All Haith's seeds are extra clean but once seeds are soaked, the reaction of the seed in water is likely to generate fungal growth – especially during hot weather. It’s why it’s important to add a disinfectant, like Vanodine to the water at the time of soaking. Easisoak should be soaked in water for a few hours and most fanciers will soak over-night.
Many fanciers will offer a small quantity several times a day when breeding, and to those youngsters when they are taken away from the parents and are being “weaned”
Soak the seed in the usual way as described and if it’s kept damp, by constantly running water through it several times a day – never let Easisoak dry out completely, and it will soon germinate. These seeds are carefully selected so they germinate quickly and once the seeds start to sprout and grow, the nutritional value is soon increased. That makes the germinated seed a fantastic food for rearing hens and chicks that are being weaned.
There are many ways to germinate but they all involve keeping the seeds damp and warm. Some fanciers will use a series of plastic dishes that stack, with a drainage hole so the water from the top dish, runs through all the dishes and arrives at the bottom “tank” and is collected. If this is carried out a couple of times a day, in warm temperatures, the seed will germinate within a day. If the temperatures are lower, germination will take longer. If the birdroom is cold, it might be best to germinate the seed back in the house and take it to the birdroom as you need it.
The “stacking system” can be used in several ways and in many birdrooms several trays are used with the seed at various stages of sprouting. Many fanciers will use the commercially available soaking trays and some will use inverted plastic lemonade bottles, placed inside each other with a couple of very small holes drilled into the caps to allow the water to filter through to the bottom tank. Many of Haith’s customers germinate the seeds in these inverted lemonade bottles.
Remember to keep washing the seed under running water to keep it fresh and damp. In many birdrooms we see a supply for three days of Easisoak in preparation.
• Day One - Being soaked in water
• Day Two – Easisoak being kept damp
• Day Three - Easisoak just showing signs of sprouting or “chitting”
• Day Four - showing lots of new growth - sprouted seed mixed with a little eggfood is popular with many fanciers.
• It’s ready to feed the birds
Don’t forget to start a new supply going every day to keep a constant supply of germinated seed for your birds, and keep washing under running water.