You bought beautiful Premium Pro Seeds from Suzy Seeds and of course, you want to get started. First, you have to germinate the seeds. Below, I will discuss my favorite way how to germinate cannabis seeds extensively, but also suggest other good methods. Suzy Seeds exclusively sells feminized cannabis seeds, so you don't need to remove male plants, which applies also to autoflower cannabis seeds. It's good to know that a cannabis seed does not need light to germinate. What is important, though, is a humid environment and an ambient temperature of around 20 °C. In general, there are three easy ways to germinate cannabis or marijuana seeds:

- In a cup of water

- On a damp surface

- In soil

How long does it take cannabis seeds to germinate in general? Or how do we germinate autoflowering seeds? The time of germination of marijuana seeds depends on the method of germination we apply, but autoflowering seeds germinate in the same way and time as feminized or regular cannabis seeds. 

My favorite way to germinate the seeds is to put them in a cup of water and then between a damp paper towel or tissue. This goes well in 99% of the cases. That is why I will more extensively describe this first way.

We recommend not to touch the seeds or the seedlings with your hands. If you do anyways, make sure your hands are clean and if possible use plastic gloves.

Suzy’s Tip:  Try your germintion method on a couple of seeds (maximum 3). This way, you can test if your method works well. Often a wrong germinating method is used and the seeds don't germinate. Do you want to germinate your seeds in a different way? Continue reading.

Germinating cannabis seeds in a cup of water

Maintain an ambient temperature of at least 20 °C, otherwise, the seeds will not or at least not optimally germinate. Use a clean room and area for the germination process. Fill a cup with water and put the cannabis seeds in it. After 3 to 5 days, the seeds should pop open and a tiny root should come out.

As soon as the sprout is 2 to 3 mm, you can carefully get the seeds out of the water and plant them in the soil. Planting the germinated seed has to be done with lots of care and attention. Put them 0.5 to 1 cm in the soil with the root down. This way, the root (the white sprout) will more easily grow downwards.

Germinating cannabis seeds on a damp surface

Maintain an ambient temperature of at least 20 °C, otherwise, the seeds will not or at least not optimally germinate. Put the cannabis seeds on a surface that holds moisture, like wadding, paper towel or tissues on a saucer. Moisten the surface well, but avoid making it too wet. The moisture evaporates quickly at room temperature, so check during the period that the seeds will germinate if the surface is still damp enough.

You can also cover the seeds with damp wadding or tissues and another saucer on top. Because of the moisture that gets into the seeds, they are activated and start to germinate. As soon as the germ is 2 to 3 mm, you can carefully get the seeds out of the water and plant them in the soil. Put them 0.5 to 1 cm in the soil with the root down. This way, the root will more easily grow downwards.

Germinating cannabis seeds in soil/compost

Direct germination of marijuana seeds in the soil is a commonly used method. You don't have to handle the fragile plant, so it is not disturbed in its growth process. However, the chances that the seeds will germinate are lower than when applying the other methods. When using this method, it is important to use good soil. You can inform yourself about the different types of soil at your local grow shop. Maintain an ambient temperature of at least 20 °C, otherwise, the seeds will not or not optimally germinate. Put the cannabis seed about 1 cm deep in the soil. Cover the hole with some soil and gently press.

The soil needs to be light so that the plant can easily grow to the surface. Solid soil is hard to penetrate for the roots and will cause a delay. The weed seeds will germinate under the ground and will come to the surface after 4 to 10 days. There are also more germination methods that can be applied. 

Suzy’s Tip:  

• - Be patient, the time it takes to germinate may differ according to the strain.
• - Germination of cannabis seeds in soil can differ between 2 days and up to 4 or 5 days in some cases. 
• - Make sure that your hands are clean when you touch the seeds.
• - If you spread the seeds on wadding or tissues, moisten the surface well and keep it moist until the seeds start germinating.