Germination of seeds is the first step towards cannabis growth that helps you to start growing cannabis plants on the right foot. Germination is the most crucial part of cannabis growth as it decides the quality and growth cycle. 

Just like regular seeds, even auto-flowering seeds need specific germination guidelines for it to yield optimum harvest. But first let’s check out what are auto-flowering seeds.

The DNA of auto-flowering seeds

The auto-flowering seeds borrow their genetics from Cannabis Ruderalis. This type of genetics helped cannabis strains to grow in sub-optimal conditions of Russia and Siberia on their own. This trait helps the cannabis seeds to grow without any outside influence of lighting conditions. The ease of germination and harvest makes this a favorite amongst newbie cultivators. But still ,they need to follow certain concrete steps to ensure successful germination and ideal harvest.

Here’s an easy-to-understand germination guide for auto-flowering seeds that will give you the best results for your cannabis growth. 

1. Cannabis Seed: Knowing Its Anatomy

If you want to germinate auto-flowering seeds, you will have to wait for ten days to perform everything appropriately and evaluate if everything’s going well or not. 

The first thing to do before germination is to know the anatomy of the cannabis seed. You will notice a dark brown-stripped, hard shell in the seed, which protects its fragile inside from any damage. 

This key anatomy point suggests that the seed needs to get hydrated for softening the shell to make water pass to its embryo. So, you will have to hydrate the seed’s shell to activate embryo to start the development process for an auto-flowering seed. 

2. Cannabis Seeds: Best Conditions For Germination

There are some specific conditions needed for auto-flowering seeds growth depending on the various stages of the development. If you maintain these conditions efficiently, you will have a high chance of producing the best quality buds ever. 

Similarly, it is crucial to know the best conditions for the germination stage of your cannabis growth. Obviously, you can choose to grow cannabis in less ideal conditions, but they will end up with poor quality cannabis growth and unsatisfying buds. 

Germinating auto-flowering seeds in the best ideal conditions will increase the chances of sprouting and give you quick results within a few weeks. However, choosing bad conditions can adversely affect the quality of your harvest and may even result in killing your cannabis seeds. 

So, keep in mind that germination for your auto-flowering seeds must be done under ideal temperature and humid conditions. If growing outside, then there’s no issue with these conditions, but you will have to maintain the temperature between 21-26°C and humidity around 90% while growing inside. 

3. Tips And Steps To Germinate Old Cannabis Seeds

As mentioned above, the ideal conditions for germination will help you to perform a successful germination process. Still, at times the auto-flowering seeds can be old or kept in poor condition that can make the germination process complex. What then? Well, you can follow a few tips and steps to germinate your old auto-flowering seeds. 

Storing The Cannabis Seeds

If you want to store cannabis seeds for your next harvest, you will have to keep them in the best conditions. However, if you’re planning to germinate your seeds within a few days, you won’t have to put in the extra effort. You have to simply keep the seeds in a cool place with complete darkness. 

If you want to store the auto-flowering seeds for a month or so, you will have to keep them in the fridge. Firstly, you have to keep your seeds in an airtight container. Then, you can place it on a refrigerator by setting the temperature between 6-8°C along with the relative humidity of 20-30% to increase the chances of germination. Remember to the mountain this ideal condition until you are ready to harvest those seeds.

Soaking The Seeds In Supplemented Water

With the growing age of auto-flowering seeds, it becomes old and hard to germinate. This hardness of old seeds obstructs the efficient flow of water to reach the seed embryo. If water doesn’t reach the embryo, your seeds will not sprout. 

If you are dealing with such an issue, you can soak the old seeds in supplemented water to get efficient results. 

What’s supplemented water, you may ask. This is a glass of water mixed with the compound hydrogen peroxide. Now, you will have to take a glass cup full of water, add 30ml of hydrogen peroxide, mix it well, and leave the seeds on the glass to soak for about 12 hours. 

However, you must ensure to keep this glass of water with seeds at a temperature around 22°C in a cool place. You can also use germination boosters if you have some extension to your budget. 

Scarification of The Seeds

Scarification is one of the most effective methods that make ridges in the auto-flowering seeds to enable the smooth passage of water through them. 

You can apply this method to your seeds with the help of sandpaper. You have to take either a piece of sandpaper or a matchbox to rub against the seed shell and make it thin. This thin-out shell will help the water to pass easily into the embryo and start developing sprouts. 

However, remember not to rub too hard and harm the embryo.

Slightly Opening The Cannabis Seed

If you have examined the anatomy of the auto-flowering seed, you will know that it’s made of two halves along with a ridge. If you are working with old auto-flowering seeds, then the shells are probably too hard to start sprouting. 

Here, you can use a knife or some other sharp tool with a thin edge to insert it between the ridges of the seed. This will slightly open the cannabis seed and let water pass to its embryo. So, soak it in water like you usually do for germination. 

4. Paper Towel Germination Method For Auto-flowering Seed

This is one of the easiest and effective methods for germinating cannabis seeds. For the efficient implementation of this method, you will need two paper towels, water, and a container. 

Step 1: Firstly, you have to take the paper towels and moisten them. Then, wring the towels to elevate it from the stage of being completely wet. However, the towel must stay damp. 

Step 2: Now, you have to keep your seeds on the towel, fold them over, put them in a container, cover them with a lid to retain moisture, and finally place it in a cool, dark place. 

Step 3: You have to keep checking it on a daily basis and ensure to keep the towels damp for moisture retention by your auto-flowering seeds. You can spray a bit of water if required to keep the towels moist.

5. Soaking Auto-Flowering Seeds Overnight In A Bowl/Glass of Water

With suggestions from top companies like i49 and years of experimenting, we must say that soaking the seeds overnight in a bowl of water is definitely one of the most effective ways of germination. You can apply this method with a simple glass/bowl and water. 

Step 1: You will have to take a bowl or glass and fill it half with water. 

Step 2: Put your cannabis seeds on the glass/bowl and keep them in a cool, dark place. Ensure to keep the glass or bowl for 32 hours so that the seeds get soaked effectively. 

Step 3: Most feasible seeds sink within a few hours and start to develop the radicle within a few days. 

However, you must know that some auto-flowering seeds may need more time to show the radicle out. If you cannot see visible results even after 72 hours, you can add hydrogen peroxide to make the water bacteria-free. 

6. Cannabis Seeds: Directly Planting In Medium

If you want a simple solution for germinating the auto-flowering seeds, you can directly plant it on the soil medium. You can choose the soil medium of your preference, starting from soil mix to perlite. Use your little finger to make a 1-2 cm hole in the medium, place the seed, keep it moist and cover the soil.