Why Your Garden Seeds May Not Be Germinating!

Germinating Garden Seeds

In the greenhouse, we currently have a lot of garden seeds that are being germinated for fall transplanting. In the first seed starting tray, we have the Savannah Sweet onion variety that has a few seed germinating but not a full tray. In the next tray, there are four lettuce varieties such as Cherokee, Butter Crunch, Skyphos, and Calshot that have just been added to the greenhouse so no germination quite yet on those. In the third tray, we have Calendula which is a cool flower that produces colorful blend of yellow and orange blooms. The two varieties of beets that are growing are Kestral and Early Wonder which are both excellent beet varieties. The fifth seed starting tray has some Matejko leeks which is a hybrid variety of leek that has really good germination right now in the greenhouse. Then in the last few trays, we have some Cheers Cabbage, Charleston Wakefield, and Rio Grande Cabbage. Along the other side of the greenhouse, there is a tray of Southern Giant Curled Mustard which can be direct seeded into the garden, but Travis decided to try transplanting for this growing season. The next tray is some Scarlet Kale which is an open-pollinated variety that produces deep red plants. Beside the kale flat, is some nice germinated Touchstone Gold Beets which are multigerm so each seed will give you two to three little sprouts. Then, two flats of Green Magic Broccoli and two different varieties of cauliflower which are Snow Bowl and Purple Cauliflower. Next, in the greenhouse is a flat of Jade Cross Brussel Sprouts and a flat of Red Bull. While in the last two flats that are currently growing is the famous Tiger Collards that is one of the most productive crops you can grow in the vegetable garden.

Three Factors to Why Seeds Are Not Germinating

Within the greenhouse, there are three factors that can help determine why your garden seeds may not be growing. The first factor that is important for germination is moisture. The seed starting mix that we use is Pro-Mix which is a quality grade mix that promotes excellent root development. For water to drain really well through the tray, you must soak the soil to ensure you are watering throughout the entire seed starting tray. The second factor that is important is heat during the fall this really isn't an issue because of our weather temperatures in the South. However, during the spring, we have to use a heat map that will give the soil the desired optimal germination temperature. Typically the garden soil needs to be around 75 degrees to germinate well. While the third biggest factor in why you may experience bad germination is poor quality seeds. If you buy cheap seeds more than likely, you will receive poor germination. However, here at Hoss, we believe in excellent germination rates and high-quality garden seeds. We test our seeds every six to nine months to ensure you are getting fresh seeds with excellent germination rates when you order from us.