Medium should be light, porous and well aerated. There are so many formulas out there that would work depending on what you have or have access to. For starters, a pre-bagged "cactus" mix with perlite added to make up about 1/3 of the volume will be OK until the seedlings would need to be transplanted. You can soak the seeds for a few hours in warm water first, then plant them on the surface and lightly sprinkle some mix on top. Keep the pots sealed for about 48 hrs in plastic. Open the seal a couple times daily if possible to let some fresh air inside. The biggest enemy is mold and fungus. A fungicide in advance helps prevent it. Full sun is not needed in the beginning, bright light is adequate. Do a google search for "growing adenium from seed". The instructions are essentially the same as for Pachys. Fresh seed germinates quickly (within a few days). Old seed may not germinate at all. Temps in excess of 80oF seem to lead to quicker germination. In my opinion, unless you are sowing hybrid seed and are curious about the outcome, or you are sowing in masses for commercial purposes, I think money is better spent on buying some seedlings - all the work is done for you, you don't have to worry about failure and they are not expensive. Good luck! x

Your seeds have already germinated. Once the radicle is outside of the seed, it has germinated. A radicle isn't a root. The plant will always grow in the right direction due to built in mechanisms to sense gravity. You don't have to worry about it.

I seem to get much better luck with Phoenix canariensis than the true date (either from seed or the adult plant). I think the true date probably wants drier conditions (in soil and air). Have a row of canariensis palms in the back all grown from seed. Seem to germinate well even without bottom heat (which of course helps). Washingtonias (robusta and filifera) are also very easy but I have better success with the robusta (think filifera also prefer drier conditions). Nucifera also germinated for me (not from store-bought coconut),but you do have to be patient (took 6 months w.o. bottom heat at room temp.).

I had some parlor palm seeds given to me and the germination was erratic. It seems like they took from 1 month to 3 months and they are fairly slow growing. You can buy a small 3-4" pot of them at walmart of Home Depot, etc. for $1.99. But it is fun to grow from seed. I think your egg carton will be to shallow. Go to to the store or keep your eye out for some cheap plastic 16 ounce drinking cups and use them to start your seeds. Since your in college you can probably pick up several cups at your next kegger. lol. drill holes in the bottom or cut hole in the bottom. fill them up 7/8 of the way with a good draining potting soil, add you seeds, put a thin layer of soil on top and water well. no problem.