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Nepenthes seed germination setup?

Hey, so I bought seeds online and sowed them. I placed the pots in plastic ziplock bags only to come back and see that the seeds had mold on some of them. I don't know what I should do. Should I try a different setup for the seeds or do I buy another batch of seeds, what do I do?

Please help.
 
We need an adequate description of your conditions to help you. If you got the seeds from eBay though, they were probably duds to begin with.
 
I placed the seeds in two different mediums, one is the long sphag moss that I re-hydrated with water, the other was the peat and perlite mix. I used tweezers to placed the seeds on top of the two soils. Once the seeds were done being placed on the soil, the two pots were placed into plastic ziplock bags. I sprayed some water into the bag.

Does this help at all?
 
The species will also help for advice (as some species prefer varied mediums, and obviously temps), but really a lack of air flow seems to be the major issue here.
If you can use a small fish tank (or even a clear storage box or large plastic container) and a cpu fan you will get much better results.
 
Its a nepenthes Amp.

Lights are on for nine hours most days. temp I want to say is like 65-70.
 
It's been revealed to me via private communication that these seeds were purchased from our wild-stock redistributor friend from Canada, so trying to get any to germinate by now is probably a moot point. Regardless, if any seeds were still viable, the lack of air circulation has probably done them in by now. It won't hurt to remove the moldy capsules and increase air flow, but certainly don't expect anything.
 
So I should just stick with the adult plants and forget trying with seeds?
 
Beware of seeds from ebay sellers thet are usually old and very unlikely to germinate. Nep seeds are very dirty if you do get seeds its wise to clean them before sowing, im sure someone in here has a good method of doing so :).
Goodluck hun
 
  • #10
So I should just stick with the adult plants and forget trying with seeds?

No. But do some research before buying seeds: find out who is reliable and who is not. (Most fleabay sellers are NOT) And do yourself a huge favor and obtain "locally grown" hybrid seeds of ANY kind for your first efforts, so that you aren't wasting precious species seed to learn technique on. Many members of this community offer home-bred hybrid seed for free just for this purpose. Watch for giveaways.
 
  • #11
I never know what to expect with giveaways, there was this one that had a whole box of nepenthes and I was like how bid is the box?. Because I only want one or two, not a whole box of them.
 
  • #12
Well, since you already got them, better not waste the moment.

i have all of my seeds setup the exact same way. (However, I do Not use peatmoss. Only
Chopped sphagnum). Mold will ALWAYS be a constant war. When I get moldy seeds, I simply
Grab a pair of tweezers, remove the moldy ones, and continue on. Just because a few are moldy
Doent mean the entire batch is bad... At all. Some of my best batches were plagued with various fungi in
The beginning for months, despite my daily efforts.

From there, I usually open their bags a couple times a week and humidify the inside.
This will keep the seeds moist, and encourage germination. I have shaded light
In the seedling racks, but ive only germinated highland species, so take from that
What you will
 
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  • #13
But if I get nothing after four months. Do I keep the seeds of buy new ones in the spring? Because most from what I've seen online are from south east Asia and I'm not sure if I fully trust those sellers.
 
  • #14
I never know what to expect with giveaways, there was this one that had a whole box of nepenthes and I was like how bid is the box?. Because I only want one or two, not a whole box of them.

I'm confused. If "a whole box of them" is too many, then why would you want to start Nepenthes from seed?? Assuming you do it right, you will end up with way more than one or two, I assure you.
 
  • #15
A whole box of plants not of seeds.
 
  • #17
So I don't know what to do. I was really looking forward to growing nepenthes amp.
 
  • #18
Well u could buy a N. Amp and grow that or buy seeds from a reliable source and try again. I suggest u try posting on here "looking to buy/trade" for nep seeds and see who may have some for you to practice on until u get a good method going to then try species seeds like N. Amp. I have some N. Reinwardtiana seeds that i didn't use but they are getting old since they have lower germination the older they are and the longer you wait to sow them. I wouldn't mind giving u some if u send me a sase but you would prob have to do a GA3 soak which i wouldn't mind giving you enough to do so if interested. You could try giving new N. Amp seeds if u choose to purchase again a GA3 soak and see if that helps keep the fungi low and the germination have a better chance. Pm me if interested. Thanks
 
  • #19
Do a few searches and see how people grow Nep seeds. there a re few guides here and elsewhere.

For the most part, I think Nep seeds are easy given a few simple conditions and fresh seed. I read somewhere that Neps will germinate of damp paper towel - I havent tried it but it wouldnt surprise me in the slightest.

light, warmth (definition is variable) and humidity is pretty much it I think.
my seeds dont get airflow - I do get some fungus issues - usually not. maybe I dont get perfect germination but a single pod of seeds gives you more than you can deal with. I mostly produce all my own seeds so they are typically fresh when I sow but they have germinated well after many months.
media can vary as well. my first round of germination was on sphag peat. then I tried it again and it didnt work - retrospectively, im pretty sure it was the seeds.
then I went to coco peat which I loved after sorting the kinks out.
recently I sowed the same seeds on LFS and coco peat and placed them side by side. they are just starting to come up but coco is winning so far. we will see in a few months.

As was said, get fresh local seed and try again. its easy!
you should have asked these questions before getting seeds though...
 
  • #20
This topic has been covered here any number of times on this forum; and mold issues may be easily dealt with, or prevented with some simple planning. The following was my "two cents" from another recent thread on the subject of sowing Nepenthes seed:

Sterilizing the media is a good overall preventative; but no one seems to be addressing the nature of the seed itself.

Lowland Nepenthes and even some odd highlander seed are notoriously "dirty" in terms of fungal contamination; and one of the easier methods for cleaning them, prior to sowing; or, for use in TC, involves cleaning the seed with peracetic acid or vinoxide (CH3OOOH), which can easily be prepared with household 3% hydrogen peroxide and white vinegar -- acetic acid, typically at 5% acidity. It is prepared in a 4:1 ratio of H2O2 to vinegar. The vinegar is heated to boiling in a microwave and added to room temperature H2O2. It is a powerful oxidizer and antimicrobial, but does not harm the seed.

They can be soaked for as little as an thirty minutes and sown without rinsing.

My typical compost for seed is a 2:1 mix of milled sphagnum to horticultural sand . . .
 
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