Chilli seeds haven't germinated

[Ikz]

Hi guys

I decided to grow some chillies this year and I purchased a small unheated propagator with some coir pellets to grow my first batch. I planted a few Serrano plants and a few ring of fire chillies.

I planted them indoors on the 6th Jan and have kept them indoors near a radiator since. None of the seeds have germinated yet. I have kept a digital thermometer near them and the temperature has always ranged between 18c and 22c.

I decided to check one of the seeds yesterday as I'm impatient and noticed the seed has swelled and one of the corners is green so it looks promising and maybe it should come up in the next few days.

Does this seem about right? I know chilli's can be difficult sometimes and the times vary but it's nearly 2 weeks with nothing popping up.

Thanks

[Scarlet]

Well a radiator gets turned off and on - chillies need constant heat with temperatures above 27 ideally. They will germinate at lower temperature but it will be slow an erratic and you will get poor results - some seeds just rot away. A heated propagator is your best chance at good germination rates ( coupled with very fresh seed). Have you got an airing cupboard with a hot water tank? The top of a fridge used to get warm (I've checked my new one, that doesn't) They don't need light at this stage just a lot more heat.

[Ikz]

I don't have an airing cupboard so can't really put them there. Probably going to get a heating mat to up the temperature and get them to pop up.

[jackarmy]

a sunny widowsill ? , its only been 11 days which is early. what chillis are they? , they could take quite a while if their superhots.
reguarding a heat mat, try freeads or something for a reptile heat mat, can pick them up cheap as chips .

sorry, serano and rof, they should be fine but could still take a fortnight or so, time will tell

[Mitzi]

I know people who germinate their chilli seeds on top of the Sky box (on damp tissue on a plastic takeaway container; don't want leakage on top of electricals!) Could you try that?

18-22 deg C is a bit low but Serrano and Ring of Fire are hardly superhots so they should still germinate at that temperature, it will just take a bit longer. What you found when you excavated one seems promising so I'd just leave them.

[Mitzi]

Oh and I find coir pellets very tricky to keep moist so make sure they're not drying out.

[Mitzi]

Oh and a seed I sowed on 4th January is just showing signs of germination today so it's definitely not too late.

[Ikz]

Yeah I guess I'm just being impatient. I expected to see more when I checked up on the Serrano seed yesterday.

Bought the seeds from South Devon chilli farm so they should be good quality.

[Scarlet]

This thread is worth a read Ikz if you like your chillies
http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...8-a_95416.html
You'll get plenty of hints and tips from other chilli fans, they all love answering questions and have lots of knowledge to share - would be lovely to see your progress.

[Scarlet]

You could also try wrapping you little pots in cling film...this can help keep them warm and will stop the compost drying out.

[Ikz]

Thanks for that Scarlet. Will check that thread out, growing 5 chilli varieties this year so it will be interesting. Can't do the plastic wrap method as they're all in the propagator. Will be transplanting them to their own smaller pots when they're big enough.. still waiting on germination haha .

[Scarlet]

Patience if you could find somewhere with constant heat I'm sure it would help.....i must admit though, I'm often digging up seeds to see how they are doing!

[Ikz]

First time I'd checked on a seed like that as I'd read online that the seed could potentially have rotted or something so it was good to see the seed looked healthy. First year growing properly so I'm just lacking patience.

Planted some Jalapeno's and lemon drops too this weekend just gone. Hopefully they pop up a little quicker.

[Ikz]

Returned home from work to find one of my ROFs has sprouted! Yesss. Now for the rest!! At last haha

[Scarlet]

Hey! Well done - time to celebrate with a beer