From

Location

Message

Date Posted

Princeville, IL

Not good here. First set of 15 seeds have been in germination chamber 7 days and not a sign of one popping for ones 2003 or older. The 2007 and 2008 I planted both are up. Going to try a second set tomorrow with a little GB acid soak.

5/4/2019 7:03:12 PM

Syracuse, NY

TOO UNCANNY!
I also started 15 seeds that I actually tried last year as well and still had multiples of---5 seeds per Germination Bucket X 3;
most are crosses of famous seeds like 'X 801.5 Stelts' and/or actual 845 Nesbitt, 962 Willemse, etc., ever since April 26th...

Since I am fed up with NOT seeing any action, tomorrow also for ME is the 'Next Wave Day' as well.
However, mine will now be mostly my own Gerry seeds and
ones from this DECADE for '19, and i'll still be trying the Ancient Ones because otherwise, what a waste---eg

5/5/2019 3:55:48 AM

Cornelius, Oregon

Things are going okay here. The two (out of 104 seeds) that actually came up are both out in the garden side by side. I will keep the best looking one and run it just like I would my competition plants only it will not get as much room. I think the choice will be easy as one is just bunching up and not sending out a first true leaf, more like a ball of callus sitting inbetween the cots. The good one is normal looking but growing slow compared to my new seeds.

5/5/2019 10:21:53 PM

Grittyville, WA

Terrible... Runty little plant. Pulled it out of the ground and potted it back up. I thought I picked a good spot for it but it turned out it wasnt... At this point, any pumpkin at all would be a "success".

5/6/2019 4:03:02 AM

Georgia

Look at the bright side, you guys are really cleaning out the ol' seed closet. It must feel good to give so many old seeds a chance. I think that is the best part of your contest.

5/7/2019 8:39:23 AM

Cornelius, Oregon

Very true Orange U. I was actually hoping I would see a little more luck with germination and was set to run a few of them in the 'cash crop' area of my garden. Make some fun crosses, get a little extra excercise, and maybe sell a few of them.

5/7/2019 11:03:43 AM

Princeville, IL

Starting a second set of 18 seeds today but with a giberillac acid bath this time.

5/7/2019 5:12:34 PM

Grittyville, WA

I saw the pic u posted guru. Mine is no better so this may yet be your contest. Its the last pic in my diary (entry 197).

5/14/2019 6:57:02 PM

Grittyville, WA

Well, I will try to give u guys some competition... I will give it my best 500-600 lb. will be my goal.

5/14/2019 7:04:19 PM

Syracuse, NY

I've yet to get or even attempt to sprout any more others' old seeds until I hit upon a method that works or has a hint that it might work reliably - for years, I've always gotten something old to be something new, but this year I'm just about afraid to try to sprout anything - MY OWN seeds are doing well in Black Gold Seedling Mix, which I've used last and this year; However, I recently learned that the farm store I had planned to get Espoma with MycoTone (Mycorrhizae) in it from has permanently closed, so, Jiffy Mix it'll hafta be! Not worried YET, but all those seeds i had dreamt of sprouting for the contest...bummer.
'T'S OK, I've plenty more! Muh, huh, ha, ha, ha, ...
yeah, you know---eg

5/15/2019 1:26:59 AM

Cornelius, Oregon

Glenoma, I had a hunch half the battle was just going to be getting one to go, so I threw the bus at it. If I had not got those 1075's to pop I was going to bump up to a 250 seed start. The little seedling is now starting on its second leaf, so at this point I can switch off the incubator and focus on the baby plant. Weather is hit an miss, but hey its spring. As far as my goal, getting a pumpkin to the scale is about it, the rest is cake.

5/15/2019 10:41:37 AM

Grittyville, WA

A big part of it might be how much time the seeds spent in refrigeration? Many should germinate... if they spent that time frozen or in refrigeration. I would expect few would survive on a shelf that long.

5/15/2019 2:10:01 PM

Grittyville, WA

Eg...as you may know I presoaked with H202. Sterile is good... oxygen is good. Weak seedlings are a pain but, other than being slow to get going... it's basically all the same.

5/15/2019 2:18:03 PM

Grittyville, WA

Pumpkinguru, how were yours stored? Mine I acquired second hand. I dont know the storage history. I have no more old seeds so I'd better take good care of my plant.

5/15/2019 2:23:53 PM

Cornelius, Oregon

I store all mine at room temperature, probably an error, but its what I have always done. Dark, room temps, home humidity, nothing special, but no extremes either. From what I am reading, other are having the same problems with germination of the 'olds' so I don't feel too bad about burning so many to get a couple to sprout. Going to do some research and experimentation on this next winter to see if there is a trick somewhere that I am missing. I made some good notes on this springs trials, and that combined with last years have given me some ideas. I think its going to be a combination of things, not just one trick...

5/15/2019 4:54:30 PM

Grittyville, WA

I think sprouting after 15+ years at room temperature is impressive.

Gotta ask... Thick or thin seed coat on those 1075s? ...Another factor in storage life, maybe.

5/15/2019 5:31:34 PM

Cornelius, Oregon

Thin coated, but I did note that both the 1075s that sprouted had the interior membrane swell nicely, almost like a bubble whereas some of the other seeds did not and the rot got to the tap root before it initialized growth. There is still so much to learn here, and so many factors involved, that at this point its dumb luck, or rather, luck due to lots of attempts.

