When are the Basil seeds ready to collect?

[PunkRotten]

Hi,


I have 2 Basil plants I saved to let flower. When is it ready to get seeds? What should I look for? Thanks

[rainbowgardener]

The little white flower petals all drop off and the flower spike turns brown. Then there will be a little black seed in each spot where there was a flower.

For me, in order to get basil to go to seed before the frost comes, it helps to clip the top off the flower spike. Otherwise the spikes seem to just get longer and longer with more new flowers at the top, staying green. So once the flower spike gets 4 -6 inches long, I just cut the top off it. That seems to convince the plant it is time to start making seed.

[PunkRotten]

Ok thanks I am gonna do that.

[rainbowgardener]

Well in So Calif, you really don't need to worry about clipping them, you have all the time in the world. For me, everything in the garden is going to shut down in a month or so, so I have to be sure it sets seed before then.

[PunkRotten]

I really don't know when Basil will grow till. I have 2 variety I want to make sure I get seeds from. I have a plant each with tons of flowers. And then I have a few other plants I am eating from.

[PunkRotten]

I am having a problem. I waited till some of the flowers dropped pedals and got brown but then the seeds were gone. SO I clipped some of them a little before that and see seeds inside but they are still white/green. I let one sit in the table for like a week to see what happens and they get a little brown/black but I don't know if they are any good. They don;t feel hard like a seed.


So I am stuck between leaving them on longer and seeds being gone or getting them too early. Is the whole flower spike supposed to get brown or am I clipping it at the right time? I notice that some flower spikes will have all the bottom half flowers with pedals dropped but the top still has some fresh and semi fresh flowers. Should I just put a bag over the flower spike?

[rainbowgardener]

Yeah, if the seeds are still white or green, they are immature and not viable. Have to wait until they are black. It doesn't necessarily have to be the whole flower spike, but part of it has to be brown with little black seeds in it. You could bag the spike to be sure of catching them or just keep watching.

[soil]

first off your just going to have to take this first attempt as a learning situation. observe the flower stalk daily to just follow the process basil takes to go from seed to basil bush to flower to seed. so you know whats going to happen every year, and when it does what.

for advice, I wait until the basil flower stalk is fully brown. just be gentle with it. the seeds can and will fall out with rough care. if you want you can just break off one of the tiny seed pods and open it up in your hand to check the seeds inside. it should be dry enough to where you rub it between your fingers, the seeds fall out on your other hand. basil will have up to 4 seeds per pod. one plant can give more than a thousand seeds.

but like I said, take this opportunity to learn when is best for future basil seed saving. this way your not guessing each year and wasting seed.

after cutting the brown dried stalks I put them all in a fabric bag( like a small pillow case), close the bag well, and bash it with a stick for a minute or so. then winnow the seed to separate the chaff(brown dried stuff)

[PunkRotten]

Cool thanks for the tips.