The weather is growing cooler, which puts me in the mood for the two most important joys of fall: Pumpkin-Spice-Everything and seed saving. Ok, mostly seed saving.
As I’ve openly admitted, I’m a seed hoarder. I’ve been told that I’m a carrier of the seed-hoarding sickness, as well, since I’ve managed to infect more than a few people with a need to save seeds. If, after today’s column, you find yourself possessed by the urge to save seeds, be sure to pass it along to others.
The first step is to select your best produce. You want the progeny of your most delicious, most disease-resistant varieties in next year’s garden.
This produce needs to be either heirloom or open-pollinated varieties. Hybrids are a cross of two or more varieties. Seeds saved from hybrid fruit will either be sterile or produce one of the parent plants. If you aren’t sure if you have heirloom, open-pollinated, or hybrid produce, just look up the name of the variety; F-1 indicates hybrid.
The method I’m going to show you works well with just about anything. I’m using tomatoes as an example, because they are the ones most people ask about. For melons, peppers, and even squash, you can usually skip the rinsing step.
Slice open the tomato and gently remove the seeds.
Put seeds into a small sieve and rinse. You’ll have to use your finger to separate the seeds from the smooshy innards. (Smooshy innards – a highly technical term used to describe the tomato-juicy-jelly-like substance found near tomato seeds.)
Place the sieve on a paper towel to drain, then place in a warm area to dry. Make sure the area is not over 90 degrees, as this may sterilize the seed. This was a lesson I learned the hard way when I put my first attempt in the sun to dry. Baked the little buggers, I did.
Remember to label the seeds – unless you really like surprises.
Once the seeds are dry, they tend to clump together. You can gently pry them apart when you are ready to use them. Label and store in a cool, dry place.
See, not much to it. Once you realize how many seeds you get from a single tomato, compared to what you get in an average seed packet, you’ll feel quite wealthy.
For smaller seeds, like currant tomatoes or husk/ground cherries, I just squeeze them onto a paper towel and let them dry. Once they dry, they tend to stick to the paper towel, but you can simply tear off bits of it with seeds attached and plant it, paper towel and all.
Beans, peas, and corn can be saved by letting them dry on the vine/stalk, then storing in a cool, dry place. Corn should be husked before storing. It’s best not to harvest dried seed when it’s wet outside, unless you are going to let it dry thoroughly before storing.
Some seed, like lettuce and strawberry, requires stratification. That’s just a fancy term for “It needs a bit of cold so put it in the fridge/freezer.” The cold simulates the winter dormancy that helps stimulate germination. Most garden seed, however, is just fine without it.
Now, off with you! You have seeds to save, and people to infect with your seed saving mania!