How to Save Your Garden Seeds9452901
Most severe gardeners save seeds. It is simple, it's sensible, and it will save you some cash. Right here are a few saving tips:
Packaged Packaged seeds should be saved in their original packages. Merely fold the leading or use a small bit of tape to secure the seeds in the packet. If the outer packet included an inner foil packet, store 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 ought to, as well.
The very best place to store your packets is in a big jar or coffee can in the refrigerator. Maintain them cool and dry, and most will last numerous seasons. Remember that seeds are meals, and improper storage will invite all kinds of pests to your basement or pantry.
House Harvested You can harvest and save from open-pollinated cultivars but, you can't save the seeds from hybrids. (Nicely, you can save from hybrids, but they won't produce the exact same hybrid plant from which they came... you'll usually get 1 of the parent varieties utilized to make the hybrid.)
These harvested from open-pollinated varieties of flowers and vegetables can be harvested when the fruits or flowers are mature, or even beyond maturity. They should be fairly dry and free from as much plant "litter" as possible. You can rinse tomato and pepper seeds in a colander and dry them for a day or two on paper towels or cookie sheets. Those from beans and most flowers do not need a lot special treatment before packaging them.
Package in paper envelopes, being cautious to label the envelopes to identify the contents as nicely as the year of harvest.
Flowers that readily self-seed as annuals, such as plume celosia, are ideal 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 utilized in your gardens or shared with friends.
As with commercially packaged seeds, house packaged ought to be stored in a cool, dry location that is totally free from insects or rodents. A coffee can in the refrigerator is perfect.
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 will sprout and develop the germination percentage is simply the percentage that are viable.)
1. Merely place one or two seeds in each cell of a six pack starter cell pack, and see how numerous germinate. Or, 2. Location ten to 20 seeds in between two or more moist paper towels, and see how many germinate. The paper towel technique is utilized by practically all laboratories but, care should be taken to maintain the towels moist and warm. You can use a big plastic bag or cellophane to assist keep the towels moist.
Verify germination a number of weeks prior to the time that you'll need to begin so that you can replace any cultivars that have extremely low or zero germination.
