How to Germinate Cannabis Seeds The Smart Way And a Bonus Hack!

germinate cannabis seeds

When it comes to growing cannabis, it all starts with the seed. Sprouting or germinating cannabis seeds is quite simple. Middle School Biology should have taught you how to germinate seeds using cotton, however with cannabis seeds, cotton isn’t always the best.

There is a small hack that I have implemented to help sprout my seeds. I’ll tell you about that in a bit. But first…

Germinating or sprouting seeds can be as easy as using a saucer and cotton wool to peat pellets. Germination is how to get your seeds to sprout. You know you’re your seeds sprouted the moment you see a little white tendril pops out of the seed.

To germinate cannabis seeds, you need only water, air, and heat. There are many ways how to Germinate Cannabis Seeds. For the best germination rates you need the following:

Moisture – keep things wet but not overly soaked.

Heat – keep things warm but not too hot. Cooler temperatures can also provoke germination, but it would take much longer.

Tranquility – Don´t fiddle too much with the seeds. They want to be left alone

Gentleness – When you check the seeds, be very gentle. Don´t touch the root if possible. The root is very fragile and breaks easily off.

Plant root down – when the seeds are germinated, plant them root facing down.

Plant knuckle down – germinated seeds don´t have to be planted that deep. Plant them about 1.5 to 2.5 cm under the surface.

How to Germinate Cannabis Seeds step-by-step

What you need:

Paper towels

Seeds

1 clean plates

Zip Lock Bags

Step 1 – Take 4 sheets of paper towels and soak them with water. The sheets should be wet but no excess water should come from it. You could always use a spray bottle to wet the paper towels. I personally prefer paper towels over cotton because the tendrils don’t get caught up in the paper towel.

Step 2 – take two paper towels and place them on the plate. Put the seeds on the plate placed at least 2.5 cm apart. Cover them with the remaining paper towels.

Step 3 – Now take your wet paper towels with the seeds in it and gently place it in a zip lock bag. You’ll want to keep the towels as flat as possible. Don’t mush it into the zip lock, keep it straight.

Step 4 - Keep the seeds in a warm area like in a closet or something like that. The Zip Lock bag will produce a greenhouse effect and trap in the moisture and heat to help speed up the germination process.

After the steps are done, it is time to wait. Keep an eye on the paper towels to see that it is constantly moist. Fortunately, the Zip Lock bags will do this for you. There is no specific time for germination. Some seeds germinate fast and others take more time. However, you can expect them to sprout between 3-5 days.

Once the seed splits and a single white sprout appears, your seed has successfully sprouted. The little white sprout is called the taproot. It is important to keep the taproot sterile. Avoid too much touching.

BONUS HACK!

Below I’m going to be talking about using peat pellets to sprout which makes transplanting your seedlings to bigger containers easier. However, not everybody will have peat pellets for sprouting.

So here’s what you do. You take the inside of a used toilet paper roll; you know…the cardboard tube. Cut that in half and fill it with your grow medium. I’m assuming that you’ll be using soil for this mixture.

Once the seed has sprouted, simply place the seed in the roll and wait for it to grow. This is a starter pellet. Once the plant reaches about 5 cm, you can take the cardboard roll and simply place it inside your grow pot. The cardboard will eventually biodegrade and the roots will easily be able to grow through it.

You’re welcome!

Germinating Seeds using Peat Pellets

Peat pellets can be bought at any gardening store. They come dried and compressed out of the box.

Step 1 – Soak the pellets in water. Keep them in the water for 10 minutes. They will swell up nicely

Step 2- With a pin poke a hole in the pellet and plant the seed in it. Cover it up. Remember to use 1 seed per pellet only.

Step 3 – Keep the peat pellets in a warm place. Keep the peat pellets moist all the time. It should never dry out.

After 3 to 8 days the plant will break out. Once the plant breaks out, it can be moved to a pot. After they are planted, they should be moved to lights. They need a lot of light.

When you reach this face, you can tap yourself on the shoulder. You have successfully germinated your seeds!