Thinking the problem is the egg carton container is preventing you from looking elsewhere for the real cause. Plant a seed that you have experience growing and know the conditions required for germination and you will find egg cartons will work as well as any other container. Al

If you're a creative and resourceful kind of guy, wander over to the Winter Sowing forum.

Yeah, don't use egg cartons, they're way too small for good root growth and they dry out way too fast.

It's way to early to sow Poppies and Morning Glories indoors, but do check out the wintersowing forum if you're itching to start something now.

Good luck!

Here is a link that might be useful: Winter Sowing Forum

The problem is probably not the egg cartons but probably another factor(s) like humidity, temperature and light.

If you think the egg cartons are wicking up too much water then I would water a little more to compensate. The same way I would when I water plants in the summer that are planted in terracotta pots.

Check out the conditions and rule them out one by one.

Also what Al said is a good idea. Try something you know you can grow (in another method) and see if you get the same results.

I have started seed in egg cartons for many years.
First I remove the top, punch hole in each egg pocket.
fill with seed starting soil, soak in warm water until totally wet, remove from water let drain some, add seed.
Then set into the lid and enclose in plastic bag. watch closly and remove bag when seed sprouts.

Good luck

I think I may know the problem you are having. I attempted to start seeds in my window boxes one year, half the boxes contained Miracle Grow soil (and then i ran out of it) and the other half contained non-miracle grow soil. The seedlings in the Miracle Grow never grew. Come to find out, Miracle Grow burns most seeds, thus killing the poor little buggers before getting the chance to live! The other seedlings in the regular soil did great! (P.s. they were all the same seeds)

Hope this helps.

I always use miracle grow for my seeds and usually get better plants from it than from regular potting soil. I suppose some seeds could be sensitive though, maybe just not what I grow. I'm inclined to believe your cactus aren't sprouting because those just may take forever to do so. If your seeds need light to germinate, you'd want to keep them well lit, but otherwise, some seeds won't germinate unless they are in the dark.

I grow morning glories every year, but those are ones I wait to plant where they will grow after the last frost, as they are difficult to transplant. Not saying it can't be done, I just don't usually bother because its hard. I have had difficulty in the past with egg cartons because of them not being deep enough, many of my seedlings just fell over before they could make true leaves. I never used the papery ones, only the plastic. I reuse the 6 packs I buy plants in for my seeds now.

The snow is finally melting and I'm in the mood for starting seeds. Styrofoam egg cartons are available and that's what I'll be using today. My question is about supplying light after the seeds germinate. Can you use a florescent light mounted over the trays? How many hours per day do you run the lights? I've made a cold frame with straw bales and an old glass window. How soon can I move the seedlings to this ?
Thanks for your help.
Jan