Were all the seeds from the same source?

I just planted my tomato seeds 15days ago - I'll let you know how they fare. Some came up in three days and some are just now peeking thru.

What kind of tomatoes are your seeds?

I use a heat lamp....they get light and heat to germinate....You could use just abount anywhere greenhouse, garage,kitchen. You can purchase them at hardware stores....run an outside extension cord I also use a radiant heater...looks like those old heaters used from way back......I also use a heat lamp for my baby chicks....just make you don't have to close to start fire....and especialy too close to your babies....baby chicks of course!!carrie

Perhaps you could keep the heating pad on them both night and day. They don't need any light until they poke their little heads up, but perhaps they are needing more constant warmth.

Keep us posted as to what happens.

I get good germination ,usually 3 to 5 days,by putting the pots in a plastic bag on top of the waterheater;some of the pots are 4" pots,some are the plastic cups of "Smart Balance" butter(which I do not like,but the lady does" which I drill holes in the bottom and on the lower sides.
I transplant to plastic drink cups after true leaves emerge.
I have been doing this for over 27 yrs ,YMMV

Sounds to me like you have some definate problems. Typically,
you should have shown at least 20% of your seeds sprouted by the 3rd day.

Let's start with the seeds. Are they new? Saved? Saved where and how? From your prior garden? It is difficult for me to imagine any conditions that would result in NO sprouts by 14 days except for two 1) You rotted good seed by over watering 2) The seed was no good for a variety of reasons. Of course, 1 and 2 could operate together. i.e., weak seed and improper sprout conditions.

I sprout my seeds on a heat mat in a cool basement. My first sprouts typically come up in 5 days, rare to get any before that. I have found a big variation in year to year, depending as Larry says, on age of seeds, variety and source. I usually start around 35 different varieties, and often 4-5 varieties have not sprouted, or have only 1 or 2 seedlings of 8 seeds planted are up in 10 days. At two weeks, I start getting nervous and start a new set of seeds. It's sort of like getting pregnant when you quit trying. Often the older seeds start popping up after the new ones, or even the same time as the new ones, so I end up with too many of the same variety. Occasionally, with traded seeds, I have had some that never did sprout, so I'm assuming they were old or perhaps damaged in shipping.

So really no way to tell for sure what your problem is. I've had some odd individual laggards sprout 3-4 weeks after planting, though you would not expect all your seeds to sprout at that late date.

I started mine germinating on Saturday night. I've put them all in a 66qt sterilite container, clear w/ a lid. So far 3 of the Genovese basil are showing little flecks of green. I'm wondering how long I can leave them in this container. They are directly under the light they will be living under for the next 6-8 weeks. I guess I'll need to seperate the ones that sprout and hang on to any that don't sprout to give them a shot.

I was the original poster...

I ordered the seeds from a seed catalog online a month ago. They're hybrids, and mid-sized (can't remember the exact name here at work.)

Yesterday it was very hot (80) and I left them outside, and 3-4 more sprouted when I got home. So, that was heartening, though total I only have like 6 things sprouted out of 72 pellets, which leads me to believe that I have done something wrong.

I'm hypothesizing that maybe I got the pellets a little too wet initially, and then it wasn't quite warm enough for them to sprout, despite my heating pad and sunny spot in the window. I wonder if that may have caused some of the seeds to rot, as people are suggesting.

So, it's supposed to be warm for 3 more days, maybe I'll keep them outside and hope for the best.

Maybe I'll try planting another tray of seedlings just in case as well...

Well, here is the best recommendation I can give you. Forget the peat pellots/pots wahatever they are.

Go buy yourself a new tray with an 18 to 36 in cup liner. Also buy a small bag of Miracle grow or any other very reputable potting soil and load your cells in the new tray.

Plant about 3 seeds per cell about 1/4" deep. Water the seeds in--do not flood the tray but surely you want the soil well moistened. I'd say maybe a bit more than a pint of water total in that tray. Buy yourself a clear plastic cover for the tray and put that into place after watering. Place under growlights or where bright sunlight can impinge on the tray. The electric warming pad will also help so long as you don't "cook" the tray to over maybe 95 degrees F.

In 3 days you should have over 20% of the cells sprouted!

I received a free packet of Akers W VA with my order from a popular online source. Its been 10 days and 63 of my 72 peat pellets have sprouted. 5 of those 9 that didnt were all 5 of my AWVA that I used. I'm wondering if that is why they were free, or whether this batch/or variety is just a slow starter...or if I drifted off during planting and never put the 3 seeds in each pellet. Did anyone else get this free packet and what were your results?

I am curious - why do you all put lids on your containers?

thanks :)

I suppose you are talking about the clear plastic tray cover I suggested. Well, it does a couple things for you. First, it holds in the water while the seeds are germinating. More specifically, it keeps the soil surface from drying and crusting, thus the seedlings stay moist and can pop up without restraint. You do not need so much water with a cover as it is recycled as it evaporates by condenscing on the underside of the cover. By using less water overall you reduce the chance of rotting the seeds. Second, it holds the heat inside the cover and at the top of the tray. This
aids in sprouting. Without a cover water more rapidly evaporates from the soil surface and since evaporation is
a cooling process the soil surface gets far cooler, dryer, and a crust forms.

Try it and see. It will improve your germination results 100% and save you time watering as you need not rewater with a cover.

However, some small problems now will result. Since you have managed to easily double the seeds that actually germinate in your trays you will be obliged to transplant and find a home for the new babies, or, and this is gut wrenching, murder them by thinning down to one biggy per cell!

Of course, when you are satisfied with your sprout, usually after 5 or 6 days, you remove the cover, commence periodic watering, and the little plants will enjoy a bit better spectrum of light which the clear covers do hold back a bit.

the tank,

I'm having trouble with Aker's WV germinating also. I didn't get mine from a seed company, but rather in a trade. It has been 12 days and now 3 of 7 have finally sprouted. Maybe that variety likes to be fashionably late?