Garden 2020: Starting Peppers Take 2 Part 2

So 4 days ago I started some new pepper seeds using a method I never tried before. Well today I got the initial results. 2 bags containing the seeds between paper towel layers had clearly visible sprouts.

Above you can see a bag containing Greek Pepperoncini seeds taped to my monitor with a white background. Another bag containing Sweet Banana Peppers had even more seeds germinate. Here is that bag opened up:

Now came the fun part of trying to transplant those small things. I got some potting mix ready by putting it in a bucket and adding water to make it wet but not muddy. I used hot water since the mix was outside and it's been really cold. Let it sit a little while while I figured out what I was going to put the pots on and where I was going to put them. When I put the wet mix in the pots I'd guess it was around 80 degrees. Could have been a bit wetter. I'll correct that for the next ones.

Trying to transplant those small things was a real challenge for someone with big hands. I tried using tweezers but the roots are nearly impossible to see on the paper towel. Gave that up and tried gently picking them off with my fingers. Worked OK but I broke one. By the time I was nearly done it occurred to me why take them off the towel at all? That paper will break down pretty quickly. The last 4 or 5 I did I just ripped a small piece of paper towel out with the root and stuck it in the pot. You can see of those on the lower left of the last photo. Half the jars are one type the other half the other type. Thee were more plants than jars so I just put 2 in some pots.

Hopefully they will survive. Next time I will do them all with the paper towel still attached unless they fall off of it. I folded the paper towel back over the remaining ungerminated seeds and put them back in the bags. I checked the rest of the bags but none looked like they had any seedlings yet. The Jalapeno seeds look like some might germinate by tomorrow as a few had dark green spots on the white seeds.

So far I would call it a success. The seeds germinated a day earlier than the 5+ days the packages said it should take. Guess they like my sever cabinet. Hotter peppers take longer so time will tell for the rest of the seeds. Hopefully I will get some Casabella, Jalapeno, and Cayenne peppers at least.