How long to germinate Rocoto?

15 years ago

I bought some seeds from a Peruvian vendor on Ebay. I've had them germinating in coffee filters in an egg incubator set at 85 degrees for 5 weeks. They did get dry for part of a day, but besides that I've been babying them. Is it time to give up on them? They still look good, as in, no mold or anything growing on them. How long do I wait?

I just placed an order with Peppergal, but should I throw in the towel on these? How long should this take?

Thanks!

Featured Answer

Mokinu

9 years ago

I planted red Peruvian Rocotos from eBay on 5 Jan 2015, and the first one broke the soil today (10 days later). I used clay-loam topsoil, which I had baked to kill diseases (peppers don't seem to mind it). I made sure it didn't dry out. I kept it far enough away from the widow sill that it wouldn't get cold. The room is heated. It got window light and light from a couple regular e27 CFLs (not marketed as grow lights; probably 2500k, and about 15-22 watts each). I did soak the seeds in hydrogen peroxide and water for over an hour before planting. I rinsed the seeds off before planting to get rid of the excess organophosphates in the hydrogen peroxide. My elevation is 2,260 ft. I live in western Idaho. I'm just growing them in a red disposable cup (18 fl oz). No drainage. With my soil, the top doesn't get waterlogged after the first day, though, as it gets hard. I probably fertilized it a little with 18-18-21 Miracle Grow tomato water soluble fertilizer.

The seeds I ordered arrived rather quickly after I ordered them. I checked eBay's information about ordering foreign seeds. It is legal to order Peruvian pepper seeds in the USA (or was when I checked). The same is probably not true of some countries.

I'm not recommending this setup to you. I'm just telling you what I did, so you know. Most people would probably recommend drainage, loose soil, 5000k to 7000k lights (much greater than 22 watts each, though) and such. I find that plants seem to be stronger if you use some topsoil instead of just potting soil, though.

This post was edited by Shule on Fri, Jan 16, 15 at 23:54

Comments (10)

kutang_tang
15 years ago
Fly those bugga's 5 weeks?
brien_nz
15 years ago
My own experience with commercial seed was 5 out of 6 germinated over a period from 10 to 13 days. With fresh seed, 70 seeds (from one pod)! started germinating after 3 days. I ended up with a total of about 60 plants (too many to count) .
Brien
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kj_57701
15 years ago
I started 6 Rocotto seeds late last year. This is what I got:
04/07: planted
04/16: First visible sign of life. 1 sprouted
04/17: 2 Rocotto's
04/20: 5 Rocotto's

I don't have any more pictures of the Rocotto's. I don't remember if the 6'th and last one made it. But, it sure looks like 9-13 days is the norm.

In essense, I've got exactly the same observation as brien_nz.
milehighgirl
Original Author
15 years ago
Thanks, As soon as I get my new seeds I'll start them. I wish I hadn't wasted my time with the other ones. Some seeds I've gotten from Ebay sellers were terrific, but I guess not these.
dvdgzmn
15 years ago
Yeah, I started a small batch of rocottos recently. Germination was only about 50%, but they all popped up within 2 weeks or so.
smokemaster_2007
15 years ago
yellow manzano.2 1/2 yr. old plant.3 in aug.

{{!gwi}}

{{!gwi}}

Ecuador pubescens

{{!gwi}}
northeast_chileman
9 years ago
While I don't know eBay's policy I do know USDA/APHIS rules. They require a phytosanitary certificate for importing plants & plant products (seeds) in bulk. They do allow small quantities of seeds to be imported if the sender gets a Small Lots of Seed Permit
Mokinu
9 years ago
Does the permit not refer to the seller rather than the buyer, though?

I was not talking about eBay's policy, but rather what is legal. Here's the document I was referring to (which says pepper seeds don't have restrictions, although it has nothing to do with permits):

http://www.aphis.usda.gov/import_export/plants/manuals/ports/downloads/plants_for_planting.pdf

This post was edited by Shule on Fri, Jan 16, 15 at 18:53
seysonn
9 years ago
I have sown 12 varieties on 1/13/15 : Red Rocoto is one of them.
I will let you know when they sprout.
Last year I sprouted Manzano from donated pods. As far as I can remember it was normal.

Seysonn