Method one: paper towel
Fold a paper towel into quarters, dampen it with distilled or filtered water (not tap), place 2 to 5 seeds inside, fold it shut, and put it inside a sealed plastic container or a zip bag with a little air left in it. Keep it in a warm dark place at 70 to 80°F. Check daily.
Most seeds crack and show a taproot within 1 to 3 days. A few take up to 7 days. Once the taproot is about 5 mm to 10 mm long, move the seed to soil, taproot pointing down, buried about 5 mm to 10 mm deep. Cover gently. Do not pack the soil.
Method two: direct to soil
Skip the paper towel entirely. Dampen your soil thoroughly, poke a 5 mm hole, drop the seed in pointed end up (if you can tell), cover gently, and keep the surface lightly moist. Use a humidity dome or an upside-down plastic cup for the first few days. Sprouts come up in 3 to 8 days.
Direct-to-soil has slightly lower germination rates than paper towel for most growers because you cannot see what is happening. Its advantage is you skip the transplant shock from moving a freshly-cracked seed.
Method three: cup of water
Drop the seed in a small cup of room-temperature filtered water. Wait 12 to 24 hours. Floaters that have not sunk after 24 hours can be helped down by tapping. Once the seeds sink, transfer to paper towel or soil. This is a useful first step for seeds that look dry or old. It is rarely used as the only method.
Why germination fails
The two most common causes of failure are planting too deep (the sprout exhausts its energy reserves trying to reach the surface) and temperatures too cold (under 65°F slows or stops germination). Old seeds (anything past 2 to 3 years from a reputable seller, stored at room temperature) also drop in viability sharply. Refrigerated seeds keep longer, but condensation when you take them out is a risk.
Bad seeds look pale, white, green, or crack when squeezed. Good seeds are dark brown to almost black, often with stripes or a turtle-shell pattern, and feel firm. Cracking pressure tests destroy the seed, so only crush one you are sure is dead.
Heads upPlant seeds 5 to 10 mm deep, not deeper. The single most common new-grower mistake is burying the seed too far. The sprout runs out of stored energy before reaching the surface and dies underground.
First two weeks after sprouting
Once the seedling breaks the surface, give it 18 hours of light a day at about 50% intensity on your LED. The seedling does not need full power yet and full power will stress it. Keep humidity at 65 to 75%. Do not feed nutrients for the first 1 to 2 weeks. A good soil already has what the seedling needs.