Uneven germination & growth: uniformity issues

Are you experiencing some uniformity issues with your seedlings? Are they germinating unevenly, or are some young plants growing faster than others? Inadequate preparation of your substrate before filling your trays might be at the root of this problem.

When all your seedlings get an even start in life and are treated exactly the same, they should grow in a uniform manner. There’s no uneven germination and growth will occur at the same rate. That means your cultivation should look like this: 

As you can see all seedlings have germinated at the same time and the plants are growing at an equal rate. This results in consistent plant quality. Because they are all in the same growth stage, they all have similar needs. That makes it easier for growers to tend to every plant’s needs and grow efficiently.  

However, if your seedlings look like the picture below, you should evaluate your actions. 

Uneven germination

As you can clearly see, not all seeds have germinated, and some plants have grown larger than others. 

When you are sure your irrigation and environmental conditions are up to their standards, you might need to rethink the way you prepare your substrate before use. 

When the substrate is not pre-wetted and mixed well before the trays are filled, not all seedlings get the same support. If the mix has been too dry when the trays were filled, the re-wetting during irrigation is not going according to plan. Germination will not be uniform when you have dry spots in your trays. 

Check out this article if you want to know more about adequately preparing your substrate before use.