Click on a thumbnail picture below to see the full size version. 4 Entries. Wednesday, February 8 View Page Started my first batch of giant amaranth seedlings (Amaranthus australis) from the USDA. I used a clear plastic lid from a yogurt top. I placed a very thin layer of soil at the bottom (about as thick as a nickel). I put some enough water in so the soil was very wet. I soaked the seeds (approximately 50 seeds) for a half hour in another plastic container. I removed the seeds from the container and surface sowed them onto the soil. I put another yogurt lid on top and placed it on a heat mat with under a grow light. Saturday, February 11 View Page First amaranth seedling sprouted. I careful removed the seed from the dish and put it in it's own pot. I put a plastic lid over the pot for humidity. I put the pot on a heat mat under a grow light Sunday, February 12 View Page Second amaranth seedling germinated. I will remove it tonight and pot it. I will also stir up the soil in the container with all the amaranth seeds. Giant amaranth seeds do not germinate consistently. I've had seeds germinate after several months and some within a few days out of the same container. I find that if disturb the dirt with a toothpick that it seems to get seeds to germinate. I usually disturb the soil once every week and this seems to do the trick. I discovered this after I had a container of seeds sit for weeks and weeks without germinating. I disturbed the soil and then many of them started germinating. Friday, February 17 View Page Two more giant amaranth seedlings appeared in the container. Now have 4 giant amaranth seedlings.