This just in: Hydrogen peroxide decreases sprouting time in nearly all types of seeds.
I heard about it on an organic gardening group I'm on, and decided that it was well worth a try. There's not a lot about it online from what I saw in a quick search, and I've heard of an 8% solution being ideal, but the store-bought 3% is fine as well as far as I can tell in my experiments.
I have pre-soaked seeds as well as "watered" directly planted seeds with dilute peroxide to surprising result. All of the seeds have sprouted faster than expected, less than a week after only two treatments. Even the corn (avg sprout time: 18-21 days) came up in less than a week. I am now attempting the same technique with rooting plant cuttings, and I'll keep you posted on how that turns out.
From what I understand, Peroxide used to be used for nearly everything, but it fell into disuse mainly due to easier (chemical) products. It could be that the lack of information is due to it finally beginning to re-emerge as a popular household tool.
Here are a few of the links I found in a quick search;
http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/ista/sst/2003/00000031/00000001/art00008
http://www.agron.missouri.edu/mnl/60/191greenblatt.html
http://www.sciencebuddies.org/mentoring/project_ideas/PlantBio_p001.shtml
Give it a try and let me know how your experiments pan out!
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More by Kryistina ~*~ Frugal Diva Extraordinaire ~*~ |
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Comments: 17
Want to save even more money? Find some peroxide in a health and beauty store that has no other chemicals in it for about $4 for a 16oz bottle of 35% and dilute it yourself. 1 part peroxide to 5 parts water will give you an 8% dilution, and adding two more parts water to the mix won't hurt the effects any. You can mix one heck of a lot of diluted peroxide from a small bottle of strong peroxide. Not only will you save money, but you will also save the planet by conserving packaging on the things you buy. :D
It's never too late to start seeds! *grin* Early producers like radishes, beets, and carrots work great in rotational planting direct in the ground with their first watering of peroxide instead of water. The summer plantings for fall crops are already in the planning stages here as well.
Thanks for passing this on!
Anyway, thank you so very much for passing this on. By the way, has anyone tried using the Miracle Grow potting soil? If so what were your results?
Funny thing is that when I intentionally planted pumpkins nothing came up. Now I have hundreds by accident.
When sowing directly into the soil or garden, be sure to soak the dirt down to the level that the seed is in.
I prefer the TP and direct sow methods personally because sometimes I get so busy that I forget to take the seeds out of the peroxide soak on time. *sheepish grin*
I guess this means I'll have to make you a recipe book of pumpkin recipes before this fall, 'eh? Volunteer plantlings are the best kind! :D
and wow on Andrea's front yard.
She's got her own pumpkin farm in the making.
Imagine the joy in october!
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