1. How long have you waited?
2. What is the temperature? Some types of seeds like lower night temperatures, and too high day temperatures can inhibit germination (or even kill the seeds in extreme cases).
3. Do they get any light? Many species require some light to germinate.
4. What about humidity? Are they in a closed box?

been about 4 wks temp high 70"s low 80's in the day.low to mid 70's at night.They do recieve light,but not direct sunlight and the ones that said to keep covered are covered. Humidity is med to high depending on how humid our weather is, I'm in southern louisiana it's usually very humid but humidity is a lil lower since I have them inside. Window is open and ac vent covered in the room they are in. Thanks

Is there a site that has propagation instructions for the different types of cacti? I was going to try to plant all the seeds I'm getting in the same pan (with separators), but now I'm rethinking that. I'm planting Echinopsis, Trichocereus, Lobivia, Notocactus and Chamaecereus.

Would a 5oz drinking cup be big enough to start 25 seeds? That way I could move the cups out of the high humidity depending on germination times.

It sounds like the sunroom temps should be okay with no bottom heat; light is not a problem.

I'm getting excited about trying seeds again; I hope I get some fat little babies! I have a wedding to go to next week, but after that, no trips for at least a year so I'll be around to cater to them.

On my last batch, I think I was doing something wrong after they were about 6 months old because they stopped growing. They never started showing their individuality, just a few spines here and there. Should I have used a little fertilizer? Maybe they needed better growing medium at that point? They were probably Notocactus and Echinopsis. They just failed to thrive.

Hope I have better skills this time! I have you guys anyway.

Weird, something should have germinated in four weeks, light and temperature sound ok. Most seed growers (me included) cover the seeds to increase humidity, at least until they have germinated, but many keep the pots enclosed in plastic bags for a year or so. But you were instructed to only cover some of them? Which ones?

What growing medium do you use? Are the seeds lying on the surface or are they buried? (I think I'll need a photo soon ...)

'Queen of the night' - do you mean the Cereus or the real 'Queen of the night' (Selenicereus grandiflorus)? The latter is easy to grow from seed. Parodia can be easy or tricky depending on the species. The success is highly dependent on seed quality, some suppliers are known for selling seeds with extremely low germination, others are very good (most of the time).

notolover: Most species in the genera you mention are (relatively) easy to grow from seed, so I don't think you need any special instructions, just a few adjustments to your procedure. After 6 months they should have shown enough individual feature to easily be told apart, (assuming they look different enough as adults). What did you grow them in, and did they get enough light? Whether they need fertilizing or not depends on how rich they growing medium is. I start fertilizing mine with a weak fertilizer solution a few weeks after germination.

I'm thinking I didn't give them enough light and water. I took them out of the more humid conditions right after they sprouted because I was afraid they would rot.

And I should have put them outside during the summer because the sunroom isn't light enough to grow desert cacti, it's just a good place to park the tenders during the winter.

It's been a few years so I don't know what the medium was, maybe just seed starter. That might explain the lack of growth also-not enough nutrients. I guess it's okay for seeds you are going to be putting out in the garden in a few weeks, but not for cacti seedlings.

Thanks for your interest.

I they don't get enough water they shrivel up or rot the next time they are watered. I remove my seedlings from the humid germination box after a few weeks, about when I start fertilizing them, otherwise they rot (again, they seedlings do not do that for everyone).

Putting small cactus seedlings outdoors is very dangerous, they often get sunburned beyond recognition. A sunroom should be fine, it sounds more as if it is a nutrient problem.

All good to know! I'll search the forum-I'm sure there are a lot of threads about the soil for starting the seeds. Instructions came with my seeds, but I don't remember what it said about the planting medium.

After the seedlings start growing, I'll fertilize this time around and leave them inside until they are big enough to handle the bright light outside. I'm really determined this time.

I'll have to get my camera issues resolved so I can post pics. I will be gone for a wedding next weekend, so I'll start the seeds when I get back. I can't wait.

Taking more interest in my cacti again has been a great stress reliever. I've spent some money on plants, seeds, and dirt, but it has been relatively inexpensive to expand my hobby. Taking care of plants and the garden keeps my mind busy and I don't have time for negative thoughts.

My Echinopsis hybrid sorceress was blooming this morning with 3 flowers. There was also an unnamed Trichocereus blooming; the first time for me thanks to info I got from this forum. That's a great way to start the morning in my opinion. Can't take credit for the Schick's blooms since I recently acquired that plant.

And I enjoy coming here to see what's going on with everyone's jade and desert rose plants ;-). Seriously, there is a lot of great info and generous people here.

Thanks to all of you for the advise. Two days after I posted for help 10 of them came up so I uncovered them,and yesterday I fertilize with a week solution.So far so good. Hope they continue to grow.Will update and post pics when they are a lil bigger..thanks so much

sherrih: Remember that you must keep them moist, they don't have the succulence of adult plants. They might do better in a more humid environment (but various fungal disorders find this beneficial too).

Would a 5oz drinking cup be big enough to start 25 seeds?

Forgot that one ...
Yes, I think so, for 25 seeds I use pots about 6-7 cm in diameter unless it is big seeds like Opuntia.
It should have drainage holes, which is unusual in drinking cups (at least where I live).
Do not forget to shade them if you put them in strong light (even behind a window), they are easily overheated.

Perhaps I should stress that I have a slightly unorthodox approach to seed raising: I start them in a mix of cat litter (fired diatomaceous earth) and pumice. To decrease growth of harmful fungi and bacteria I first add water, heat the medium in a microwave oven and let it cool down. I fill the pots, and add some coarse sand, at least on the surface, if the pores between the particles are too wide. Then I sow the seeds, soak the growing medium with Chinosol solution and let the excess water drain away. The pots are put in translucent boxes with ventilation holes, and the boxes are placed in my propagator. The lights are on during day only. I keep them in this relatively humid environment until the seedlings are big enough for the next step (about 2-3 months old). This is a difficult period, I must watch them carefully for outbreaks of diseases, and I add more Chinosol now and then. Then I transfer them to tiny (2-4 cm) pots, 1-3 plants per pot, with a more normal cactus soil - this can be difficult to do without killing them. It is not the common way to do this, most growers sow in a more nutrient-rich medium and let them sit in the original pot as long as they can. My approach works better for me, I lose fewer seedlings due to root rot and mold now.

There is also the Fleischer ("baggie") method, which gives very good results for many growers, but I have never tried it.

When I first tried sowing cacti I lost about 95% of the seedlings. Now 95% of them survive, it is all about finding a method that suits you.