Saving Seeds

This is the time of year when everything in the garden has gone through its cycle of life. The vegetables are long gone, frozen, or canned. All that is left in the garden are hearty herbs like thyme, sage, lavender, and mint, and a whole lot of dead flowers. Sounds kind of sad, but it is actually an exciting time of year – Seed Saving Season!

Vegetable and Herb Seeds

Most of the vegetable seeds that are collected come from letting the plant go to seed. Honest truth is that there are many times I do not get out to the garden as much as I should and the vegetable plant would go beyond time to harvest and dry up (e.g., beans and peas). From these dried up vegetables, the seeds inside can be collected and stored in a cool, dry place.

Vegetables like carrots, bok choy, and leafy greens will grow a flower, get pollinated, and then go to seed. Those seeds can be collected and stored for the following growing season. There are times that the seeds collected may not turn out to be as expected. If you grow different varieties of the same vegetable, the pollinators may cross-pollinate the flowers to create a new variety of that vegetable. This could be good or bad.

Herbs like dill, anise, chives, mint, cilantro, and parsley will grow a flower. The flowers will dry and contain tons of seeds. If they are not collected, there is a strong chance the wind will carry the seeds all over the garden. At this time, I have dill plants growing wherever it desires.

Flower Seeds, Bulbs and Tubers

Flower Seeds

When it comes to collecting flower seeds, the flowers must die off. I know it is hard to just let them go and look at dead flowers, but this is the sacrifice we make. To collect the seeds, cut the flower heads, and if they are not completely dry, let them fully dry, and then separate the seeds from the husk. You can get hundreds of seeds from flowers like marigolds and dahlias. Store them in a cool dry place in order to start them indoors come late Winter or early Spring.

Tubers

Speaking of dahlias, you can collect the seeds and the tubers. Collecting the seeds of a dahlia will result in a variety of the original flower; however, if you collect the tuber, the result will be the exact same flower. For any flower that produces tubers, use a pitch fork is gently loosen the soil around the tuber grouping to not damage them. Once the soil is loose, you can lift out the grouping of tubers. To get a good tuber and prep them for storage, clean the grouping with water, let them dry, and ensure each viable tuber has an eye(s), a neck, and a body when cutting. Cut to separate the tubers that have a strong neck and a visible eye. Snip the roots. Store the tubers in a plastic container with vermiculite. Make sure the container is not air tight, so excess moisture can escape. The air temperature can be cool, but not freezing. And DO NOT forget to label your container with the variety collected.

Bulbs

Flowers, such as tulips, daffodils, lilies, and irises, can tend to clump quite close together. It is important to separate the bulbs so they can continue to grow flowers each year. Use a pitch fork to loosen the soil around the bulbs and gently pull them out of the ground. If you plan on keeping them in the same spot, I suggest prepping the soil to space them out, cover them with soil and mulch to keep them protected during the winter. If deciding to plant elsewhere and want to store them, you can do the same method as the dahlias or put them in unsealed paper bags. Make sure they are dry and you have removed the loose soil around the bulbs. I would not wash them, but just remove the loose dirt before storing.

Fruit Seeds

Collecting fruit seeds is easy. Once the fruit has been eaten, you are left with the seeds. I love to experiment with seeds collected from fruit. Whether they grow or not, it really does not matter. You can always try again if it does not work. After collecting the seeds, put them into water for a few days. Viable seeds will sink, while the non-viable seeds will float. Rinse the viable seeds and allow them to completely dry, and then store them in seed packets. There is always the debate on whether to use plastic bags or paper bags, but it depends on the seed and how long you plan to store them. When I send out seeds, they are in little plastic bags put into paper envelopes.

Peach Tree Seeds

There are four peach trees on the property. I do not purposely collect the seeds; however, peach pits will naturally fall to the ground and sprout. The sprouts can be dug up and replanted in a desired spot. I have one tree that is an offshoot of the other tree. This is the easiest way when you have several trees. Taking advantage of nature’s way. The other way would be to propagate by grafting or budding onto a suitable rootstock, or by rooting a small thin branch with developed buds (~8″ to 10″ long) and dip it into rooting hormone powder, and then put into a container that drains with seed starting soil or compost. Wrap it with plastic wrap or cover with a plastic bottle (cut the bottom and keep the cap) to retain moisture.

Try It Now

Instead of purchasing seeds year after year, try collecting your own. It is fun to experiment and feels more satisfying and it more cost effective. When you have a good thing, why not try to preserve it?