Helmet head, paper towel fix.

[cpurola]

Thought I'd share my fix for helmet head.
Small square paper towel on top of seed coat, sprayed with water a few times so it doesn't dry out.
12-24 hours later and while still damp, carefully remove shell and inner membrane.
Good luck. (as with most things it works MOST of the time)

 

[Captspaulding]

Thought I'd share my fix for helmet head.
Small square paper towel on top of seed coat, sprayed with water a few times so it doesn't dry out.
12-24 hours later and while still damp, carefully remove shell and inner membrane.
Good luck. (as with most things it works MOST of the time)

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always a pia when that happens…..
That’s a good method. I usually just pinch the seed, which is the equivalent of pushing the plant down the stairs…..
Man I need to quit that…..

 

[LoveGrowingIt]

I like the paper towel idea. I've thought for a while that moistening it is the key. I think making sure the seed is planted deeply also helps.

 

[HerbalEdu]

i usually use one finger to block the seedling in place and a small electronic screwdriver to remove both shell and inner menbrane.

i have a little ocd with that, i often dig the soil as soon as 24h after transplant once their root is long enough to search for seedlings and sometime helping them.

 

[jadins_journey]

Thought I'd share my fix for helmet head.
Small square paper towel on top of seed coat, sprayed with water a few times so it doesn't dry out.
12-24 hours later and while still damp, carefully remove shell and inner membrane.
Good luck. (as with most things it works MOST of the time)

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Good idea. I spray with tap water. Does the same thing, moistens the shell

 

[LoveGrowingIt]

Much to my surprise, my wife gave me two of those dental tools they use for scraping plaque. Her thinking was they could be used to remove the helmet. She was right! They worked very well.

 

[Captspaulding]

Much to my surprise, my wife gave me two of those dental tools they use for scraping plaque. Her thinking was they could be used to remove the helmet. She was right! They worked very well.

Holy shit. I have those things.
That’s friggin genius.
Beauty in simplicity, leave it to a pack of wacky stoners to over complicate things with a cherry picker and a blowtorch.

And a blue sky hook.
As well as a universal pipe stretcher.
It works


…….i think

 

[cpurola]

i usually use one finger to block the seedling in place and a small electronic screwdriver to remove both shell and inner menbrane.

i have a little ocd with that, i often dig the soil as soon as 24h after transplant once their root is long enough to search for seedlings and sometime helping them.

Me too! Like a kid on Christmas Eve!

 

[cpurola]

I like the paper towel idea. I've thought for a while that moistening it is the key. I think making sure the seed is planted deeply also helps.

I have made the mistake of planting too deeply so of course I have to go to the other extreme. LOL

 

[cpurola]

Good idea. I spray with tap water. Does the same thing, moistens the shell

I tried doing that, but I kept getting distracted and it would dry out before I could get to it. LOL

 

[cpurola]

Much to my surprise, my wife gave me two of those dental tools they use for scraping plaque. Her thinking was they could be used to remove the helmet. She was right! They worked very well.

Those are invaluable! I bought a couple of sets when I was building miniatures and now use them for all kinds of things.

 

[LoveGrowingIt]

I have made the mistake of planting too deeply so of course I have to go to the other extreme. LOL

I tend not to plant deeply enough. From what I've read and tried for myself, about 3/4 of an inch works well. The idea is to let the soil moisten the hull (pericarp?) so it comes off easier.

 

[Newty]

I tend not to plant deeply enough. From what I've read and tried for myself, about 3/4 of an inch works well. The idea is to let the soil moisten the hull (pericarp?) so it comes off easier.

I had to aid a few of mine this time, this usually never happens to me.

I didn't realize until you said this that my tap roots were a little longer then normal when I planted this time so I didn't plant them as deep, must be why I had the shell problem!