Seems to me that when roots come out, the plant is looking hard for nutrients. It won't find those in a paper towel. Also handling individual sprouted seeds with roots and stem coming out is more likely to damage them than if they are protected in a clump of soil. So while it might work, it's hard to believe that it is an optimal way of doing it. Of course, you could always just direct seed. That saves a lot on space and time. Unless you think that your seeds are less likely to germinate in the soil? I guess that might be the case if the soil is cold, but stuffing germinated seeds in cold soil isn't a lot better.

I am planning to place the sprouted seed in seed starting mix in a small cup indoors under light.

Well, in that case, I really don't see the value of sprouting in a paper towel. You're not saving on space, since you're transplanting into cups, and you're adding time because you have to do the very delicate planting. Seed starting mix is precisely to start seeds. I guess if you're anticipating poor germination rate, and you don't have many seeds, you could just plant those seeds that sprout instead of planting several seeds per cup hoping one sprouts. That might save on cups, but then you risk damaging the ones that do sprout. I'd have to call that a poor choice.

I do germination tests on paper towels regularly. I use a ceramic plate, wet towel, ziplock bag. Works great. I have taken sprouts and potted them up sometimes- use a scissors to trim the seedling out if it's grown in at all. The little bit of paper towel left won't affect the plant at all once it's potted up Sometimes it can save me some potting soil and pots space to do this. Epecially when I only have a few seed left and I really want to see them sprout.

I haven't done this with allums because I go straight to dirt with those. I usually plant enough seed that it isn't really necessary to sprout them on paper towel and I usually do my germination tests with those as a microgreen pot.

No question that it works, but I'm still a little skeptical about the "why". As I said, it's true that if you have very few seeds you'd like to commit a pot to one seed that you're sure will result in a seedling. That's especially true if there are concerns about germination rate. That is, you'd rather not waste a pot or pot space on a seed that won't germinate.

I found this “Garden Fundamentals” channel to be very helpful for germinating seeds https://youtu.be/dirz0WIMQi0. It details how he uses the paper towel method…but with a difference

Other than testing for germination I’m with daninthedirt on paper towels. Why make extra fiddly work?

I have successfully used the paper towel method for years and it works every time. The latest was seeds from an old Basil. I wasn't sure what I had since it was old, weird, and self-pollinated. Most, but not all, grew. I planted-up quite a few that germinated and gave the towel to a friend to pot up what was left.

On the other hand, I had a few pepper seeds from various sources and planted those straight into pots. After weeks of sitting on my kitchen counter this is what I have today:

Nada. I wish I had used the paper towel method on those as well. At least I would know what I have.

I find the paper towel method with fridge (as outlined in that video) a great method to stratify perennial seeds before planting . I think it saves time and money and it takes up no room. I use paper towel/baggy method for Sweet pea seeds (minus the fridge) and it works really well as well...especially if your seeds are a bit old. “ I’m a Believer” -lol- especially if you live somewhere with a short growing season.

I am sorry @daninthedirt (USDA 9a, HZ9, CentTX, Sunset z30, Cfa), @floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK I left out the critical sentence that, you, floral put in. 'To test for germination'. That was really what was on my mind. That is what our other friends @Gargamel, @CA Kate z9, @beesneeds are essentially doing. Checking where you are at with the seeds you have got. It does save resources in the long run too. I was not sure how well most seeds germinate on paper towels relative to seed starting mix and how the transfer from paper towel to potting soil in a cup does for most part. Intuitively I thought it would be OK but wanted to check here. I do have a pair a silicone tipped tweezers which might work for the transfers.

Thank you for the feedback!

Tweezers are what the guy uses in that video. If you don’t want the seed to grow into the paper towel (which is moistened in a baggy)… only use one layer of paper towel cut to the size of the baggy and lay the baggy down with the paper towel on top (don’t fold the paper towel around the seed) . Since the root follows the direction of gravity, it will grow in the direction of the plastic bag not the paper towel, but pot up as soon as you see it sprouting

@Gargamel great tip, thanks!

I have to assume that if a seed wants to germinate, it'll do just as well in seed starting mix as on a paper towel. Maybe better. But yes, IF you have a limited number of seeds and IF you are concerned about germination rate and especially IF you can't tolerate a cup where nothing comes up in it, THEN the paper towel strategy may be a good one. To me, those are a lot of IFs to justify a lot of extra work. For me, the easiest way to test germination is just to plant a seed in a cup and see if it comes up. If it does, then job done. If it doesn't, then maybe just reuse the cup.

Sorry, but this sounds to me a bit like a solution looking for a problem.

