Does adding salt or sugar to water help or hurt sprouting seeds? You dissolve 15 grams of salt in one glass of water and 15 grams of sugar in another. A third glass gets plain water. You roll alfalfa seeds in paper towels and stand each roll in one of the three glasses. The liquid wicks up into the seeds. After one week you weigh the sprouts from each group. The plain water seeds sprout the most. The sugar water seeds sprout some but less. The salt water seeds do not sprout at all.