Best way to germinate for clay pebble hydro

[celticseas]

Good afternoon,

I was given a hydro system and would like to try my hand at it using clay pebbles as my medium. I have grown in dirt for personal use over the years, but never hydro. The question I have is concerning germinating seeds. Do I use what I have been doing (e.g. paper towel), start them in a small pot with coco, or soil, or peat moss, then remove the seedling, wash and put it into the clay pebbles? To me that seems like it would damage the young plant. Do I start it in rock wool, then place the rook wool seedling into the hydro clay pebble pot, rock wool and all? I'd prefer not to use a medium that could transmit bugs into the hydro system, any advice would be much appreciate. I've searched the internet, and our hydro shop doesn't appear to have any ideas.

Thank you,
John

 

[Roy Growin]

Yes, paper towels/coco is good
When you put it into pebbles it takes a while but BOOM!

 

[Bob Loblaw]

I've started them in small coco cups and transplanted into clay, I shook most of the coco off then placed them high up on top of my pellets and covered. I got a little coco washout in the first tank but all was clean after the initial rinse.

The answer is all of the above will work, the braver ones among us go strait from paper towel to the clay pellets. I'm shy I don't care for the paper towel thing at all however I do like to soak the seeds for 18 hours first.

I found that the starting in cups gave me a nice root system to work with at transplant. All that said I ain't a grow guru.

 

[Dr Fish]

What type of system were you given? If it's a Waterfarm with a top feed drip ring you're good to go with a sprouted seed... If it's a bubble bucket I'd say a rapid rooter or something similar.. Even a small plant a couple weeks old if you wash off the roots.. Either one of those you'll have to top water many times a day till the roots are coming out the bottom of the basket.... Then the bottom will need to be right at the water level to start.. The bigger the volume of hydroton the longer it will take.. The more info you include with your questions, the better answers you'll get..

 

[Smokey0418]

Just a personal opinion, I use oasis cube, it’s a neutral substance that hold water almost the same as rookwool without the acidity.
Would not use anything else for my seeds or cuttings.

 

[sneekymofo]

For what it’s worth: I soak until they sink, wrap in a paper towel and keep in dark/cool place until taproot, then to rinsed pH’d rockwool in greenhouse until roots clear rockwool. Then into hydroton (clay pebbles). Never had a problem as long as the bean sprouts…. Hope that helps and good luck!

 

[RikBrik]

For what it’s worth: I soak until they sink, wrap in a paper towel and keep in dark/cool place until taproot, then to rinsed pH’d rockwool in greenhouse until roots clear rockwool. Then into hydroton (clay pebbles). Never had a problem as long as the bean sprouts…. Hope that helps and good luck!

Im going to try this method after doing heaps of research, has it still been working well in the dwc bubble system?

 

[SamSmith]

I have used coco and Rockwool cubes. If you are top feeding to keep things wet the coco method works. The rockwool holds water when they are seedlings. You just have to soak the cubes to combat the PH.
It is kinda slow going until the roots hit the water. Then it's game on.

 

[PGA Caddie]

Rapid Rooters