Purpose This study aimed to investigate the effect of time interval between sowing and amendment with non-digested and digested poultry manure and their combinations with urea on the germination of three wheat cultivars (Slambo, Acsad, and Karim) in the desert soil. Methods The cultivars were sown on four different dates, i.e. directly, 10, 20 and 30 days after amendment. Fertilizers were applied at a rate of 350 kg Tot N ha −1. The germinated seeds were recorded daily starting at day 4 after sowing until day 14 after which the following germination attributes were calculated: time to reach 50% germination (T 50%), final germination percentage (FGP) and germination index (GI). Additionally, radicle length, plumule length and seedling dry weight were also determined. Results Sowing near to the application delayed and reduced seeds germination particularly in the treatments amended with non-digested and digested manure in combination urea. This was confirmed by all germination attributes, i.e. high values of T 50% and low values of FGP and GI. Moreover, sowing near to the application reduced the length of plumule and radicle as well as decreased seedling dry weight of all wheat cultivars. Conclusion Results suggested that prolonging the period between amendments and sowing to 20 or 30 days would give better germination attributes and increase plumule and radicle length plus increasing seedling dry weight.