FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

For the most seeds that I germinate I use the paper towel method. When my old VFTs produced seeds I did this method instead of sprinkling them on substrate. They started growing a tap root at around 10 days. Then they grew the non true leaves. The tap root stopped growing and it was tiny without any actual roots. I then took some and placed them with my Nepenthes. They didn’t grew at all. Then in just one day all the other seedlings in the bag died. They were around 40. The only one that survived was a seed that I put on fun in my old S. purpurea. That one grew just fine ( until the dehydration incident ). So I learned the lesson the hard way. The paper towel method does NOT work with VFTs.

were you trying to stratify them on paper towel, or really germinate them?

I'd move them off the paper towel the moment they germinated. Otherwise that root will attach to the paper towel and badness happens.

I think for stratifying it should be fine ... just don't let them grow on the paper towel.

No I didn’t want to stratify them. I just wanted to germinate them. The problem was that the tap root was tiny and it didn’t grew at all. So I learned the lesson that I have to grow them in other ways. The best seems to be placing them on top of sphagnum moss and keep them in full sunlight and wet.

optique wrote: ↑Tue Jun 27, 2023 4:11 am I remember in very early school the teacher put some type of bean on a wet paper towel so we could see it sprout. I have only used peat myself.

My high school did this just last school year. A teacher let kids decide how to test bean growth, messing with factors like light, water, and media. Some people used soil, some used paper towel, they watered different amounts, some were at the window, some at a grow light, some in the dark. When I came in to help the teacher clean up, the only ones that sprouted and weren't dying were the ones in soil with a moderate amount of water. It was interesting.

The problem with germinating in paper towels are the fine, almost invisible root hairs that grow into the paper. Rather than removing the seeds you would be better off to cut out the small area of the piece of paper where the seed has sprouted and to plant it all. The problem with really small seeds is they may not have enough strength to tap down their roots through the paper or send a sprout up through it. The thinner more disintegrateable papers would work best.

My usual purpose for germinating seeds on paper towels is to check for germination rates for vegetable seeds. Twenty seeds equals 5% germination for each seed that sprouts…10 seeds is 10% per seed. Etc

Carrot seeds and other vegetable seeds are sold on paper tape. Dig a furrow at the appropriate depth, lay the tape in it and cover back up. Seeds are spaced as they need to be. The tape is supposed to be easily biodegradable. Having said that, I’ve never personally used seed tape.