Seed #16 - Radicle

That's a toothpick next to the seed for scale.

Seed #15 - Sprout Turning Upwards

Not the best close-up, but good enough to show what's going on.

Seed #13 - He Is... No More

I mustn't have taken a photo of #13 on his deathbed, but don't feel like you're missing out, it wasn't that great of a passing, he just fell asleep and never woke up...

Seed #13
05/14/2007 - 05/25/2007
Survived by hundreds of brothers and sisters

Seed #3 - The "Toothpick Method"

After so much success with seed #14, I'm trying again, this time with seed #3. This one didn't lend to my new method as well as the other - it was already pointing upwards, so I had to carefully bend the sprout in half so I could pin down the seed coat. I'm hoping to see the sprout opened in the next day or so, leaving the seed coat behind.

Seed #14 - The Toothpick Method Worked!

Yesterday, this little sprout was still stuck in his seed coat. So far, those that come up with the seed have had a hard time breaking out of it, so I tried holding the seed coat down with toothpicks. Well, it actually worked! When I got home today, the seed coat was still pinned down, and the cotyledons were pointing upwards.

Seed #14 - Further Out of the Soil

By tomorrow, this should be in a mostly upright position. So far, my sprouts that emerge from the soil without their seed coats seem to be the healthiest. What's happening is, as one stands up, if its seed is buried deep enough in the soil to be held down, the rising stem and buried seed coat help pull them apart.

I thought I'd try a little experiment here. I just placed two toothpicks (not pictured) in an X across the seed coat, with the hopes to keep it pinned down as the stem stands up. Hopefully, later tomorrow, the plan will have worked, and the seed coat is laying on the soil, with the cotyledons fully exposed.

Seed #13 - Standing Tall, Cotyledons Opening

Just yesterday, this sprout was bent into the soil in an upside-down U. It's amazing what can happen in a day. This photo is a bit out of focus, but you can see how the cotyledons are paired up on either side. I expect them to open up in the next few days.

Seed #9 - More Progress With Seed Coat

I wish I could just pop off the seed coat to help out, but I think it'll fall off in the next few days on its own.

Seed #6 - Tallest of the Bunch

This seed was planted a couple weeks after my first few, but it's outgrown all of them in no time. It's a good half of an inch taller than of my other sprouts.

Seed #5 - Opened Up

Seed #4 - Secondary Leaves!

This was a very exciting find - my first sprout with well-defined secondary leaves. When these open up over the next couple weeks, this little sprout will be ready for half-strength fertilizer to help accelerate its growth. By the end of this year, there should be around six small branches with secondary leaves.

In the zoomed-out photo, you can see how the stem leans to find sunlight. This is known as phototaxis. Every morning, I rotate the seedlings so they point away from the nearest window, and when I get home from work, they're pointed back at the window.

Seed #3 - Cotyledons Emerging

A little more progress - you can see the green cotyledons poking out of the bottom of the seed coat. In a few days, they should begin to open up and push the seed coat off.

Seed #2 - May 6, 2007 - May 22, 2007

You will be missed, old friend.

Seed #15 - Radicle

I've been so busy the past few days that I let this guy grow a little more than usual in his coffee filter baggie.

Seed #14 - Seed Coat Sprout

Originally planted 5/14/07, seven days ago.

Seed #13 - Sprouting Without Seed Coat

I'm always happy to see a sprout without the seed coat. They seem to stand a better chance of opening their seed leaves this way.

Originally planted 5/14/07, seven days ago.

Seed #10 - Seed Coat Sprout

Originally planted 5/14/07, seven days ago.

Seed #3 - Seed Coat Sprout

Originally planted 5/7/07, fourteen days ago.

Seed #11 - Replanted

This sprout had managed to turn himself upside-down in the soil, aiming his radicle out of the soil. I removed it from the cel-pack and replanted it, radicle-down.