I froze my Carolina Reaper seeds, will they still germinate?

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I froze my carolina reaper seeds for 3 days and then I brewed black tea, I put the seeds in there for 30 minutes and then I planted them, will they germinate?
 
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I froze my carolina reaper seeds for 3 days and then I brewed black tea, I put the seeds in there for 30 minutes and then I planted them, will they germinate?
Freezing pepper seeds is not the best way to save seeds as it reduces the number of viable seeds though some will still germinate. However, excess heat will kill all of the seeds if they reach a temperature of about 140F+/-.
 
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Greetings, welcome to the Forums.

It is true that the elevated capsaicin levels in super-hot cultivars of Chile Pepper (Capsicum annuum and relatives) can inhibit germination. Capsicum chinense 'Carolina Reaper' is one such 'super-hot' cultivar. Overall, there has been centuries of selection for Capsicum germination in under a wide variety of conditions. hotter, cooler, drier, wetter or more humid.

A basic germination for most Chile Peppers is to keep the seed trays or pots at temperatures between 80º and 90º F often with the us eof a heat mat. This is often sufficient, but not always so.

There are a lot of other protocols and methods for how to enhance germination involving freezing dry seed, refrigerating wet or dry seed, soaking in water or some other substance, such as various teas, for various amounts of time, etc. These methods may work sometimes and not others.

I recommend trying several different germination protocols until you find one that works for you. In any case, you will soon know the success rate of the protocol you describe above. Please do post again with the results of this germination attempt. Whether successful or not, this information will be beneficial to others .
 

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