want to make sure seedlings get at least 14 hours of light a day or they may start flowering. You want to make sure they have time to get bigger before they start making buds!

Overall it looks like you're doing great!

[bumper55]

Thanks for the suggestions and all of it makes so much sense. This is my first hydro grow and the care of seed to seedling is very important, now I know how! thanks

[bumper55]

Hi everybody and happy growing. I posted pics. to show the current state of affairs concerning white rhino fem. seedling currently germinated in dyi hydro. cloner. 5 gal. res. I using less then min. amount GH Floragrow as per Flora Trio schedule. 250 ppms TDS meter. Great advice because I felt I was going to kill this seedling looking at it. I apply suggestions and I had to stake the seedling with a toothpick until it stiffens up hopefully. I also shut the pump off to allow substrate to dry out a bit. After reading the information about the seed hull being too hard to allow germination, I removed the peat plug of the other 3 seeds to dry. I'll find the seed and see if it's intacted and if it is, I'll try to rasp around the edge of the seed gently and re-plant. Anybody see a problem please let me know.