I guess the silicone-tipped tweezers might work, but I always used a moistened pencil tip to move them… the wet tip being the attrant for the sprout.

Also, for the tiny seeds I dampened a paper towel, sprinkled on the seeds, rolled and put in a ziplock bag so it would stay moist. Bigger seeds I do as Gargamel suggested and put on a piece of moistened paper towel inside a ziplock.

one note: the size of the seed will make a difference too. The larger the seed the less likely to try to root itself. The Basil seed, being tiny, needed to be watched daily.

Well I guess to each his own Dan…thank goodness we all do things differently or the world would be a very dull place. I have a very short growing season and I hate pricking out, so I seed directly into little cups. However, I have very limited space in my basement equipped with Grow Lights and I only have room for so much, which also includes other plants like Amaryllis, Pelargoniums , Rosemary, etc. because my last frost date is May 21 and my first frost date is late September. I’m not wasting a single unnecessary moment of my time or space (anymore) on something that may or may not be a viable seed (excluding fresh, purchased seed). All of our experiences are different and what works for one does not necessarily work for another, especially in gardening. If I don’t presow every vegetable in my garden, I may not get a crop I am so far North

I use the paper towel method for most things. I like to know when seeds have germinated, and can tell quickly if there is spotty germination or if seeds are rotting. I check them every day, and pot up at just the right time into individual pots.

It is also possible to use paper towel for seed mats, like how folks make seed tape. It's fussy, but can be done. Been at least a decade since I've played with that, lol.

I'm thinking about trying out sprouted corn starch gel for some seed trials this year too, just because it's intriguing me. Green onions and carrots. I know it's a bit off topic, but its fun :)

A general question: would you pick out a seed when you see the root just beginning to emerge, or when it has fully germinated i.e. you can see green/yellow cotyledons? I see people doing it both ways. I think taking out the seed when you just see the root starting is probably less readjustment and so less transplant shock. But I dont know where the right balance is, or if it matters that much, or if it varies with the type of seed. Right now I am thinking of pepper seeds but I will try other seeds if I gain confidence.

So with pepper seeds at which stage is it best to remove the germinating seed from the paper towel?

@daninthedirt (USDA 9a, HZ9, CentTX, Sunset z30, Cfa) I appreciate your logic and rationale completely. And I was doing it that way. One cup, one seed. When trying so many varieties of seeds I had many cups doing nothing and not knowing if the seed is dead or just slow. Meanwhile I am taking care of these cups and giving them space, I thought if I can visualize how a seed is doing in a much smaller space first that would be a far better investment of my time and energy and seed growing space.

Well, if you're not limited in the number of seeds, far better to plant a couple in each cup. That way, you won't end up with any cups doing nothing. It will just require some thinning, which is easy.

I wouldn't wait till I start to see leaves. Usually just sprouted enough to know the seed is viable and got a root going on. Beans can go crazy fast once they really crack open, but peppers are more easy going. So having a nice tail, but before it really wants to get rooted into the towel or before it starts going baby plant. But again, if your sprout goes well and it does get into the towel, you can just snip it off the towel and plant.

Using the seeds germinated in paper towels should be planted when the tiny root (radical) emerges from the seed. You can wait until you see the cotyledon leaves appear if you wish with little difference but positioning the seed with the leaves above the soil will take a little care and time.

I germinate seeds in a common container and then pluck the seedlings with a regular tweezers to transplant in their own cells. Little expertise is needed and of the thousands I've plucked they all grew fine because the seedlings are very resilient. If the seedlings grow beyond the cotyledon stage plucking could brake the tap root because it goes deep and starts branching but I've did it with some losses.

Right now I have a tray of about 100 celery seedlings and I'm only going to move 18 into their own cells and it won't take more than 5 minutes to do it. I always plant more seeds than I need to insure I have what I want but always end up with extras I usually give away. The only expensive seeds I have cost 60 cents each but still plant a few extra.

germinating in paper towels would be a personal preference and I can't see any advantage using it.

Well, I'll admit that I am now doing some paper towel germination. The reason is simple. I planted several seedling pots of a vegetable with three year old seeds. None came up. As in ZERO. Pretty mysterious. Now, I suspect the whole packet has somehow gone south but, as a quick check, I've put all of the remaining seeds under wet paper towel, and we'll see who wants to germinate. If I get any germination, I will harvest those. So this is a special case in which paper towel germination makes some sense. I guess I could have just planted all of them in one pot of soil, and then separated and untangled the ones that came up, but this is a little easier, and I could see if any even tried to germinate.