Seed question

[Renthead Mommy]

Okay, all the gardening questions, combined with the fact that we are going to have 3 consecutive summers in the same house (we'll get in mid summer this year, but I can work with that!) and the fact that I'm just plain ready to move, I'm really thinking about my garden for these next summers.

 

However I would love to figure out how to get seeds from the things WE grow. I know Ma Ingals and Grandpa Walton didn't just go down to Home Depot for seeds. They got their seeds from the stuff they grew. Well how do you do that? Do you just scoop out the tomato seeds? The zuc and squash seeds? But I know that doesn't work for all plants. We've had pumpkins seeds grow in the composter that we transplant, they'll leaf, and even flower, but we only get male flowers. Same for other squash rescued from the composter. Aren't store bought seeds raised/created/bred so that they won't give off seeds? Is that what heirloom seeds are? I always thought they were just fancier varieties of tomato/rose adn the like.

 

Can someone explain how it works?

[Rosie_0801]

Your local library is bound to have a copy of the seed savers handbook or something similar.

Heirloom varieties are old or interesting seeds that will reproduce true to type. It sounds like some of your adventures have been with hybrids. Some hybrids won't reproduce at all, others will but do funky things that aren't usually too tasty.

 

:)

Rosie

[MomsintheGarden]

You have asked a huge question. Saving seeds is both simple and complex.

 

Here are some sources for information:

 

GardenWeb's Seed-Saving FAQs:

http://faq.gardenweb.com/faq/seedsave/

 

Seed to Seed by Suzanne Ashworth (this is at a lot of libraries)

 

Gardening When it Counts by Steve Solomon (an excellent resource)

 

When saving seeds, you need to make sure that your seeds are not hybrids unless you like surprises). Seeds saved from F1 hybrids are carefully hand-crossed from two or more different parent plants. They will not produce offspring that are just like the parents. Ma Ingalls grew non-hybrid plants, because hybrids were not available back then (to my knowledge). "Heirloom" seeds are those of older, non-hybrid varieties. They often taste wonderful, but are not always the best producers.

 

You also want to make sure they don't cross-pollinate. Ma probably only one variety of each kind, so her plants were not cross-bred. For instance, she grew pumpkins but not other cucurbita pepo types, such as zucchini, so her pumpkin plants did not swap pollen with them. The late-19th-century gardeners who saved their own tomato seeds probably only grew one variety, and so on. If you grow more than one variety, you will need to isolate the plants from other garden-grown varieties of the same type (including your neighbor's) AND from weeds that can cross-breed. For example, carrots cross with the very common weed, Queen Anne's lace.

 

You need to make sure you have enough plants to provide genetic strength. The Solomon book addresses that issue.

 

Many plants require special conditions to reproduce. For example, if you want to save cabbage seeds, you must let them winter over. They will produce seeds the following spring because they are biennials. Onions and carrots are biennials, too. Unfortunately, many people garden where these plants will not survive the winter. To save seeds, you must dig up the plants, store them, and replant them in the spring OR protect them somehow so they survive.

 

As an aside, a lot of old-time gardeners did buy seeds. Some of the seed companies are pretty old, like Landreth and Shumway's. I have a gardening book written in the mid-late-19th century that talked about buying seeds. Thomas Jefferson bought seeds.

 

Seed saving can be fun, but it can also be a disaster. I saved the seeds of oxheart tomatoes from a relative's garden, and unfortunately introduced a bacterial spot disease into my garden from them. I have successfully saved seeds of some easier flowers, and if times get tough enough, I'll try to save some veggie seeds, too.

 

HTH (just the tip of the iceberg, though),

GardenMom

[Aubrey]

I just requested Seed to Seed from my library a couple of days ago. I've also googled some stuff. It's kind-of interesting, & my dc are at an age where they'd love this stuff, so...I'm thinking science. Can anybody say HOMESCHOOLER? :lol:

[Renthead Mommy]

Wow. I had no idea it was that complicated. I'm sure I'll have to wait till I get home, but I'm going to check out some of those book suggestions. (Our library doesn't carry much like that.)

