How to Save Your Garden Seeds196607
Most severe gardeners save seeds. It's simple, it's sensible, and it will save you some money. Right here are a few saving suggestions:
Packaged Packaged seeds should be saved in their original packages. Simply fold the top or use a small bit of tape to secure the seeds in the packet. If the outer packet included an inner foil packet, shop any leftovers in the foil packet.
Some seeds are considerably more sensitive to moisture in the air... so, if the seed company took the time to wrap them in foil packets, you should, too.
The very best place to shop your packets is in a large jar or coffee can in the refrigerator. Maintain them cool and dry, and most will last numerous seasons. Keep in mind that seeds are food, and improper storage will invite all sorts of pests to your basement or pantry.
House Harvested You can harvest and save from open-pollinated cultivars but, you cannot save the seeds from hybrids. (Nicely, you can save from hybrids, but they will not create the same hybrid plant from which they came... you'll usually get 1 of the parent varieties used to make the hybrid.)
Those harvested from open-pollinated varieties of flowers and vegetables can be harvested when the fruits or flowers are mature, or even beyond maturity. They ought to be relatively dry and totally free from as much plant "litter" as feasible. You can rinse tomato and pepper seeds in a colander and dry them for a day or two on paper towels or cookie sheets. These from beans and most flowers don't require much unique therapy prior to packaging them.
Package in paper envelopes, becoming cautious to label the envelopes to determine the contents as nicely as the year of harvest.
Flowers that readily self-seed as annuals, such as plume celosia, are perfect candidates for saving. Simply shake the dried flower heads in a large envelope or can and you'll collect hundreds, if not thousands, that can be used in your gardens or shared with buddies.
As with commercially packaged seeds, house packaged should be stored in a cool, dry location that is free from insects or rodents. A coffee can in the refrigerator is ideal.
Checking Germination You can't determine if a seed will germinate by searching at it. There are two ways for house gardeners to verify the germination. (Germination means that they'll sprout and grow the germination percentage is simply the percentage that are viable.)
1. Merely location 1 or two seeds in each cell of a six pack starter cell pack, and see how many germinate. Or, two. Location ten to 20 seeds between two or more moist paper towels, and see how many germinate. The paper towel method is used by virtually all laboratories but, care should be taken to keep the towels moist and warm. You can use a large plastic bag or cellophane to assist keep the towels moist.
Check germination a number of weeks prior to the time that you'll need to begin so that you can replace any cultivars that have very low or zero germination.
