Chilli seeds haven't germinated

[Mitzi]

Yay, congratulations!

Last year I tried sowing in Jiffy 7s and directly in seed compost in the propagator, but I prefer to use kitchen roll because then I can see as soon as something happens. It's the only method I'm using this year.

[Ikz]

I've seen it on YouTube but never tried it. Any success so far with the kitchen roll method? And how long from putting them in the kitchen roll to putting them in to soil?

[Mitzi]

What I do is:
1. Soak the seeds for 8-10 hours or until they sink, whichever is the longer
2. Put seeds onto damp kitchen roll, inside a plastic takeaway box, put the lid on and put it in a warm place (airing cupboard)
3. Check daily (who am I kidding; I check at least 3 times a day)
4. When they start to sprout remove the individual ones into Jiffy 7s. (There's no need to use Jiffy 7s, you can put them in soil in a pot or seed tray or whatever is your preference.)

It's impossible to say how long. How long is a piece of string? Some varieties pop in three or four days, others take several weeks. I used to transfer them as soon as they started to grow the root but now I wait another day or two until I can see that they are making a real go of it; I've found that some seeds start to sprout but then seem to give up and it doesn't amount to anything. But don't leave them too long or the root will attach to the kitchen roll and there's a risk of damaging it when removing. Sometimes it takes another two to three days after putting them in the Jiffy 7 before they actually manage to get the stem and leaves up.

It works really well for me, because I like to see the instant when they start to grow. It's more labour intensive than sowing them directly because there's an extra stage involved, so it's not for everyone. I've had much higher germination rates than last year when I sowed some directly, but that could be purely down to the quality and freshness of the seed and nothing to do with the sowing method. I haven't conducted side-by-side tests of the different methods.

I've sown some more seeds yesterday and today so I'll try to take photos to see how they go.

[Scarlet]

I used to germinate my chilli seeds on kitchen roll.
(I still do do with French beans and runners because I can’t leave them in the GH as mice eat the seed! Saves having loads of pots in the house)
... but I found with chillies and peppers that I had better germination rates with sowing direct into warm soil in individual modules in a heated prop.

[Mitzi]

Just goes to show, Ikz, that you just have to try various methods until you find the one that works best for your particular circumstances.

[Scarlet]

.....and don't tell the OH but my compost goes in the warming oven beforehand

[AmateurOne]

Hi All,

As a relative newcomer what variety of Chillis would you recommend?

Looking for fair cropping variety with either mild to hoot or both varieties.

Thanks in advance

[Mitzi]

.....and don't tell the OH but my compost goes in the warming oven beforehand

That is a really good tip. Last year I potted some up into compost that I'd just brought in from the shed (in cold weather.) The seedlings pretty much collapsed. They did all recover but it was touch and go and I think it set them back a bit.

[Scarlet]

Hello and welcome to the vine AmateurOne ....we love chilli growers

Before everyone starts giving you their favourites - can you tell us a bit more, do you have a propagator, or will you just be germinating on the windowsil, do you have a greenhouse, or will you be putting them outside to grow on?

[Mitzi]

Hi All,

As a relative newcomer what variety of Chillis would you recommend?

Looking for fair cropping variety with either mild to hoot or both varieties.

Thanks in advance

There are a few suggestions on the Growing and Overwintering thread where someone asked a similar question:

http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...-2018-a-2.html

[Scarlet]

That is a really good tip. Last year I potted some up into compost that I'd just brought in from the shed (in cold weather.) The seedlings pretty much collapsed. They did all recover but it was touch and go and I think it set them back a bit.

The easiest thing to do is set out your pots and leave them in the propagator for a day or so before sowing, or leave your compost in the house for a few days - but I'm usually last minute!

[jackarmy]

^^^^^ Thats what i normally do for sowing this early, a smallish bag of decent mcp against a radiator for a day or two, then in the prop for a day, still fail though

[AmateurOne]

Hello and welcome to the vine AmateurOne ....we love chilli growers

Before everyone starts giving you their favourites - can you tell us a bit more, do you have a propagator, or will you just be germinating on the windowsil, do you have a greenhouse, or will you be putting them outside to grow on?

Hi, and thanks for the welcome.

I have an heated propagator and a heated greenhouse. Plans are to grow three or four in the greenhouse together with tomatoes. Ideally I'd like to start them early so assume using the heated propagator?

[AmateurOne]

There are a few suggestions on the Growing and Overwintering thread where someone asked a similar question:

http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...-2018-a-2.html

Thanks. I'll have a look