5/15/2019 11:41:20 PM

Syracuse, NY

A 1007 Brown in '17 and a 783 Daletas in '18 - thought I was getting 'good' at germing old seeds. I am currently tonight trying a new method, but tomorrow, I'll also re-connect with my H2O2 side - thanks for the suggestion, Brandon---eg

5/16/2019 2:30:43 AM

Grittyville, WA

Luck due to lots of attempts... Good strategy for weather, weak seeds, etc etc.
I figure 5 years for seeds on the shelf. Good info... thanks.

5/16/2019 12:39:30 PM

Grittyville, WA

Maybe 8-10 years for most shelf seeds. But clearly some can survive twice that long.
Side note: I started two that were refrigerated for a year or two. The one in the refrigerator for a year popped up like it hadn't aged at all. The other, in the refrigerator for two years, was a dud.

5/16/2019 1:07:51 PM

Cornelius, Oregon

My theory so far... its all about the very tip of the root inside that seed coat.
Other notes so far... On those with the inner membrane intact, aka, they ballooned up a bit, the cot material lasted the longest. Granted, all but two of those still were duds.
I saw some with the cot leaves hydrate and begin to swell but the root end rotted before it began to grow.
I experimented with the following combinations last year and this year:
Tap water soak 4 hours filed seed coat in starting soil - Pretty basic - I called it a control group.
Tap water (all soaks were 4 hours) Seed coat removed, starting soil.
Tap water soak filed seed coat paper towel method
Tap water soak seed coat removed paper towel method
Tap water/Giberillic acid mix filed seed coat starting soil
Tap water/Gib Acid seed coat removed paper towel
I have tried auger combos, temp settings, humidity settings, heavy fungicide, anti-bacterial soap baths, hydrogen peroxide concentrations. Its been a pet project to pass the time in the winter. In the end, last year's success as well as this year, I have equal luck with fancy combos as I do with tried and true... about a 1-2% germination percentage. Last year was 2 out of 300 seeds (but some of those were from the 1980's and 90's) and this year 2 out of 104. What does this tell me, I think about seeds too much, am clueless, and for germinating old seeds, its okay to be a More-on or in this case, More-in the incubator.

5/16/2019 2:00:05 PM

Central Ca

Seeing some action from a 128 Rys. I used Indole 3 Butyric Acid 0.1%. Seems really slow growing.

5/22/2019 11:57:28 AM

Central Ca

Sorry, 359.5 UOW House 16 (128 Rys x self)

5/22/2019 12:07:18 PM

Princeville, IL

0 for 18 on second set so someone is going to get my $20. Next year I will do like Brett and start 100 seeds. Of course even if they had sprouted they couldn't go in the ground as there is nothing but mud here and rain forecast every day for next 6 days. Have about 35 AG's that are outgrowing there 3 1/2 gallon grow bags.

5/22/2019 1:01:57 PM

Central Ca

Wrong board, my bad.

5/22/2019 1:07:55 PM

Syracuse, NY

i had intended to sprout numerous oldies but after not getting about a half-dozen dream seeds to do so, including my treasured 869.5 Calai, i stopped cold to evaluate the reason(s) until i again had the bright idea that it is something to do with my Black Gold seed-starting mix, which works GREAT for my OWN seeds from even 2005 (301.5 Gerry), but has not even hinted at any results on those older seeds; i've enlisted the use of an unused refrigerator that has been in my garage for about 8 years for germinations in-quantity, whereas i can then have a heater fan in it with a thermostat and
utilize AMBIENT, all-around heat rather than the intense, from-the-bottom-half heat such as within my Germination Buckets.
And another thing - i have always sprouted into Mycorrhizae-inoculated SS mix...seeing it form and grow onto the exposed radicles of intended sprouters has me wondering:
Could it be a feeding frenzy? after all, a fungus does DIGEST dead and dying debris in the forest - hmmm...
trying one batch with and one without is next - eg

5/24/2019 8:49:55 AM

Grittyville, WA

I think myco in trees does that... if the tree is strong the myco is like 'we want to help you' and if the tree is dying the myco turns tail and switches allegiance to some other tree. I dont remember if I used myco or not. Myco probably works best when the plant has ample carbohydrates to share. I figure its an like extra gear, when conditions are already favorable and the plant is already growing fast. I do wonder if it helps weak plants much.

5/24/2019 10:01:58 PM

Grittyville, WA

I think an aeroponics approach would work. Utilize some uv light to keep the funguses from invading. I agree keeping funguses out of the tip is a big part of it whether old or not. Idea: Maybe using a fungicide on the tip if germinating in a starting mix? Please let us know what you learn from that experiment.

5/24/2019 10:19:48 PM

Grittyville, WA

The all around heat will be easier to contol and get a good result. In my opinion.

5/24/2019 10:23:31 PM

Grittyville, WA

Last two pics in my diary show a stark contrast between two plants. A new seed with superior genetics vs a weak old seed with questionable genetics. Started at the same time, both given less than perfect care. Entry # 230 & 231.

5/28/2019 3:32:27 PM

Syracuse, NY

nnnyyyeeahhh, i just today took a look at that refrigerator and wish i had offered to buy it from the owner MUCH sooner...i knew it was perfect within but i forgot just how MUCH room there'd be for SPROUTING! still an option---i'll get about 10-12 other 2-weeks+ plants out and at the same time, starting ( ha ha ) tomorrow, i will commence sprouting of The Old Ones in earnest. Hey, I've pollinated my #16 '02 (815 Checkon X 300 Gerry '01 (1140 Stelts X 845 Bobier)) a month late in probably '03 and still had a 510.5 at Clarence, so, not THAT worried about NOT having a fruit of good size to SELL, if nothing else - however, if i get an Old One to germinate without fear, yeah, TLC and Myco and all the worms I've been seein' will be focused upon it. eg

6/1/2019 8:16:00 PM