Seedlings with stubborn helmets
 

How long do I wait before "helping" my seedlings take their helmets off? They only sprouted yesterday, and I really want to help them so the cotyledons can come out.

They seem so fragile though, and I am sure I am going to do more harm than good if I go pulling on them.

So how long do I wait?

Gardenscout , i wouldn't pull on them just use a mist bottle and just enough to keep the "helments" damp and most of the time they will take care of themselves. You say they just sprouted give them a day or 2 and then give them a mist. Now that's just how i do it so mabey someone else will chime in and tell us their secret .

I agree with Richard on this one - Just mist them regularly, keep them moist, and the leaves will generally work their way out. If, for some reason, you get one that's really stubborn, you can do what I do, and get a pair of tweezers, and after the seedling has been up for 3 days or so, squeeze the edges of the seed coat to get it to open up some, and GENTLY pull it off.

19 times out of 20, just keeping the coat moist with the mister will fix it.

Okay, three days. That's what I needed to know. Thanks very much.

I think I need to buy a mister. I only have a spray bottle type thing, and I wonder if an atomizer type thing is what you all mean by "misting".

GS
A spray bottle is what I'm using and it is working fine. Just get some water on the seed coat. The water will cling to it. I don't feel the need to get an atomizer but that would probably work too.

Sounds gross:But I usually put alittle "spit" on my finger and touch the top of the seed a couple times a day.
Has worked pretty well for me. When it does start to "open", you can work it ever so slightly with your fingers ~

Tom

[quote=Tomstrees;50060]Sounds gross:But I usually put a little "spit" on my finger and touch the top of the seed a couple times a day.--------------------------------Tom[/quote]

Ah so!
The making of Tom's Yellow Wonder!:lol: :arrow:

dcarch

The spit method has always worked within a day or two for me.

lol Dcarch ~

Michele knows what I'm talking about ...

~ Tom

[quote=dcarch;50061]Ah so!
The making of Tom's Yellow Wonder!:lol: :arrow:

dcarch[/quote]

I won't even comment on what he put on them to make them yellow. :shock: :roll:

I am in on the spit part....8)
edited to add I mean the camp that uses spit

Okay, then spit it is. I read that somewhere else too, but wondered how long it might take to work.

Actually, some of the helmets are working themselves loose, and those first little round leaves are making their grand entrance.

I guess nature knows what she is doing, and I'll just leave it alone. I have more seeds and plenty of time to start more if I screw it up.

I'm in the spit camp too.

Depending on the age of the seeds, it can take more than 2 or 3 days for the cotyledons to work themselves free.

Carolyn sent me some 1994 seeds last year for me to refresh her stock. Of the 18 I planted, over half had the seed coat stuck tight.

Of course, I was already obsessing over these seeds way more than I should to begin with, and these little 'pinheads' were driving me nuts. I used the spit and sat on my hands for about a week..(best I remember...didn't keep notes on that)...they gradually worked themselves free enough that I could help them along to finish.

It seems to me that the older the seeds, the longer it takes for the coats to shed. One dose of spit usually helps fresh seeds along, but don't be surprised if older seeds take a few more days.

Add me to the spit camp! The digestive enzymes in saliva are more effective in softening the seed coat than plain water.

[COLOR=black]This is giving me a moneymaking idea. :idea: :idea: With millions of tomato growers and so many of you believing in the power of spit:[/COLOR]
[COLOR=black] [/COLOR]
[B][COLOR=black]Spit in an aerosol can[/COLOR][/B][COLOR=black]! :lol: [/COLOR]
[COLOR=black] [/COLOR]
[COLOR=black]Tom, want to be my business partner? All the money! I am drooling![/COLOR]
[COLOR=black] [/COLOR]
[COLOR=black]dcarch[/COLOR]

[quote=gardenmama;50637]Add me to the spit camp! The digestive enzymes in saliva are more effective in softening the seed coat than plain water.[/quote]

I agree

I have tested both water and spittle and the human
liquid works better.

Plus, you can put it right where you need it...it stays there, and you don't have to un-necessarily have to wet the seed mix or anything else...(I obsess about too much moisture too)

lol Dcarch ~ too funny

Tom

The spit enzymes probably work on weakening the coat as well as giving it some moisture :mrgreen:

PP

I used to use spit, but these days I have found that if you leave them for about ten days for the seed leaves to grow a bit out of the husk,if its still stuck I just nip off the last eighth of an inch of the tip complete with seed husk and then spread the two leaves apart, and they grow quite normaly after that.:arrow:

After all this talk and no stuck on helmets, I got one this morning !
Time for the old "spit" trick ~

Tom

I have tried the old spit trick, which seems to work in some cases.
But if you get a bit of green leaf showing and the seed husk just stuck on the end, I find its quicker just to nip off the tip near the seed husk and spread out the two cotyledons leaves and they soon recover and carry on growing normaly.

Last year I had quite a few sticking seed coats for some reason. After asking here, I also used the "spit" method and it worked like a charm. It is my hypothesis that I removed the dome on my seedling tray quite early to accomodate a row of seeds that came up super fast. While the medium stayed moist enough for the others to germinate, it was drier than it normally would have been and the seeds didn't want to let go.

oh man i just love stuck seed coats. i used the spit technique and got this little v shaped cuticle thingy that basically hooked into the coat and let me pull the leaves gently out. However, unless the seeds are really old I try not to do this anymore since they generally get a little ripped from me doing this and eventually they come out on their own just fine. But I must say pulling them out is soooo fun that sometimes it is kind of hard to resist.

I have often wondered- if one mixed up some of that whetting agent that you can buy for mixing in compost, or the gel they sell for the same thing, that keeps things moist and retains the water etc, just enough in a small egg cup size container, and used this on the stuck helmets as it would keep them moist for longer, or even a thick mix of just plain old fairy washing up liquid might also dothe trick-its worth the time to experiment with.:arrow: