Collecting seeds?

[Bessy]

Does anyone collect the seeds from their plants to dry for stock for the next year? I want to do this and maybe send some to my friends, is there anything I should know before I start?

 

[outdoors Joe]

I want to know more about this, too. I know you can't save hybrid seeds because they don't come back true the following year. Seeds from heirloom and open-pollinated varieties are ones you can save. Is there anything special you have to do to them so they'll be good and sprout the following year?

 

[KennyV]

A lot of seeds freeze over winter...
I remember my mother would freeze some seeds and thaw them before planting... she always had the biggest and best gardens..flowers or veggies, :smile:KennyV

 

[outdoors Joe]

What about drying the seeds before freezing them? Should you leave them out in the air for a while before freezing them so some or all of the moisture is gone?

 

[KennyV]

What about drying the seeds before freezing them? Should you leave them out in the air for a while before freezing them so some or all of the moisture is gone?

Yes.. . thats most likely very important, as a natural transfered seed would most likely have a chance to dry before it froze...
I guess you could try both ways and next summer let us know how it made any difference... :smile:KennyV

 

[Homesteader]

My grandmother said they used to harvest until harvest time was over, then leave the garden and let everything go to seed. When everything was good and dry, they'd go out with cloth sacks and collect the seeds for next season.

 

[Bessy]

Wow, thanks for the amazing tips. I am so new to this it is almost funny. I'm not sure where I got the "gardening bug" from, neither of my parents could grow a plant between them. Maybe my older ancestors were planters or something.