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drippy_gw

Seed Storage

drippy
16 years ago

Here in southern New England, I've had good luck keeping my seeds in a closed plastic bin (yes, too many for a shoebox)in my studio (room temperature). Seeds I have from 2005 are germinating just fine.

Where I am moving to the Greenville-Spartanburg area later this year, I am wondering if I am going to have to change that practice? With the hot summers, do you all store your seeds in the fridge? If so, do you have any recommendations on moisture-tight containers?

If that's the case, LOL, DH is going to have to buy me a separate refrigerator.

Comments (6)

  • blueangel
    16 years ago

    Hello

    here in Charlotte I have clear glass jars(spice)
    that I use for my seeds and I store them in a
    closet off the back deck it is cool all summer and
    colder in the winter but has worked for me
    I am sure others will have other methods of
    storeage for you.

    blueangel

  • tamelask
    16 years ago

    I do the exact same thing, drippy- with one addition. Any time i get those dessicant packets in a new purse, shoes, medicine, etc, i throw those in the box with the seeds to help keep it nice and dry. I keep mine at room temp- i have 2 of the plastic shoeboxes full (1 for ornamentals, 1 for edibles)- so definitely not room in the fridge! I've had good luck with seed that's 5+ years old. Remember, here in the south your house will almost certainly be airconditioned, so it will stay pretty temperate all year long. And a/c dries it out more inside than up north where there's no a/c in the summer. Welcome!

  • alicia7b
    16 years ago

    I keep mine in the fridge although I think most people don't.

  • drippy
    Original Author
    16 years ago

    Thank you! Tamelask, I use the dessicant packs, too - I'm glad you spoke up. I think I'll try keeping them the same way I do here, and hope for the best.

    Thanks for the warm welcome - it means a lot, since I'm going to be leaving a lot of friends and family here. I'm not sure exactly when I'll arrive there, but hopefully before the end of the summer - I'm excited about the planting opportunities.

    And I see on another posting that the hummers are coming - I won't see my first one here until April 25 (2 years in a row on that day). I bet they stick around there longer in the fall, too.

    Yeah, as far as the great outdoors goes, I think the south has it all over the north. Unless you LIKE winter (which I don't, particularly).

  • tamelask
    16 years ago

    Oh, yeah! I moved from the north, too in '91. Still love to visit, but there's no way we're going back. You will adore being able to garden year round here. No joke. You'll get out and do all kinds of chores, maintenance , etc in the dead of winter in Jan the 50's. Not to mention wintersowing those seeds. We really only have a few weeks where something's not blooming or growing, if that. You can plant cool season veggies (what you think of as spring crops) all winter here, and pansies are planted as color. Plus, there are witch hazels, daphne, camellias, edgeworthias, winter honeysuckle and prunus mumes aka flowering apricot to add color and scents in winter, among others. Your typical spring bloomers- daffs, etc, usually start in mid February here (this year we've been about 3 weeks early). The time you may find you hibernate is in mid summer when it's too hot. Even then, i tend to garden early in the morn & late in the eve. You're right- fall comes much, much later- sometimes we don't see our first hard frost into November, more often it's October. Bugs are bad, diseases are different, and clay or sand can be a little to adjust to, but you'll love it on the whole. There have been quite a few threads in the past few years about differences between north & here because of the number of transplants, so do some searches and see what you can dig up to give you food for thought. Come to swap or 2 when you get here, and you'll have lots of friends, quickly.

  • alicia7b
    16 years ago

    The biggest change you'll notice is that you'll be able to garden all year.

    I saw ruby-throated hummingbirds in November last year.

    LOL Tammy's right, you will definitely be running your air conditioner in summer, and sometimes in the spring and the fall. Everyone down here has central air.