In our previous post we showed you how to germinate cannabis seeds using wet paper towel method. That method is good, but not perfect. To transplant those sprouted seeds you would have to touch them directly, which is not good. Freshly germinated seeds are like babies, you wouldn’t want to touch fetus with your hands that have oils and dirt on them. Same goes for sprouted seeds. It has to be sterile, so you would want to make as less direct contact with it as possible.
Lets talk how to germinate cannabis seeds using peat pellets. We highly recommend using this method over wet paper towel method as this one is safer can gives you a better success rate.
For this to work you will need peat pellets, you can find them in any gardening store or order them online. These pellets contain lots of nutrients for your freshly sprouted seeds. They come in small, dry, compressed pellets. Peat pellets are not very expensive and definitely worth the price. They look like this:
How to germinate cannabis seeds using peat pellets – process
Once you have the pellets it’s time to prepare them. Soak them with water, we suggest that you’d use distilled water as tap water contains a lot of stuff that is not very good for these fragile younglings. Leave them for about 10 minutes and they will expand.
After 10 minutes (+/-) they should look something like this —>
You can plant your seeds in them. Use a pen to make small holes in them, about 1/2 inch deep. Put your seed using pair of tweezers in that hole and cover it up. One pellet should hold one seed for best possible results.
When you plant seeds into wet pellets, they begin their life. You should see them sprouting in 2-7 days period. Throughout this time, keep the pellets moist and warm ( 20-25°C). If they dry out, that might be the end of it. If you get good quality seeds, there’s nearly 100% success rate that they will germinate.
How to germinate cannabis seeds using peat pellets – next step
So your seeds have sprouted after 2-7 days. What’s next ? When you seed that your seeds popped out, you need to put them under direct light, cause once they pop, they crave for that light. Will it be grow light or sunlight, that’s entirely up to you and your chosen growing method. You need to do one more thing – transplant them into pots. Don’t pull them out of the pellet, there’s a very good chance you will destroy the plant. Just bury plant with the whole pellet. Roots will eventually go straight through pellet.
Congratulations! You’ve germinated some seeds. Now let ’em babies grow.
Where to get good quality seeds?
We have been using the service of “I love growing marijuana“. They ship very good quality seeds , and if you buy 10 or more seeds they throw in 10 more free off charge. They ship seeds worldwide, but if you live in a country that don’t have marijuana legalized, be cautious, make sure no one finds out about it. Be smart, be safe.
I have my seedlings germinated and in peat pellets under a T5 light, on a heating pad. How wet should I keep the peat pellets? The environment is high humidity (>80% – it’s my pool pump room). But I noticed that the little puddle of water that was under the pellets when I set them up has evaporated in less than 12 hours and the pellets themselves are noticeably more dry.
I don’t to drown the seeds but I also don’t want them to dry out.
Should I be misting or watering them at this stage?
How large to the seedlings have to be before planting in pot? I have 3 that I can see the stem about to break the surface, can I pot them or should I wait?
Once the shell drops…
No rush, wait until you see roots growing through the peat pot.
Do I need to cover the peat tray with plastic
No sir, just put the lid on and store in a warm, dark place until they’ve sprouted. Then transplant em, peat and all.
Do I need to use a warming mat
No sir, just use warm water.
Should I put the pellets under a grow light after seed is planted but before germination?
Hi John,
no need to put them under the lights before it germinates. Just make sure the soil is moist and keep it in a room temperature. You should put them under the grow lights after they sprout.
After I’ve put them in Jiffy bag in a heated germination tray do they need to be in complete darkness
Just put em in a tray, pour in 1 1/2 cups of warm water, drain the excess, put the lid on and store it in a warm place out of direct sunlight or grow light. Once they’ve sprouted then transplant em and put em under light.
Soak seeds in a glass of water til tap root cracks through the pointed end of theseed and is about ¼” or more. Then…… Carefully transfer the germinated seed to the prepared pellet. Place under your lights per your light’s distance recommendations. Watch your heat. Umder 85°F. Humidity >65% <75%.
I’m having good success germinating in water,then putting in jiffy pellets, put pellets in Styrofoam cup put superb soil around pellets.water. when plants get bigger just cut cup off and plant in 5 gal.pot you have alot more soil around pellets. Keep cups in window till time to plant.