The Sweet Success Cukes I planted under the lights last Saturday shot up, and I mean SHOT_UP, in a mere three (3) days.

I did soak the seeds for ~ 48 hours before planting.

The Gotch

@Cornelius_Gotchberg Soaked in plain water or something else?

Cornelius_Gotchberg wrote: ↑Sat Apr 09, 2022 7:34 am The Sweet Success Cukes I planted under the lights last Saturday shot up, and I mean SHOT_UP, in a mere three (3) days.

I did soak the seeds for ~ 48 hours before planting.

The Gotch

Soak the seeds for 48 hours?

Either your seeds first went on a 2 day drinking binge with Eddie Murphy and Nick Nolte, or my math says it basically was a 5 day germination.

@pondgardner; "Soaked in plain water or something else?"

Just plain water, I always soak the huskier seeds--cuke, zuke, & squarsh.

@Tormato; no math, other than the usual, involved.

https://gifquotes.com/q/57dab942cd26cd0056d9b80a

I always start the timer when they're committed to the soil, and rolling average sprouting is > one (1) week, ergo, this year was breakneck speed.

Last year I had to replant the Sweet Success once, and the Diva twice, and it was a HORRIBLE cuke year; worst ever.

The Gotch

I got cukes to sprout even faster - soaking 12 hours in 250 ppm GA-3, they were up less than 24 hrs later. Other cucurbits also benefited from that, even bitter melons, though they still were the slowest.

Saved seeds were fast,but the cukes keep getting smaller and smaller.
Suyo long.
I may just go with store bought seeds this time.
Pointy side down.

@pepperhead212; "Other cucurbits also benefited from that, even bitter melons, though they still were the slowest."

Slower than twelve (12) hours...? Oy; the horror...

@slugworth; "Pointy side down."

Personal preference or empirically verified?

The Gotch

pointy side is where the root comes out.
think of folded leaves popping the helmet to escape.

@slugworth;"pointy side is where the root comes out."

In my best Johnny Carson voice: https://imgflip.com/i/2fgfyc

"think of folded leaves popping the helmet to escape."

Learning All The Time...

The Gotch

Pointy side down, learning something new all the time.

Many years ago, A Master Gardener told me that if you had no info on how to plant a seed, he recommended to plant it at a depth that is 1X to 2X the widest length of the seed, and plant it flat. It works OK for many large flatish seeds, but not for roundish and much smaller seeds like peas and brassicas. Pointy side down does have practical or rather impractical limitations. I'm now up to 90+ varieties of cucumbers to trial this year. I usually toss in 3 seeds to a hole when I'm low on a variety, 4 or 5 if I have lots of seeds. I couldn't imagine precisely placing 300+ seeds pointy side down.

I didn't realize either that it could matter which way seeds could be planted to get a little head start on germination, even corn and beans, unless you are planting cannabis seeds or in zero gravity.

https://underwoodgardens.com/seed-orien ... rmination/

https://thecannabisstraindirectory.com/ ... p-or-down/

https://www.npr.org/sections/krulwich/2 ... ay-is-down

For tomato seeds I like to plant a little deeper to avoid helmet head.
More pushing during the birth process through the soil /friction.
Also part of the survival of the fittest mode.
BTW you can also clone cuke plants once they send out feelers.
Top em and plant the cutting in warm wet soil.
I use translucent 16oz solo cups no drainage to keep track of root progress.

Tormato wrote: ↑Sat Apr 09, 2022 7:07 pm I'm now up to 90+ varieties of cucumbers to trial this year. I usually toss in 3 seeds to a hole when I'm low on a variety, 4 or 5 if I have lots of seeds. I couldn't imagine precisely placing 300+ seeds pointy side down.

Piece of masking tape.

@Tormato; "I'm now up to 90+ varieties of cucumbers to trial this year."

HeyZeus Alou! How much Terra Firma do you's have under plow?

The Gotch

that's takes a lot of fence to grow them on.
In the good old days my mother used to let them sprawl on the ground.
Forget doing that nowadays,vermin even get the low hanging ones.

slugworth wrote: ↑Sat Apr 09, 2022 3:50 pm Saved seeds were fast,but the cukes keep getting smaller and smaller.
Suyo long.
I may just go with store bought seeds this time.
Pointy side down.

I lied
pointy side up
I planted seeds myself and caught the mistake.
the blunt end is where the roots pop out.
I have some with roots above ground and had to manually correct the orientation.

2 days on the heat tray and they were up saved seeds

The Sweet Success Cuke leaves are as big as pie plates; blooming-n-sending out tendrils looking...um...fruitlessly...for something to latch onto, ergo...
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...they and the Divas will (Lord willin') get planted today. Trying something new by planting them leaning away from the raised bed so's I can plant tomatoes elsewhere.
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The Gotch

in the past I have done hanging baskets and the cukes latched on to the sat tv cable.
You can spot hanging cukes from a distance to see if it is take out the salad bowl time.
Those were clone plants from cuttings.