Soaking seeds in tea

[lakshmi]

I planted a few seeds each of around 15 varieties of tomatoes and two of them have still not germinated after 18 days. On the 29th (5 days ago) I planted a second batch of the two after soaking them in dilute tea (regular orange pekoe) for 24 hours. I had almost 100% germination when I checked this morning. The only difference was the soaking of the seeds so I can only conclude that that is what made the difference.

I have no clue if soaking in water would give the same result since I've never tried that.

Hope this proves helpful to someone else out there

Lakshmi

[carolyn137]

The only difference was the soaking of the seeds so I can only conclude that that is what made the difference.

*******

There are some who swear that germination is enhanced by soaking seeds, especially peppers seeds, in cold tea aids seed germination.

(I have no clue if soaking in water would give the same result since I've never tried that.)

And if you had, as a control, I think you would have found the same result.

it sounds like you had some old seeds and such seeds are very dehydrated and just soaking them in water overnight, with a pinch of Peters, or Schultz, or a few drops of either fish or seaweed prep can help b'c all of those have a significant nitrate ion concentration and that ion is known to be important in tomato seed germination.

Heavens knows I've had plenty of experience waking up old seeds as many know from my seed offers at GW in the past where I've offered about 300 varieties from 1991 thru 1998. And I told folks how to wake them up and they reported back online and it really was amazing to find out how well germination went for many of them.

In the past Craig and I have used all sorts of methods to wake up old seeds, and I've decided the best results were from simple water soaking o/n and adding a bit of nitrate ion.

[lakshmi]

Carolyn, the seeds did look a little small (dare I say shrunken). I don't know how old they are but they were generously given to me so I can't complain . I just realized that my Bloody Butchers did not germinate either. In the interest of research I will do a tea vs. water vs. diluted fertilizer (20-20-20 - don't have high N fert on me) comparison and report back on speed of germination. Hopefully something will germinate.

My peppers germinated much faster this way too. They were from a commercial source bought this year. I was amazed to see them up in 6 days vs. the 14-16 days they took before. Definitely worth the soak! I wonder why more people don't do this to soften the skin. I guess the seeds are a bit messier to plant after soaking.

Lakshmi

[michael johnson]

The main thing in the (Tea) that does the job is the trace element -(Manganese) of which tea is very rich in, plus various tannins etc,

Probably if you got a sample of pure manganese powder it might do the job just as well too.

I dont know why it actually seems to work, but it does, and so does a weak seaweed liquid too.

But of course there are tea's and there are tea's- probably the best one to use is the plain ordinary common tea bags available anywhere- none of this fancy china tea,or earl grey tea.

[lakshmi]

Originally Posted by lakshmi

In the interest of research I will do a tea vs. water vs. diluted fertilizer (20-20-20 - don't have high N fert on me) comparison and report back on speed of germination.
Lakshmi

For anyone that's interested: The Bloody Butchers still haven't germinated but all my red peppers have. I soaked the seeds for 24 hours and planted 4 seeds for each case.

Diluted Tea: 7 days (Orange Pekoe)
Water: 10 days (Tap)
Fertilizer Solution: 11 days (20-20-20, didn't have high N fert.)

They were in the same tray right next to each other so environment shouldn't really be a factor. Not the most scientific though...wish my BB's had germinated but I'm still hoping

Lakshmi

[feldon30]

I was going to ask if Earl Grey was suitable. I've got some Bigelow EG to get rid of. It pales in comparison to Twinings EG, which I have to drive about 10 miles to get.

[amideutch]

Feldon, you don't want to use 'Earl Gray'. If your into Kombucha then that is a different story. Ami

[Granny]

Feldon, if you like Twinings Earl Grey, try Republic of Tea's Earl Greyer. To die for! You can order online.

[feldon30]

Originally Posted by Granny

Feldon, if you like Twinings Earl Grey, try Republic of Tea's Earl Greyer. To die for! You can order online.

This is a great recommendation! Republic of Tea is just fantastic and I have had the pleasure of Earl Greyer. It's a bit pricey but wonderful.

Republic of Tea that I love:

• Vanilla Almond
• Cranberry Blood Orange
• Earl Greyer
• Raspberry Quince (especially as iced tea)

Do you do loose-leaf or the round individual teabags? I used to do loose leaf all the time in search of the best cup of tea, but found that the bagged is not that much different in flavor.

My introduction to flavored teas was Celestial Seasonings which basically whacks you over the head with flavor. So I stuck to straight orange pekoe tea for a long time. Then I took a chance on the varieties above and like them alot.

[Granny]

We do mostly looseleaf these days for a couple of reasons, primarily because we have a friend who travels back and forth from the UK every few weeks, towing pounds of wonderful teas: Lotus, green, a lovely mild black with rose petals in it, plus all kinds of flavor combos. We ended up buying one of the really nice Japanese cast iron pots with the built in strainer. Works like a charm. PM me your address and I'll send you some.

When we buy Republics' teas we buy the looseleaf - you get more cups of tea than you do with the bags.

I still like a couple of Celestial's teas - Cranberry Cove and Bengal Spice are very nice on freezing cold winter afternoons. Not much into the herbals though.

[feldon30]

Wow thanks for the offer! Not having a built-in strainer is part of why I have shied away from looseleaf, even though I do have several nice large strainers for 1 or 4 cups. The cost savings on the tea is a good reason to go looseleaf.

[Granny]

We found our pot at TJMaxx for somthing like $25 instead of the usual $60. Check on the day they put their delivery out - here it is Friday.

[michael johnson]

Hi-Ami, yuk" I didnt know you had tried Kombucha tea, I made it and tried it for several months-with varying success but couldnt quite get used to the vinegar taste in it, and had a whole range of seives and bottles to put it in- bought several books on the subject too.

Real Tea- now if only you could still get hold of real Masiwatii tea- now that was what I call a tea, but the brand of Masiwatii tea has long since gone,some green teas are not bad,but Twinings has gone downhill of late and not the quality that it used to be.

[lakshmi]

I know someone who makes their own version of Earl Grey by adding Monarda flowers (Bergamot/Bee Balm) into loose leaf black tea before steeping. I believe the actual flavoring for Earl Grey comes from the Bergamot Citrus Orange.

Lakshmi

[Granny]

That is interesting to know lakshmi. I think I have a spot in the herb garden for a little Bergamot.