[lochnesslass]

i have a lot of old seeds i'd like to test before sowing as have a no show peas and onion seed so far.
so how do you do this and is it different for different types of seed?
i'd like to test peas, onion seed, parsnip, carrot for now and later cucumber, courgette, butternut squash.
and would it be to late to bother with onion seed now?
many thanks

[savbo]

some people scatter a few seeds on wet tissue and get an idea how many are germinating, then over-sow to compensate for the no-shows....

...I just scatter seeds on tissue and then sow the ones that germinate. This will work well for all the seeds you mention except carrot and parsnip, which will distort if handled after germination.

[lochnesslass]

great thanks, what conditions do i need to keep them in?
dark or light or does it not matter?

[gremlin]

I put seeds on kitchen paper on a saucer, then fold over to make a seed sandwich. Spray paper with water and cover saucer with cling film, or a plastic bag, so I don't have to keep wetting them.

Hot loving stuff goes in the airing cupboard. (25deg)  Ordinary stuff in the spare bedroom at 16-18deg.  I have several of those digital max-min thermometers so I can be a real geek even if I am not yet a gardener.

Then watch for the little roots bursting out (or not). It's a magic moment...they're alive !!!

I think dark conditions are fine. After all seed live underground.  There are some oddities that need to be frosted first, or need a certain part of the infra red spectrum to germinate. But I don't think it applies to our sort of stuff.

[lochnesslass]

perfect thank you

[lucywil]

...I just scatter seeds on tissue and then sow the ones that germinate. This will work well for all the seeds you mention except carrot and parsnip, which will distort if handled after germination.

It does work for parsnips too, I used to do it but don't bother anymore because you get that many seeds in a pack that you can't keep for the following year, so I just over sow and hope for the best