Saving pepper seeds?

[TomatoNut95]

Hello everyone! How do you save pepper seeds? Do you just pluck them from a ripe pepper and there they are, or do you have to do something special to them like the fermentation process?

[pepperhead212]

Most peppers I just dry, and save the seeds. With peppers, however, you really need to isolate the blossoms of the peppers you are saving seeds from, as they can cross easily, by wind or insects.

[TomatoNut95]

I noticed your name is pepperhead- peppers must be your favorite veggie. I didn't think peppers crosser that easily since they were self pollinating like tomatoes. Can peppers cross with tomatoes

[TomatoNut95]

Would it help to cover a blossom about to open on the pepper plant if I covered it with a blossom bag? Would that prevent wind pollination?

[TomatoNut95]

Would it help to cover a blossom about to open on the pepper plant if I covered it with a blossom bag? Would that prevent wind pollination?

[pepperhead212]

Would it help to cover a blossom about to open on the pepper plant if I covered it with a blossom bag? Would that prevent wind pollination?

That's the way I do it, to save seeds. If you are saving a lot of seeds, you could cover the entire plant, but the blossom bags are easier. And to answer your question about them crossing with tomatoes, you don't have to worry about that.

[TomatoNut95]

Great, thanks!

[Gary350]

40 years ago I saved pepper seeds from peppers that turned Red color and they grew. These days I save pepper seeds none of them grow. I have no clue why. I have always heard peppers need to be red color to have adult seeds that will germinate. I remember 40 years ago fresh harvested seeds are soft an moist they would germinate in 2 or 3 days but seeds saved over winter are dry & hard much harder to germinate. If you save seeds test them right away no point in saving bad seeds and not knowing until next spring they will not germinate.

[imafan26]

Seeds are better from red peppers since they are fully mature. I have had seeds still be viable from peppers that are just turning color as well. I prefer to let the peppers dry on the plant before I pick them. I do not have to worry about fermenting them. They seem to do just fine. There are exceptions though, some peppers like the chiltepin seem to germinate better with potassium nitrate.

[applestar]

I save pepper seeds from fully ripe/colored fruits by cutting open fresh fruits then scraping/flicking the seeds in a #4 cone coffee filter. I label the filter and semi-stack them and when seeds are fully dry, fold tops and secure with painter’s tape — these go in a cardboard box for the winter.

I have trouble starting pepper seeds in early spring/late winter when trying to start them before tomatoes. House temp is still in the 50’s to 60’s. After trying many different set ups, I have concluded that the basic seed starting heat mat attached to thermostat, placed inside an upside-down shallow storage tub (on the lid with tub covering the set up works well. Heat mat is adjusted to stay around 78-85°F.

I always soak the seeds overnight 8-12 hrs in labeled seedzip bags (small zip bags — coin, beads) before starting them and I use the plastic spoon head in seedzip method to pre-germinate them before sowing the germinated seeds/planting sprouted seedlings in potting mix.

...peppers are notorious for being susceptible to crossing so even saved heirloom pepper seeds are suspect unless floral trusses/blooms are bagged, but seeds saved from hybrid peppers and store bought fruits are more likely to be unstable crosses.

[TomatoNut95]

Years ago I own a chiltepin pepper plant, but I hated the outrageous heat of the peppers. I saved the seeds from the little red peppers and my fingers were burning the next day. It was awful. I sent the seeds to Baker, wasn't about to keep them. Those are the only pepper seeds I've ever saved. I typically just rebuy packets every year. Because my pepper plants never produce much, and produce stays runty, I don't bother saving seeds from it. However, my Fooled You Jalapenos produce fairly well and do good size, but because it's a hybrid, I don't save from them. Somebody told me you will get a hot jalapeno from a seed saved from those. Weird.

I start my peppers in the house in egg cartons. After pretty much all is up, I move them to my greenhouse and later separate them into single pots and six packs. (I grow stuff to sell it, but I keep some for myself, of course)

I normally grow Sweet Banana, California Wonder Bells and Fooled You hybrid Jalapenos. (Love those Fooled You's!!!) This year I did do Cheyenne's for the strange people who like fires in their mouths. Thankfully they all sold and I wasn't stuck with any. Banana's weren't that popular this year and I ended up keeping some plants so I may not do more next year. Sweet Banana aren't my favorite sweet pepper either.

[imafan26]

Most peppers will not germinate in the cold. It needs to be consistently at least 68 degrees for me to get good germination. For the super hots from India, they like it better when it is closer to 80 degrees.

I grow a lot of different peppers and I grow them close together, but I really have not experienced a lot of crossing. I only save seeds from a few peppers and the peppers I grow are either all single varieties or are grown with trays of them all together.

[TomatoNut95]

I always start my peppers indoors in plastic or foam egg cartons. They germinate within the month. Then I move them out to my greenhouse.

No, I've never experienced my peppers crossing either. Bees pretty much ignore my garden unless I grow cucumbers.

[kayjay]

Another idea for isolating the pepper flowers, which I will be trying this year, is gluing the flowers. I thought it sounded weird, but apparently it works. You wait until the flower is looking like a lightbulb, like it's about to open up in a few days. Put some glue in a small container like the lid of a pop bottle. Dip the flower in. Then, just wait for the pepper to start swelling underneath. Make sure you mark it with some coloured string or something so that you'll remember which pepper was the glued one.

I'm not sure I'm allowed to post links to other sites, but if you google it, you'll find the info.

In the past, I've just saved the seeds straight-up, but I think I got lucky in terms of no crossing. This year, there seems to be a lot more hoverflies and long-legged flies around my peppers, so I'll try bagging and/or glue.

[TomatoNut95]

I've never heard of gluing a blossom! Live and learn, I guess. I own some blossom bags so I'm sue they'll do. The main thing I worry about is how to save the seeds: should I ferment them like tomato seeds or just pluck them from the fruit, wash them and let them dry.

[kayjay]

Pepper seeds are way easier than tomatoes because they don't have the 'goo' on them (germination inhibitor) that needs to be removed. I do them basically the way Applestar described - get a ripened pepper, scrape the seeds into a sieve, rinse, dump onto a coffee filter on a plate, and let them sit somewhere cool (my basement) for a week or three. Then, package up.

[TomatoNut95]

Thanks, @Kayjay I will try that!