As I understand it, the soaking has been shown experimentally to make no difference, and the nicking just means they germinate a couple of days faster, but they are bits of garden lore that hold on tenaciously. But yes, they are the ones. I did get some sweet peas (not grown from seed) to survive last year, but "survive" is the best I can say; the vines never got more than maybe three inches long, which is how long they were when I bought them. I figure for $2 I can take the gamble. Odds have to be better than the lottery, right?