Germinating help

[calpotatoefan14]

hi all so i planted sun gold and red cherry seeds about aweek ago everythings like ive watched and read i.e watered with spray bottle to keep the soil moist and warm room for seeding but nothing is sprouting should i leave for a few more days or start over?

 

[Chuck]

From what you have said it seems as if you are doing everything correctly. But, I have a question or two. How deep did you plant the seeds? When you spray water on the soil how deep does the moisture go? At time of planting did you completely wet the soil? You said the room was warm but what is the temperature and are the seeded containers on a heat mat? You said about a week ago. How many days is that?
My tomato seeds sprout between 3 and 7 days depending on the variety. I try to keep the soil temperature between 78F-82F. Before planting the seeds I completely saturate the soil. I put the seeds on the top and sprinkle about 1/4 inch of soil covering the seeds. I gently pat down the soil making good seed to soil contact. I then spray the dry soil on the top until moist and then cover the containers with Saran Wrap. By doing this I never have to water until the seeds sprout. When they sprout I remove the Saran Wrap and put the sprouts under artificial light. If yours haven't sprouted within 10 days I would start over.

 

[ThatsMyPurseIDontKnowYou]

From what you have said it seems as if you are doing everything correctly. But, I have a question or two. How deep did you plant the seeds? When you spray water on the soil how deep does the moisture go? At time of planting did you completely wet the soil? You said the room was warm but what is the temperature and are the seeded containers on a heat mat? You said about a week ago. How many days is that?
My tomato seeds sprout between 3 and 7 days depending on the variety. I try to keep the soil temperature between 78F-82F. Before planting the seeds I completely saturate the soil. I put the seeds on the top and sprinkle about 1/4 inch of soil covering the seeds. I gently pat down the soil making good seed to soil contact. I then spray the dry soil on the top until moist and then cover the containers with Saran Wrap. By doing this I never have to water until the seeds sprout. When they sprout I remove the Saran Wrap and put the sprouts under artificial light. If yours haven't sprouted within 10 days I would start over.

Not much I can really add to this.

 

[calpotatoefan14]

so i planted on the 4th about 1/4 inch deep in to quite damp compost but i got myself a moisture meter and its always been high end of green/moist towards wet and i spray every morning making sure its moist about half an inch down and kept in my kitchen at around 22/23 celcius

 

[ThatsMyPurseIDontKnowYou]

so i planted on the 4th about 1/4 inch deep in to quite damp compost but i got myself a moisture meter and its always been high end of green/moist towards wet and i spray every morning making sure its moist about half an inch down and kept in my kitchen at around 22/23 celcius

Did the seeds come from the same place? Did you order them in the mail and they came in the same envelope?

I've gotten bum seeds before. Maybe they are old. Or went through a mail sorter that crushed them.

 

[calpotatoefan14]

i bought them from where i work just your typical packet in an envelope should i try somewhere else?

 

[ThatsMyPurseIDontKnowYou]

i bought them from where i work just your typical packet in an envelope should i try somewhere else?

might be worth grabbing a chopstick or something and digging around in the soil and find some of the seeds and see if they've sprouted at all.

 

[Chuck]

I have been in a vegetable garden for over 70 years and I have NEVER seen an accurate or reliable moisture meter. IMO you have kept the seeds too wet and they have rotted. On the other hand your soil temperature is minimal. The cooler the soil is the longer it takes to germinate and the longer it takes to germinate the likelihood of something going wrong increases. To make things easier and simpler get a propagating mat and a good soil thermometer. I would give it another day or two and if there is no sign of germination start over.