I created a special section for my seeds in the basement. I put some organizers here. Small boxes, I divided them into vegetables, fruits, and flower sections. The first time was hard because of mouses, but one man advised me to use sawdust with camphor balls. That smell usually scares them. So that is really helpful.
Put your seed in plastic bags orjars if you can. I keep my seeds in the packets and in a Ziploc bag. My tomato seed are stored in little plastic storage baggies in a Lays dip jar. All this is all in cardboard box that my bedroom ceiling fan came in.
Thank you for your advice! By the way, what are the best seeds you had? Because for me is like a lottery. Some are just useless and even with all kinds fertilizers, they would not grow up
But some were so good. Unfortunately, I forgot what kind of tomatoes were that.
..... one man advised me to use sawdust with camphor balls ....
There are some cautions now about using camphor balls - 'mothballs' - due to toxicity and flammability. You may not want to keep seed in the fridge but mice (mouses) won't get in there! And I think if they want to get into a plastic bag they just chew through it. They did that with my food once, at camp.
..... I forgot what kind of tomatoes were that.....
I grow one variety of tomato called 'Latah.' It's early and will set fruit in cool weather. It's tasty; also 'indeterminate' so doesn't get very tall. I saw a TV article by a man in Newfoundland who said that with his local climate it was the only tomato he could grow.
I created a special section for my seeds in the basement. I put some organizers here. Small boxes, I divided them into vegetables, fruits, and flower sections. The first time was hard because of mouses, but one man advised me to use sawdust with camphor balls. That smell usually scares them. So that is really helpful.
Put your seed in plastic bags orjars if you can. I keep my seeds in the packets and in a Ziploc bag. My tomato seed are stored in little plastic storage baggies in a Lays dip jar. All this is all in cardboard box that my bedroom ceiling fan came in.
Thank you for your advice! By the way, what are the best seeds you had? Because for me is like a lottery. Some are just useless and even with all kinds fertilizers, they would not grow up
But some were so good. Unfortunately, I forgot what kind of tomatoes were that.
I have many different tomato varieties, all heirloom. It's hard to say what my 'best' is. Guess it depends on what you mean by 'best', best flavor, best texture, best slicer, best keeper....
@Holly, if you are interested, please have a look in the seed giveaway section of the forum. I have several unwanted seed listed for giveaway. Some are just hunky flowers, but some are tomatoes and veggies. If no one wants them I'm afraid I'll have to just throw the majority of them away. I USED to have a local seed swap I gave my unwanted seeds to, but it only lasted a few years, then stopped.
..... I forgot what kind of tomatoes were that.....
I grow one variety of tomato called 'Latah.' It's early and will set fruit in cool weather. It's tasty; also 'indeterminate' so doesn't get very tall. I saw a TV article by a man in Newfoundland who said that with his local climate it was the only tomato he could grow.
Haven't heard about them. I Will search if they sell something like that in my city. Thank you very much! Even if I'm just a beginner I will try to grow some soon.
Put your seed in plastic bags orjars if you can. I keep my seeds in the packets and in a Ziploc bag. My tomato seed are stored in little plastic storage baggies in a Lays dip jar. All this is all in cardboard box that my bedroom ceiling fan came in.
Thank you for your advice! By the way, what are the best seeds you had? Because for me is like a lottery. Some are just useless and even with all kinds fertilizers, they would not grow up
But some were so good. Unfortunately, I forgot what kind of tomatoes were that.
I have many different tomato varieties, all heirloom. It's hard to say what my 'best' is. Guess it depends on what you mean by 'best', best flavor, best texture, best slicer, best keeper....
@Holly, if you are interested, please have a look in the seed giveaway section of the forum. I have several unwanted seed listed for giveaway. Some are just hunky flowers, but some are tomatoes and veggies. If no one wants them I'm afraid I'll have to just throw the majority of them away. I USED to have a local seed swap I gave my unwanted seeds to, but it only lasted a few years, then stopped.
