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critchlow1_gw

Can I hold seeds for next year?

critchlow1
10 years ago

DH ordered 6 packets of seeds and there really isn't time to grow everything starting this late, but I would like to save part of them for next year.

They are from Burpee. Remember, I'm the Newbee, so I have lots of dumb questions. What would be the best way to over winter them?

Comments (5)

  • Macmex
    10 years ago

    It depends somewhat on what kind of seeds you have. On average, I'd say that you can probably place those packets in a drawer and they'll work just fine next spring. Lettuce, parsnips and okra have short viabilities. Lettuce is really only good for two years, maximum. Parsnips generally only work for the year the seed was packaged. They are very short lived. Okra looses a lot of vigor after the year it was packaged for. However, by planting more thickly I have used seed as old as 3 or 4 years.

    Beans and peas usually show good viability for at 4 years. Squash, cucumber, watermelon and other vine crops last even longer, often being good for 10 years.

    Corn, cabbage, Brussels Sprouts, broccoli, kale, cauliflower, turnips, etc. can last a long time, even at room temperature. I've seen 10 years and with corn, I've heard of 20, though that was in WA State, where temperatures are more moderate. My corns start losing viability, when stored at room temperature, after four or five years.

    All this is dependent on your conditions of storage. If you don't use AC in your home and temperature and humidity fluctuate, viability time will drop.

    Storing in sealed jars works better than in zip lock bags. Though, I sometimes use zip locks for the convenience.

    If you seal your seeds in an air tight container and place them in a refrigerator, they will probably last at least two or three times longer than at room temperature. If stored in air tight containers and placed in the freezer their viability times will be measured in decades instead of years.

    Hope this helps!

    George
    Tahlequah, OK

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    10 years ago

    To add one tiny bit to what George said, if you store seeds in the freezer, you can improve their viability by the manner in which you handle them after removing them from the freezer.

    When you need them, take them out of the freezer and let the container sit there on a counter for a few hours before you open it. You want for the container of seeds to warm up and reach room temperature before you open it, as this will reduce the likelihood that condensation will form on the seeds and affect their viability.

    And, just for the record, there are no dumb questions.

    Finally, remember that we have a long growing season here. When space is available, and if drought or pests and diseases are not so bad that succession planting won't work, you can continue planting all summer and into the fall for a fall/winter harvest.

    I'm going to link the Fall Gardening guide below. It has planting dates for the fall garden. The recommended planting dates, in this case, are the opposite of the spring dates, so the earliest date in a range of dates are for northwestern OK, the latest dates are for southeastern OK, and everyone in between those two extreme corners of the state can choose a date within that range that correlates to their location in the state. For example, they recommend July 1-15 for the planting of fall tomato plants. I'm in southcentral OK and I planted my fall tomato plants in the first week of July, though not on July 1st.

    Remember that when we use the term Fall Gardening, most of the planting takes place in summer with the harvest taking place in the fall. There's only a few cool-season crops we actually plant in fall, and those are for a winter harvest, except for garlic which is planted in fall for the next spring's harvest.

    With succession planting, you can be harvesting from your garden or containers almost every month of the year.

    Some years my fall/winter garden is more productive than my spring/summer garden, since there are fewer pests (especially after mid-August) and drier conditions. While "drier conditions" might not sound real appealing, they can be a good thing. Heavy moisture in spring often encourages many plant diseases, and often you'll see far fewer diseases in the fall and winter garden.

    Dawn

    Here is a link that might be useful: OSU Fall Gardening Guide

    This post was edited by okiedawn on Mon, Jul 15, 13 at 10:56

  • Macmex
    10 years ago

    Well said, especially the part about letting cool/cold stored seeds warm to room temp before one opens the air tight container. I had forgotten that important detail. I once opened a quart of frozen bean seed, for just a few seconds, closed it again, and left it on the shelf, outside the freezer. A couple months later I tried to plant some and no a single bean germinated. When I opened it, the temperature change caused condensation on the seed (moisture collected there). I closed it and it molded and died!

    George

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    10 years ago

    I knew you forgot because normally you mention the condensation issue, so I thought I'd add it in case you got busy and didn't make it back to this thread anytime soon.

    The only problem I have with putting seeds in the freezer is that if I put them into the chest deep freeze in spring, then they are buried underneath all the spring/summer harvest that I've frozen and I really have to dig through a lot of stuff to find them in the summer for planting the fall garden.

    I could get around that by putting them in the smaller upright deep freeze, but it gets open and closed a lot more often, so I'd rather have them deep in the chest freezer.

  • critchlow1
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    You guys are my heros! That's just what I needed to know. My BDIL wants to know about the fall planting, and now I can tell her all you shared with me.

    Thanks so much!