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gardendrivenlife

dehydrated seeds

gardendrivenlife
10 years ago

I used the dehydrater on some pods, set at 115 degrees. Do you think this will hurt the viability? I would like to send them out in trade this year. My second flush is still flowers and small pods. I'm not sure if they'll have enough time to harvest. TIA

Gary

Comments (7)

  • Bill_Missy
    10 years ago

    No expert here... But, by dehydrating seeds I would think the germination rate would be slim to none as they have been more or less "cooked" I personally would not trust them to sprout.

    Bill

  • woohooman San Diego CA zone 10a
    10 years ago

    Agreed. Although I have had some seeds sprout from dried chiles from the supermarket, it was hit and miss... very low germ rates, if any. And I think they actually AIR dry those.

    If you want to save seed, let ripen completely on plant and then a couple more weeks. Then, cut away as much flesh as possible and let air dry at room temp on a plate, etc. for a couple weeks. Knock seeds loose from placenta. Store in a cool, dry, dark place. Preferably in paper envelopes.

    Kevin

  • gardendrivenlife
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thanks guys! My second crop for seed saving may not come in time. I think I'll run a germination test, you never know. It was set on a pretty low temp setting for 3 or 4 days. Maybe a little hotter than Mexico, lol.

  • mbellot
    10 years ago

    Hate to run counter to the rest, but if you are sure you did it at 115 and not much higher then you might be OK.

    I'm sure there are plenty of wild peppers that endure much higher than 115 and still germinate with no problem.

    You could always give it a shot with a dozen or so seeds and the paper towel trick right now to see what happens. You should have an answer in less than two weeks.

  • sandysgardens
    10 years ago

    I'm in agreement with Bill and Kevin. 115 is pretty much frying them. When germinating seeds the suggested temp is mid to upper 80s. I've more than once had my temp control turned up by a 2 year old grandkid to 98 or so for a few days and pretty much lost the batch that I was trying to germinate. The little guy saw me set the dial, so he thought he'd help and adjust the dial....needless to say we had very dried out seeds......

    Sandy

  • seysonn
    10 years ago

    Why dehydrate pepper seeds?
    They are almost dry when you get them out. They can be set on a towel on the counter OR wrap in paper towel(put a rubber band around it), keep next to your eggs/butter in the frig. They will get bone dry without any damage or spoilage.

  • gardendrivenlife
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    I was drying the peppers, and would like to use the seeds that were w/them.Just not good enough planning on my part. I want to share in the big exchange(please, let it happen), because I was blessed last year.

    Gary

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