Oh for now to me I need.. how to say it... the most "easiest" seeds
The ones that are not hard to grow...
I once read some advice of how to grow tomatoes. But none of them work for me. But I've read some comments here, so I slightly understand what should I do.
I will check this section! Thank you very much!
Hi Holly. Pleeeeeeeeease put your location in your profile, or at least your growing zone. This is an international forum and it's impossible to recommend anything without having an idea of your climate.
On "easy" seeds, it's probably going to be trial and error. Some varieties will grow well in your conditions, and some won't. My rule of thumb is that if it doesn't grow well and I can't pinpoint a specific problem to correct, I won't bother trying it again. I'll stick with what worked well.
Good luck!
TomatoNut - I wouldn't recommend freezing seeds. I have a compost bin outside, and it sits frozen for the winter. If frozen seeds germinated well, I should have a ton of volunteer tomatoes, peppers, squash etc - and I don't. I think you're better off just storing your seeds wherever it's coolest. To reduce humidity, you can use dessicant packets. Those are the "do not eat" packets in your vitamins and such. You can make your own out of powdered milk wrapped in coffee filters.
Cherry tomatoes might be easier to do than most varieties. Bigger, beefsteak types are harder, IMO. Either way, don't grow tomatoes in pots. Indeterminate varieties do not like pots. Trust me. Tried it multiple times and the results are tall, spindly and puny looking plants with low production. If you have to grow in pots, choose only determinate, dwarf types. Tiny Tim is my favorite dwarf and quite easy to do. Tiny Tim is only a foot tall, and produces cherry sized fruits.
KayJay, my neighbor froze her pea and bean seed and they did just fine. I just feel like freezing seed would keep them viable longer.
Hi Holly. Pleeeeeeeeease put your location in your profile, or at least your growing zone. This is an international forum and it's impossible to recommend anything without having an idea of your climate.
I posted this on the New Here! thread ....
"Holly, I 'Googled' your climate. I see the biggest difference from mine (South coastal B.C) is shorter days, cooler summers and of course lots of wind. You can probably grow crops in summer that would be limited to spring and/or fall here; but heat lovers - corn, peppers, many kinds of tomato? - won't do well, or tender herbs like basil & rosemary.
All the cabbage & lettuce families, plus roots like carrots beets & potatoes; and broad beans that grow through winter - I think they should all be possible. (What do your parents grow in their garden?)"
But the best advice is to ask & observe locally - what do others grow? (And can they give you any seed?! )
Seeds do have to be fully mature to be saved and dried to a very low humidity. Which is hard in the tropics. Stored in a cool, dark, dry place with even temperature. It is important only to take the seeds you are planting out of the storage and not the whole bag because changes in heat and humidity can shorten the life of the seeds.
Don't forget to do the float test when saving seeds. Only the sinkers are good.
Corn and zucchini do not store very long, but I was surprised how long lettuce seeds kept. I had bean and dill seeds that still sprouted well after 9 years. Seeds that I purchased in foil pouches lasted longer than seeds in paper pouches.
I do have to test seeds and clean the bag out periodically. Most seeds except the ones mentioned above will store for 5 years if managed well.
I keep mine in the refrigerator so it is mostly at a constant temperature, unless I stuff the frig and the door does not close properly.
I do save some seeds from plants, I don't get many crosses and I don't isolate.
I do buy mostly parthenocarpic zucchini and cucumbers because I want seedless and less bitter fruit. Occasionally, they do get pollinated and develop seeds or grow deformed.
Seeds like tomatoes and peppers that are coated usually do better if you ferment them first.
Sometimes I put powdered milk or rice in the bag to help to keep the seeds dryer.
My biggest problem is labeling the seeds. Sometimes the ink rubs off and sometimes (a lot), I forget to put the date on the seeds so I know how old they are.
Many times I am surprised. I plant older seeds more thickly because I expect a lower germination and they do better than anticipated. That is how I ended up with 36 peppers from 8 year old seeds. They were in a foil pouch.
