Why Will Grass Seeds Grow on Cotton Balls?

Seed Germination

• The hard seed coat protects the embryo inside every viable grass seed. It deters parasites and guards against drying and other physical damage. The immature plant inside the seed coat, with its embryonic root and nutrient-rich leaves or cotyledons, needs water to start growing. When seeds have absorbed a steady supply of water for a suitable amount of time an enzyme is activated, the tiny plant starts to respire or breathe more quickly, and plant cells begin to divide and increase in number – all of which soon causes the new grass plant to burst through its seed coat and emerge as a seedling.

Seed Establishment

• As the grass seedling emerges from the seed coat, the first plant part to emerge is the root – actually the tip of the root. There’s a good reason that the root emerges first. The young grass plant’s first needs are to absorb additional water and establish a firm anchorage, to support the top part of the plant when it emerges. Establishing the root first also allows it to begin absorbing nutrients that the leaves will need – when they emerge – to begin the process of photosynthesis, or producing food energy to support continued growth.

Why Cotton Balls?

• Seeds need to absorb water -- large amounts of water – to begin the process of germination. Soaking seeds in water alone for a long period -- long enough for them to absorb enough water to penetrate the hard seed coat -- will usually result in drowning, because seeds also need to breathe or respire. This is why seeds are usually germinated in moisture-retaining potting mix or soil, to concentrate water near the seed but not so much water that seeds drown. Cotton balls and similar moisture-retaining materials can substitute for soil for short periods of time. Fibrous cotton even provides enough physical structure for grass seedlings to firmly anchor themselves.

Grass Seed Greens

• Start with wheat grass from a health food store to provide indoor pets with fresh greens. Tear apart 20 to 30 cotton balls, and use them to create a 1/2-inch layer across the bottom of a broad but shallow dish or bowl. Add enough water to cover the cotton balls, poking the cotton back into the water to make sure it gets fully wet. Sprinkle wheat grass seeds evenly over the cotton until the surface is covered. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place it in a warm, sunny window. In a few days you’ll notice white fuzzy spots – emerging roots, the sign your grass is sprouting. Remove the plastic wrap the following day. Keep the cotton moist and after a few weeks start “harvesting” with scissors. Occasionally fertilize with dilute houseplant fertilizer.