Written By Dottie Baltz
Collecting and saving seeds is a fun way to share with friends. It’s an
easy way to save money as you won’t need to buy seed for next year or
you can start new plants from seed, sell them or keep them for yourself.
It’s also a great way to meet new people when you participate in seed
swaps.
This article will basically go into how to physically save seed and store
them for next year. I will not be going into the best plants to save seed
from or the differences between open pollinated plants and hybrids. The
best site I have ever found for seed saving and germinating seeds is a UK
based site, simply called The Seed Site. If you are serious about
collecting all kinds of seeds, I urge you to check them out.
Collecting and saving seeds is a fun way to share with friends. It’s an
easy way to save money as you won’t need to buy seed for next year or
you can start new plants from seed, sell them or keep them for yourself.
It’s also a great way to meet new people when you participate in seed
swaps.
This article will basically go into how to physically save seed and store
them for next year. I will not be going into the best plants to save seed
from or the differences between open pollinated plants and hybrids. The
best site I have ever found for seed saving and germinating seeds is a UK
based site, simply called The Seed Site. If you are serious about
collecting all kinds of seeds, I urge you to check them out.
| Last Updated on March 6, 2010 |
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| Seed Saving Tips |
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I will also not be going into specifics with each type of plant as the method is basically the same. Though seeds look different and some
have a lot of dried material mixed in with the seeds, the methods are basically the same for collecting. I found a cute little site that talks
about how to save seeds for each type of vegetable. It’s called the International Seed Saving Institute.
In order to be able to collect seeds from a plant, it must first flower and then be pollinated. After the flower fades, the seeds must then
ripen, naturally on the plant and become mature before they will be viable. You will know the seeds are mature when the flower head
that is left behind has completely dried up. This could take a couple of weeks, maybe longer, depending on the type of plant you are
collecting seeds from.
Once a plant begins to set seed, that signals the plant to stop producing flowers, so you will want to deadhead your plants until late
summer so that you will continue to have flowers for the majority of the summer. This is especially true for annuals, although some
perennials will re-bloom later if deadheaded early on, but for the most part, perennials are one time bloomers, though their bloom time
may span over many days to several weeks.
have a lot of dried material mixed in with the seeds, the methods are basically the same for collecting. I found a cute little site that talks
about how to save seeds for each type of vegetable. It’s called the International Seed Saving Institute.
In order to be able to collect seeds from a plant, it must first flower and then be pollinated. After the flower fades, the seeds must then
ripen, naturally on the plant and become mature before they will be viable. You will know the seeds are mature when the flower head
that is left behind has completely dried up. This could take a couple of weeks, maybe longer, depending on the type of plant you are
collecting seeds from.
Once a plant begins to set seed, that signals the plant to stop producing flowers, so you will want to deadhead your plants until late
summer so that you will continue to have flowers for the majority of the summer. This is especially true for annuals, although some
perennials will re-bloom later if deadheaded early on, but for the most part, perennials are one time bloomers, though their bloom time
may span over many days to several weeks.
Choose a dry sunny day to collect seeds. I usually pick them in the middle
of the day after all the dew and overnight moisture has had a chance to
evaporate. I walk around the yard with several paper lunch bags and snip
off the seed heads into the bags, marking each bag as I go with the variety
of the seeds inside. When I am all done, I place the bags in a cool dry
place, preferably inside and I let them dry further for about a week.
After they have dried for a week, I begin to separate the dried flower
material or chafe from the seeds. Sometimes it is hard to tell what is a seed
and what is chafe. Seeds are usually hard to the touch. If you are unsure,
you can leave all the material mixed together and just plant it all.
Once all the seed is separated, I store them in little paper envelopes or
plastic canisters, marked with the name and date of the growing season.
You should store them in a cool dry place. For long term storage, and for
perennial seeds, I store them in the refrigerator. Many perennials require a
cold period to germinate, so it’s just easier for me if I store them all in the
fridge.
of the day after all the dew and overnight moisture has had a chance to
evaporate. I walk around the yard with several paper lunch bags and snip
off the seed heads into the bags, marking each bag as I go with the variety
of the seeds inside. When I am all done, I place the bags in a cool dry
place, preferably inside and I let them dry further for about a week.
After they have dried for a week, I begin to separate the dried flower
material or chafe from the seeds. Sometimes it is hard to tell what is a seed
and what is chafe. Seeds are usually hard to the touch. If you are unsure,
you can leave all the material mixed together and just plant it all.
Once all the seed is separated, I store them in little paper envelopes or
plastic canisters, marked with the name and date of the growing season.
You should store them in a cool dry place. For long term storage, and for
perennial seeds, I store them in the refrigerator. Many perennials require a
cold period to germinate, so it’s just easier for me if I store them all in the
fridge.
Once you have decided that you want to save seed from a certain plant, pick the healthiest plant from the
bunch and choose a plant with a strong root system. Forming seed, takes a lot out of a plant, so it’s important
to choose the healthiest ones, especially when you are dealing with perennials. It’s also important to save seed
from plants with characteristics that you particularly like, or plants that don’t have disease or pest problems.
This ensures that the seeds you have collected are the healthiest they can be and will contain the best genes
that plant can offer. For example: I planted a bunch of marigolds, all the same variety, but one particular plant
seemed to grow and thrive far above the rest. That is the plant I would want to save seed from in the hopes
they will germinate and be as good as this one was.
Once you have chosen a plant, do not deadhead it and let the blooms fade, lose their petals and turn brown.
Once the seeds have matured, they may become tempting for birds and other critters as they will eat them for
food. Sunflowers, cosmos, and coneflowers are prime examples of seeds birds like. You will need to watch
the blooms carefully and pick them before the birds get them all. In a way, that is a good indication of
knowing when they are ripe and ready to be picked. In the case of sunflowers, you can cover the heads with
old pantyhose to keep the birds from getting them all, but be aware that squirrels and chipmunks can get up
under the stockings to get at the seed, so your best bet is to tie off the bottom.
bunch and choose a plant with a strong root system. Forming seed, takes a lot out of a plant, so it’s important
to choose the healthiest ones, especially when you are dealing with perennials. It’s also important to save seed
from plants with characteristics that you particularly like, or plants that don’t have disease or pest problems.
This ensures that the seeds you have collected are the healthiest they can be and will contain the best genes
that plant can offer. For example: I planted a bunch of marigolds, all the same variety, but one particular plant
seemed to grow and thrive far above the rest. That is the plant I would want to save seed from in the hopes
they will germinate and be as good as this one was.
Once you have chosen a plant, do not deadhead it and let the blooms fade, lose their petals and turn brown.
Once the seeds have matured, they may become tempting for birds and other critters as they will eat them for
food. Sunflowers, cosmos, and coneflowers are prime examples of seeds birds like. You will need to watch
the blooms carefully and pick them before the birds get them all. In a way, that is a good indication of
knowing when they are ripe and ready to be picked. In the case of sunflowers, you can cover the heads with
old pantyhose to keep the birds from getting them all, but be aware that squirrels and chipmunks can get up
under the stockings to get at the seed, so your best bet is to tie off the bottom.
packets so that they are not only pretty, but will have all the growing and seed information printed right on them. I have a huge selection
of seed packets on this site that you can print for free.
of seed packets on this site that you can print for free.
| Below are a few examples of what a seed head will look like. |