True there are some seeds that have very short viability.
I have had some onion seeds good for more than a year, but germination rate is low. Leeks seeds also don't germinate well when they are older.
Green onion seeds (bunching onions) do last longer than a year.
Papaya seeds also do not store well either.
Pelleted seeds do not last well either.
Even with seeds that are not that old. If they are stored outside in 80 degree temperatures and my humidity (80%) they don't last long either. Packets that have been accidentally dropped or left in the sun don't germinate as well even if the seeds are not that old.
I add a little rice, powdered milk, or dessicant packs if I save them from other stuff like Japanese senbei. It helps to keep the seeds dry in storage.
I have just planted Koba onions that I got 4 years ago and kept it in the refrigerator. It still germinated.
On older seed, you may have to plant more seeds because the % germination declines. On things that don't have great germination to start with, I always plant extra seeds.
If the seeds are large enough, it is sometimes better to soak the seeds overnight first. I helps speed up germination, but if you have floaters, then you just discard them because they aren't likely to germinate anyway.
I plant most of the tiny seeds on the surface with a thin sprinkling of soil and pressing it in. It also helps to make sure your soil or pot is already evenly moist so there are no dry spots. Larger seeds should be planted deeper about 2x the size of the seed. For the most part, I plant larger seeds up to the first knuckle of my finger. It works for almost everything.
Even when planting bulbs or rhizomes, I plant them just below the surface so the tips won't get sunburn but they won't have far to go. You do have to know which end is up so the plant is not forced to make a U turn.
I live in a frost free zone. If you are planting in the fall, you would have to plant deeper.
Seeds know when it is the right time to grow. They either will not sprout, sprout and die, or lay dormant and sprout when conditions are right. This has been true for me for nasturtiums (it needs cool dry weather) and perilla (it will sprout when it is warm, but bolt when it gets cold). Some seeds, especially some hot peppers won't germinate well until the temperatures are around 80. Temperate peppers will sprout when it is at least 68 degrees. Eggplant will grow, but it is hard to sprout seeds in the cooler months. Most seeds will not germinate at all in extremes of hot or cold temperatures.
The best time to plant seeds outdoors is just before an expected rain. A slow deep rain always makes the seeds come up early. Unfortunately, the weeds come up too.
If you plant seeds on the surface, you need to be sure the seeds never dry out. Seeds may die or fail to sprout because of that, even if the seeds are viable, they cannot tolerate being wet and then dry again.
I asked the extension agent how they keep seeds longer. He said they have germinated 25 year old seeds that were vacuum sealed and frozen. Seeds that I bought from park seed came in foil pouches. Those seeds lasted longer than seeds that come in paper envelopes.
Seeds last longer frozen. The global seed vault stores preserves seeds in the Arctic. The seeds though need to have been dried to the minimum moisture content and vacuum sealed to prevent icing or frostbite. The local extension service agent said they were able to germinate seeds that were 25 years old keep in cryogenic conditions.
Long term storage of seeds are done at the international seed bank. It is located in Svalbard, Norway. It is surrounded by permafrost. I talked to a UH extension agent and said they were able to germinate 25 year old bean seeds that were cryogenically frozen. If seeds are frozen, they have to be dry. The moisture content is between 7%-10%. If they have too much moisture or air in the packaging ice will form and that won't be good.
I know seeds that have been stored in foil pouches last longer than seeds stored in paper. I would think that mylar bags with oxygen eliminator would also work well if the seeds are at the right moisture content. There would not be the issue of light, but they still need to be ideally kept at a consistently cool temperature. Many of the orthodox seeds are from plants that go dormant, so I would think that they will handle being frozen more than tropical seeds which, even if they can be saved, are probably not designed by nature to withstand a freeze.
I keep my seeds in the packets and in a Ziploc bag. My tomato seed are stored in little plastic storage baggies in a Lays dip jar. All this is all in cardboard box that my bedroom ceiling fan came in.
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