Need info cracking 25 year old seeds?

[Beachwalker]

Found some seeds that are at least 25 years old. I'm not positive these are from my old grow, but they very likely are, and if so there's a good chance they're real Skunk#1

There's a possibility they could be much older than 25yrs., and they could possibly be legitimate Colombian Gold seeds from the mid 70's

Less likely but there's also a possibility that they're from a bag that I bought, liked and saved, that would make them 15 - 25 years old

Unfortunately they were stored at room temperature all these years

Seeking information from people who have successfully cracked seeds in this condition
-thank you in advance

 

[One drop]

I’d soak a few and see if they pop ..... you got a enough , ive grown from seed that was 7 years old 3 out of the five cracked 1 out of the 3 survived killer weed . Nothing ventured.....

 

[Brotofsky]

I just did this, a buddy gave me 20ish yr old seeds. Only 1 of about 25 popped and has been a finicky PITA, but I’m sticking with it. I just did the paper towel in a zippy method. Good luck!!

 

[rayi]

I read some where that if you line a small box with sandpaper and shake the seeds in it the outer coat will allow water in without damaging the seed

 

[Cattapilla]

Wow, good luck! It should be fun no matter what method you try! Maybe send a couple to friends to also try germinating. Spread the wealth.

 

[PipeCarver]

I read some where that if you line a small box with sandpaper and shake the seeds in it the outer coat will allow water in without damaging the seed

I read here somewhere as well that some will use a fine grit sandpaper and gently sand the seeds if they're old.

 

[mancorn]

I read some where that if you line a small box with sandpaper and shake the seeds in it the outer coat will allow water in without damaging the seed

You can also soak them in hydrogen peroxide or hot water. (I think the water should be around 180, but should double check online.) Then just float then in a shot glass until they sink. Might take a few days if they're super stubborn. Once they sink, plant (and skip the paper towel drill).

 

[BurnzYzBudZz]

Wow, good luck! It should be fun no matter what method you try! Maybe send a couple to friends to also try germinating. Spread the wealth.

 

[mancorn]

I've read they've found 5000 year old date palms and they grew, so a 20 year old seed is nothing!

Edit: I just Googled and they were only 2000 years old. Still that's pretty old.

 

[MIMedGrower]

I have been planting 20 year old seeds here and there. Always seems temp and moisture level need to be consistant. Fresh seeds seem to pop easier and in wider range.

I like 77 degrees and a moist but not soggy coffee filter in an open baggie in the dark.

Here is my little setup. Hydrofarm heat mat and controller. Black tortilla warmer. Sandwich baggie and coffee filter.

 

[Dirtbag]

Look into gibberellic acid seed treatments. I believe its 250ppm Ga3 in distilled water. Soak the seeds for 12hrs. Supposed to be helpful for starting old or stubborn seeds. Not sure what the concentration of Ga3 is to get 250ppm but I'm sure you could find it on google.

 

[MIMedGrower]

Look into gibberellic acid seed treatments. I believe its 250ppm Ga3 in distilled water. Soak the seeds for 12hrs. Supposed to be helpful for starting old or stubborn seeds. Not sure what the concentration of Ga3 is to get 250ppm but I'm sure you could find it on google.

I wanted to ask you if you ever heard this. The breeder at Ch9 told me to avoid Ga3 and other hormone products with feminized seeds. He said they can reverse easier when started that way.

He said no “small medicine bottle products” for feminized seedlings.

I have always followed his advice so I never used a root stimulant.

 

[Dirtbag]

I wanted to ask you if you ever heard this. The breeder at Ch9 told me to avoid Ga3 and other hormone products with feminized seeds. He said they can reverse easier when started that way.

He said no “small medicine bottle products” for feminized seedlings.

I have always followed his advice so I never used a root stimulant.

For feminized seeds I'm not sure, but I would likely heed that advice. Feminized seed is something I dont play with too much. But I know Ga3 is pretty widely used for starting stubborn regular seeds of all different plant species.

 

[quirk]

Scuff them and give 'em a twelve hour soak in Liquid Seaweed. If they're viable, they'll pop.

 

[Beachwalker]

Wow lots of info! Going to read straight through when I pour my last cup of coffee after dinner later, thanks for the input hope to hear more, I really hope these crack!

 

[Jimster]

If they are the old skunk, I'll trade a couple of Matanuska Thunderf**k's! They look more like a skunk with the tiger striping... the old Colombian seeds were usually just brown, not fat and sassy. I have some very old seeds that still pop, although not nearly as well as decades ago. There IS a lot of great advice on this thread, although I never went any more high tech than the paper towel/ziplock method. I hope you have great results!

 

[Beachwalker]

If they are the old skunk, I'll trade a couple of Matanuska Thunderf**k's! They look more like a skunk with the tiger striping... the old Colombian seeds were usually just brown, not fat and sassy. I have some very old seeds that still pop, although not nearly as well as decades ago. There IS a lot of great advice on this thread, although I never went any more high tech than the paper towel/ziplock method. I hope you have great results!

I didn't want to get my hopes up but they really do look similar to the old skunk seeds and I found them in a place where it looks like I took some effort to keep them safe

 

[tobh]

I recently saw a post about making a pressurized germination canister. I'll see if I can dig up the thread (I think it was on here). Supposed to offer phenomenal results, especially on old seed stock. Lots of other good info here already, though.

 

[ludacris]

A friend recently tried some old ones stored at room temp in a draw and a few popped their tails and stopped, some were just duds, some seedlings came deformed and stunted, some just opened their first leaves and stopped. I think he mentioned heat helped and I'm guessing a dome might have helped the seedlings but who knows... He gave up in the end but I wish you the best of luck.

I've also heard of the 'scuffing box' sandpaper method and pre-soaking in a weak solution of hydrogen peroxide for I think 12/24 hrs before using paper towel method, but never tried it myself.

(I was on some site just before, forget the name now, where Gypsy Nirvana was auctioning off old beans cheap but saying they were hit and miss....)

If any do pop make sure you tell folk you found them at a duran duran concert in a weed bag and it was the only one with a halo attached and 3 wise men came bearing gifts, and a shooting star flew overhead, and don't forget I was with you....

 

[Beachwalker]

A friend recently tried some old ones stored at room temp in a draw and a few popped their tails and stopped, some were just duds, some seedlings came deformed and stunted, some just opened their first leaves and stopped. I think he mentioned heat helped and I'm guessing a dome might have helped the seedlings but who knows... He gave up in the end but I wish you the best of luck.

I've also heard of the 'scuffing box' sandpaper method and pre-soaking in a weak solution of hydrogen peroxide for I think 12/24 hrs before using paper towel method, but never tried it myself.

(I was on some site just before, forget the name now, where Gypsy Nirvana was auctioning off old beans cheap but saying they were hit and miss....)

If any do pop make sure you tell folk you found them at a duran duran concert in a weed bag and it was the only one with a halo attached and 3 wise men came bearing gifts, and a shooting star flew overhead, and don't forget I was with you....

I think that's the Chemdog story!? LOL