I'm gonna need some sand perhaps. For those tiny...tiny...tiny lithop and echeveria seeds.

Then I love how the tephrocactus seeds are just these monsters. They look like they MIGHT be the type of seed that wouldn't mind a light brushing of fine grit sand paper before sowing. I'll look that up before I go scritching! Lol

Edited to add: I just realized one of the gift seed packets is an adenium obesum!! I had this on my long list of wants, but really low o priority. I actually love that now I can use the free gift seeds and hopefully get this one crossed off my list. I wasnt going to be able to get to it anytime soon. :D

Wow, awesome!! You're going to be very busy! I look forward to seeing your progress.

Yes yes! I hope to be busy with seed growing. :D Stay at home disabled and easily bored. Lol I also have more lithop seeds coming and some other echeverias to sow.

I ordered so many because I have 0 faith in my ability to sprout and carry these to maturity. Lol I should be able to get a few plants out of this many seeds at least.

I'm going to laugh a lot if this ends up being easier than anticipated and i get dozens and dozens of new plants.

Looks like fun! Where did you get seeds?

I ordered mine off of etsy. Buying seeds can be a money sink with lots of less than reputable sellers. And etsy/ebay/amazon not giving a flying fig about scam seed sales.

For this order I used this shop.

http://etsy.me/2fLT6jI

Seems like a real person. Was nice enough to send me some free gift seeds for placing such a large order. Asks that you update him with how long it took the package to reach you and your germination rate. Also was quick and responsive to etsy convo messages. Shipping from him to west coast USA was 2 weeks.

For other lithop seeds I used ozlithops.com

A lot of these species I cant just find easily and/or not for a price I can justify for one plant right now. Seeds and patience may be the way to really get some unique ones into your collection.

Oh that is very interesting to know. I do wonder....

I'm glad to hear there is germination! Now lets hope they match the actual plant being sold. XD

Nice haul! Interested to see the progress of your seedlings as well. I'm currently growing various Echeveria from seed, including E. agavoides romeo and they sprouted after a couple weeks after being placed on top of c/s soil that was sifted using a kitchen sieve (just what I had on hand). Good luck!

Thank you! I'll make a new thread when the actual planting and sprouting begins.

I'm really glad to hear your echeveria seeds sprouted! I have seen a lot of trouble with sprouting echie, and it's good to hear about the successes!

Im curious. Did you flick them onto the soil? Mix with sand? Get a magnifying glass and carefully place them one by one? Lol

It has been a lot of trial and error so far with the limited info on the web and I'm still learning a lot on how to get these tiny seeds to germinate. What I did was pretty meticulous (or just plain crazy) but I dipped the tip of a metal bbq skewer in water, picked up a seed and then placed the seed on wet dirt. You can probably flick the seeds onto the dirt or sprinkle them around. I wanted them spaced out evenly, so I used the skewer.

I planted about 50-60 E. Romeo seeds in this pot last month, this photo is from yesterday. I am hoping they will all make it...

You're totally not crazy and that's exactly how I just planted some mystery cactus seeds. :D I had a problem with the seed not coming off until I gave the toothpick a hard flick...sending the seed flying anyway. Lol

That's a pretty decent germination rate! They look so healthy and I dont see any obvious fungus on the soil. Crossing my fingers for you!

I've ordered seeds from there before with decent success and I just recently made another order with them a few days ago. Good luck and happy growing.

Oooh, that site looks dangerous........I so wish I had more growing space!!!!

Good luck with the seedlings!

Steph, that looks like a great germination rate for the echeverias. You are right that thereis not a lot of information online about sowing echeveria seed, and what info there is seems to be contradictory. I have sown some eche seed too but awaiting (hopefully) germination. Did you use heat or light?

I didn't use a heat pad but the last couple of weeks it was in the high 70s to mid 80s F inside my apartment and I noticed they started sprouting at a faster rate when it was warmer. I had them on a counter w/indirect light, near the stove which may have provided some additional residual heat. But now that there are seedlings, I have them under a grow light. I found that the germination rate increased with warmer temps and by keeping the dirt extremely moist.

I am very excited today because I noticed that some of my echeveria peacockii seeds are just germinating, woop, woop. Interesting Steph what you said about the heat. We are chilly coming into Autumn here so was thinking maybe not best time to sow but give it a go. But I read on a couple of sites that echeveria will not germinate over 70 degrees. I brought mine indoors. May need to consider lights if they keep growing, which will be the next challenge!

Have you sown any of your seeds yet usagi?

Elizabeth, that's so cool you have some echie sprouts growing! I mean, I got pretty excited a few years ago when I sprouted some lettuce successfully, but some echeveria seeds? You must be chuffed as chips! Do you have plans for the multiples you grow?

I also read echeveria seeds germinate at around 68 -70 degrees. Maybe that's ideal but a little higher of temps can work? Perhaps it's a trade off of faster germination rates but lower overall germination? Some experiments need to be done. I volunteer. Lol

I havent planted mine yet. =/ Got a few more touches on the foam swamp cooler I made with my guy that involve soldering and I'm waiting on all of that from Amazon. This weekend though! Start of his vacation week, sowing lots of seeds, second grow box for the 90 degree lithop germination, and installing succulent shelves!

Good luck on the lighting! It's a confusing topic, but a simple T5 or T8 fixture and a metal storage rack, like the kind they use in kitchens, should be a good place to start!