Germinating Cannabis Seeds


Germinating Cannabis Seeds- Part One

With Saalome Dojah

 

In this article, I will be sharing my methods of germination. This seems to be pretty straight forward, but I have seen many have issues with this process. Being the first stage in your cannabis medical garden, it’s crucial that it is done properly, as this will set the scene for your plants journey.

This is by no means the only way, and to some it may not be the best way. For me, I have found this method to work better and more consistently than any other way.

It’s important to keep your equipment, pots, and such clean. I like to be clean, but not absolutely sterile. I have found in organic growing, that sometimes starting out in a perfectly disinfected environment can create more problems than anything. It’s crucial the seedling be able to create it’s own immunity to disease. It cannot do this without having introduced some bacteria and fungi into the mix. If you have good medium, the good bacteria will take care of any bad trying to mess with the program. If you prefer to sterilize everything, you do you. Once the seeds are in dirt, any sterilization goes out the window anyway, so I figure just let them be.

Now let’s get started. The items and equipment used for this are as follows:

● Scissors

● Small containers (I use old script bottles I save up)

● Choose genetics(seeds)

● Masking Tape or small labels

● Measuring Cup with clean, chlorine free water. (No specific amount, just fill it up)

● Paper Towels (preferably unbleached)

● Ziplock Baggies

● Black Sharpie(marker)

 

We will be using the small containers to separate and properly label the different strains. I save my pill bottles, from big pharma. They work great for this purpose, but any small containers with lids will do. I use the labels on the pill bottles and just write over the type with a sharpie. Or use masking tape and write on that. Label each container with the appropriate labelling. Be sure to do only one strain at a time, to ensure there is no mix up.

Once labelled, take your containers and add the seeds you choose to germinate into your labelled container. Add water to cover the seeds, doesn’t matter how much. Close lid, and put the container into a drawer, or a cupboard, out of any direct light. You will leave these in their containers for up to 48 hours, depending how fast they germinate. I like them to crack good and have a nice tail sticking out.

As you can see in the photo, the tails are nice and thick and the shells are cracked well. This is what I want to see.

Part Two

Supplies needed:

● Paper towels

● Ziplock Baggies

● Chlorine Free Water

After the soak, and the seeds are cracked, they will be carefully put into damp paper towels, then into appropriately labelled ziplock baggies. This ensures the paper towels retain the moisture required for the seed to thrive.

Have you paper towels cut into appropriately sized squares or if you prefer rectangles, more power to you.

After you have your baggies labelled, and all you stuff in front of you, you are going to take your cracked seeds and put them in a damp paper towel. Fold the paper towel up, so that the seeds are nice and secure. Be sure the paper towel has sufficient moisture, and set it inside the labelled ziplock, closing the baggies zipper, trying to remove as much air from the baggies as possible as you seal it.

These will now be set in a dark place, to further germinate, and this allows the seedling to get used to being in a medium of sorts before it goes into the dirt. I find this step has increased my percentage of positive results. I set the ziplocks upright as to allow gravity to get the plant moving in the proper direction(which would be down) rather than sitting on a flat surface, getting rather confused because the tap root cannot naturally head south.


In the picture above, I have the seeds situated in crease of the folded over paper towel. When I flip the baggies upside down, the seeds are now at the top, and will try and have the tap roots go down, since they are able to move freely this way.  
Once the seedlings are all in there secure baggies, labelled, and sealed, they will sit in the cupboard for anywhere from 24-48 hours. I check them at 24, and if most have moved along I will proceed to the next step. Generally, I have noticed most take an extra day to get where I like them to be for planting in the soil. I like to have nice long tap roots, and a good start before I put them in dirt.


Most of these seeds are ready for soil, but you can see one is taking its time. In this case I will take the four that are ready and plant them, and seal the other in the bag a bit longer. Occasionally, I will just plant the lagging seed in with one of the others and hope for the best. Depends on how I feel that day.

From here, the next step will be planting in soil, and I will be doing that very soon. I hope you can get some good use of this info, and perhaps it helps you in some way. That is my goal, to share the methods I have found to work for me.

These are just one method of many, and you need to find what works best for you. Everyone lives in different environments, latitudes, longitudes, and the variables will never be the same from one to another. There is no best way to do it, only the best way for you. I hope I can help you find your way just a little easier.

I hope you enjoyed the instructional write up and if you did, keep watch for many more as I share my organic grow methods for growing this most sacred plant for medicine.

 

Best regards and happy gardening!!!

Saalome

 

 

Saalome Dojah’s Bio


Organic Cannabis Cultivation

With Saalome Dojah

I think before I begin my writings, I would like to introduce myself and share a bit about myself and my experience as an organic gardener. I have always had an interest in cannabis cultivation, some have even compared it to an obsession. Even before I ever put my first seed in the ground, I had binders and booklets of my own research of general cannabis cultivation, and the science behind it. I had no idea the things I was about to learn…

After a brief run with advanced nutrients (synthetic nutrients), I discovered true living organics, a gardening method that utilizes the microbial life within the soil to do the work for you. True living organic gardening is more than a growing method, it becomes a lifestyle of sorts. Everything you do seems to coincide with everything else, just as it would in nature. You start to understand how nature works, and you start to become a way for nature to thrive through you, the way she has for many millions of years.These methods are not new, and there is nobody that can claim these methods as their own, except Mother Nature herself. Many have figured them out, and have helped bring it back to the growers. The Rev has played a huge part in my success as a grower, being a friend and mentor for many years.

There are some simple rules to follow, and if you stick to these rules, it can be simple to grow some good, clean medicine for you to medicate with and enjoy. I am starting over from seed, after some issues with powdery mildew. It was the first time i have ever had it in almost a decade of growing. I am sharing this because first thing you should know is, all growers have their problems from time to time. Learning as well go, and sometimes the lessons come at a high price. If possible I would like to share my mistakes I have made as well, so that you can avoid be same downfalls, even though I have had mostly positive experiences.

     I will be sharing each step, as I go, and sharing my true experience with you. I have perfected, (well I like to think so), some basic steps and methods for germination, transplanting, soil building, and everything from seed to harvest. These are by no means the only way, and there maybe easier ways that may work better for you. It’s all about finding you niche. I am not claiming to grow pounds of weed, it has never been about that for me. I have a very special relationship with this plant, having used it to ease my MS symptoms for over a decade. So the meds I grow, are grown from the heart, and for me quality is more important than yield. I am also a disabled man, getting older each day. It begins to catch up with you very fast. So growing more smaller plants was a better, more feasible option for me.

I have a legal ACMPR license to grow 50 plants for medicine in Canada, and have been a legal patient for many years.

I just started some seeds and I will get to the write ups. I hope for those of you looking for some guidance and somewhere to begin, I can help you in some way.

I will be starting with an article about my germination methods, and take it step by step from there. I will include as much relevant information as possible as well as detailed photos, for reference.

I hope you enjoy, and if you already know everything, than this won’t be of any help to you, move on. One thing that will never change for me, is that I will never stop learning, and trying to better my skills as an organic gardener.

Best regards, and happy gardening!!!

Saalome