 

And yes, Aubrey, you're right. My big reasoning was basically to show the full circle. Buy a tomato plant, grow a tomato, pick a tomato, pull seeds out of tomato, eat the tomato, save the seeds, plant the seeds and just start all over again.

 

Plus I sometimes really get caught up and bother by modern day 'conveniences'. Some things really were better, and much more appreciated when it just wasn't as easy.

 

 

Plus I'm really trying hard to be less of a 'user'. Instead of ordering online, having things shipped (transportation and packaging), just doing it ourselves. I know seeds are a little thing, but I was hoping it would be just one more way we could do that. Sometimes that plan works better than others.

 

Thanks.

[Rosie_0801]

Sometimes you can grow different varieties of the same plant. Some don't cross pollinate, and others have early and late varieties which won't be flowering at the same time. Planning it all out to such detail sounds like hard work to me, but when you're on a roll...

 

:)

Rosie

[Guest Virginia Dawn]

Okay, all the gardening questions, combined with the fact that we are going to have 3 consecutive summers in the same house (we'll get in mid summer this year, but I can work with that!) and the fact that I'm just plain ready to move, I'm really thinking about my garden for these next summers.

 

However I would love to figure out how to get seeds from the things WE grow. I know Ma Ingals and Grandpa Walton didn't just go down to Home Depot for seeds. They got their seeds from the stuff they grew. Well how do you do that? Do you just scoop out the tomato seeds? The zuc and squash seeds? But I know that doesn't work for all plants. We've had pumpkins seeds grow in the composter that we transplant, they'll leaf, and even flower, but we only get male flowers. Same for other squash rescued from the composter. Aren't store bought seeds raised/created/bred so that they won't give off seeds? Is that what heirloom seeds are? I always thought they were just fancier varieties of tomato/rose adn the like.

 

Can someone explain how it works?

 

My father has always saved seed from a lot of his plants. I asked him a lot of questions about this a few weeks ago. He doesn't worry too much about cross- pollination or other issues.

 

He saves seed from squashes, cucumbers, beans, lettuce, herbs, and flowers.

Basically you just let the plant grow to maturity. For squashes and cucumbers you let one of the fruits ripen and pick when hard and gourd-like. Then scoop out the seeds and let them air dry. Beans are left on the plants until they are hard and dry. Lettuce and herbs will grow flowers wich dry and form seed heads. You try to collect the seed before the wind and birds do.

 

Dad says some things are not worth it, depending on your point of view. Here I can by 1/4 ounce of carrot seeds, more than is in a few name brand packages, for only 35cents at the local farm store. He says spinach is hard to collect seed from. Beans that were stringless will probably have strings when you grow them from your own seed. Tomatoes always turn out different than the parent, but they are still perfectly good tomatoes.

 

I personally have successfully saved seed from marigolds, chives, cilantro, allysum, and black eyed susans. This year I'm going to try lettuce, peas, and squash.

 

I think this is one of those things that is very good to know. So even if you get a different end result, your family will still be able to put food on the table if it needs to.

[KS_]

Here are a couple of links that might help:

 

http://www.seedsave.org/issi/issi_904.html

 

http://www.ext.colostate.edu/Pubs/Garden/07602.html

 

http://www.savingourseed.org/pages/ResourceGuide.html

[abreakfromlife]

It's not complicated at all - just make sure you're buying heirloom, open-pollinated seeds and NOT hybrid seeds....and then save the seeds. On veggies, it's pretty easy; on flowers you have to know what you're looking for....but overall, saving seeds is really easy.

[Tammyla]

Well this sounds more complicated than I imagined. This year I've purchase heirloom or organic seeds to plant, and now I'm wondering how they will do compared to hybrids.

 

I"m going to look at the links and see if my library has a good book on. I never gave cross pollination a thought.:001_huh: