The gardens begin to lose their grace and come with seeds. Race saving was a skill that many of our ancestors knew.
But by the end of the 20th century, it had become increasingly popular to buy seeds every year. In recent years there has been a resurgence of efforts to save some of your own seeds from the garden. Recovering these skills, teaching the next generation, can be a fun and unique way to garden next year.
Benefits of saving seeds
Saving seeds has many benefits, but here are three. First, you can choose for your favorite traits, for example, fruit size or taste. The second benefit is that as long as you keep the seeds from your own plant, that plant will adapt better to your climate. Climate-tolerant plants are stronger, have easier time to cope with drought in your area or the weather. Third, it costs money. The only cost when saving seeds is your time.
Self-replicating and spreading the cross
It may be helpful to learn a little about pollen before saving your seeds. There are two types of pollen: self-cultivation and propagation. Self-propagation occurs when pollen grains fall into a flower. Cross-pollination Pollen grains are transferred to a different flower and come from there. Mixed crops come from two different species to form a third species. When sown, this seed produces offspring that produce arbitrary characteristics. The only way to get a consistent fruit every year is to always jump on the same parent. Mixed seeds are usually marked “F1” on their packaging. Therefore, saving seeds from mixing is not recommended unless you want to see what happens.
The gardens begin to lose their grace and come with seeds. Race saving was a skill that many of our ancestors knew. But by the end of the 20th century, it had become increasingly popular to buy seeds every year. In recent years there has been a resurgence of efforts to save some of your own seeds from the garden. Recovering these skills to teach the next generation can be a fun and unique way to prepare for next year’s garden.
Most people who are saving seeds in their garden will have open pollen. This pollen is probably caused by insects, wind, or human hands. Open-contaminated seeds are often seen as “truth-growing” seeds. Meaning, the offspring produce the same fruit as the parents. Many hereditary species are open pollen. But an open pollen cross can also include pollen. It can be avoided by keeping a distance or time between two different species by not crossing.
Race selection
Where to start? The easiest place to start is by choosing one or two seeds to save for the first year. It can help you to practice this new skill without feeling overwhelmed. Choose plants that are easy to save, such as pepper, tomato, or pumpkin. When choosing which seeds to save, the difference should be a healthy, well-represented fruit. If you choose what kind of seeds to store, they can be prepared and dried for next year.
Tomatoes
Tomatoes have a bag that protects against growth, so it takes a little work to save the seeds. This must be removed by allowing the fruit to ripen. If you allow some tomatoes to fall off and rot, you may have volunteer tomatoes in your garden. To ferment tomato seeds, you need to put the seeds in a waterproof container and add water. Place the container in direct sunlight for 3 to 5 days and mix daily. If the pumpkin floats up and the seeds sink down, the seeds are ready to be cleaned. To clean, soak the seeds in water, and run under water to wash away any debris. Then place the seeds on a paper towel to remove any remaining water. After the water has evaporated, place the seeds in a glass, plastic, or screen. Generally, do not use paper towels or paper towels when drying seeds. The seeds can cling to them. Store dried seeds in a warm place, but not in direct sunlight. It can be used to dry fan seeds. After the seeds are dried, they can be stored for later use.
Peppers
Pepper may be one of the easiest seeds to save. Once the pepper has changed color, the seeds are ripe and ready for harvest. Peel a squash, grate it and crush the seeds. Place the seeds on a plate to dry. Once dry, the seeds are ready to be stored.
Pumpkin
Squash seeds are stored in the same way as pepper seeds. The only difference is that when you use your fingers to scrape the seeds to remove the debris, they must be thoroughly washed with water. Once this is done, they can dry out like the peppers.
Beans
To save the beans, you need to turn the pod brown and let it dry on the wine. Once dry, you can take the grapes and open the pod to extract the beans. Make sure the seeds are dry and put them in a brown paper bag for storage for the New Year. Store in a dry, cool place.
Corn
The corn you use for seed should stay in the garden for one to two months, after which the corn you need to eat is needed. The bark should be dry and brown. Once this happens, before the first snow, on the next dry day, gather the ears. The ears can now be pulled back to expose all the crows. Hang the ears in a dry, dry place to dry the air. After about three months, the unripe seeds should be inspected, so they can be removed and discarded. This color-coded node can be a flower pointer. The mushrooms can be stored for as long as they can be planted.
Seed saving is a unique ability to learn and can add a whole layer to gardening. Giving you the skills to learn from the past and pass on to the next generation. Some different types of vegetables have become harder to find in the last two years, so if you keep your own seeds, this is no longer a problem. So do not be afraid to try it.
Tiffany Jones is the District Administrator for the Oxford Conservation District. For more information on race conservation and environmental protection, call Tiffany at (231) 775-7681, ext. 3, by email at wexford@macd.org.
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