Cup for Pre-soaking / Germinating Seeds

Some seeds need special conditions to germinate. This is true especially for seeds from tropical plants. They require high temperature and humidity for several days or weeks. If you want to pre-soak such seeds at home you need to water them regularly not to let them dry. Usually the seeds are placed on a cotton pad soaked in water. However, if the water is too much and above the seeds they may drown. This device helps to ensure the optimal level of water for your seeds. We used it to plant some seeds of Murraya.

You will need two plastic cups with different diameters. The smaller cup will go into the big one and float inside.

Several small pieces of cork sheet

A stick of melting silicone glue

A stripe from fabric

Several cotton pads

Murraya seeds

Melt the silicone glue with a candle and stick the cork on the fabric. If the fabric is on a warm plate the glue will stick better.

The ring will be put around the bottom of the small cup and it is important to fit tight. Measure the diameter of the small cup on the bottom and glue the two ends of the fabric in order to make a ring. For the small / internal cup you should choose one of a light material. Cut it if it's higher than 3-4 cm. Punch several small holes on it's bottom in order to water to get inside.

Fit the cup into the ring. Now it's time to test and tune the device. Put it into water and watch the level inside. It should be enough to cover one cotton pad but no more than that. If it is too low you should put the ring higher. If it is too high you can use another bigger piece of cork or two and put it to the bottom.

Fill the big cup with water and place the small cup in it. The seeds are between two cotton pads in the small cup.

After the soaking period plant the seeds in soil. On the last picture you can see our big Murraya that produced the seeds.

Have fun and happy planting!