Remember, way back in the fall, when I put so much effort into saving and storing some seeds, well now I put them to the test, and see if I did it right, if they are still alive and will they grow?
To do this trial I used a recycled plastic asian pear container, that was too nice to just toss. It has eight compartments and a lid that snapped shut. I lined every compartment with moist tissue, and then labeled each compartment with the variety of seed that they are to hold, and added the seeds, 10 to a compartment for the smaller seeds, 5 to a compartment for the large ones. I sprayed them with more water and worked to keep them moist for the next two weeks.
After two weeks I check on them and count the number of sprouted seed to the number of unsprouted seeds to obtain my germination percentage.
Giant Sunflowers, that I saved from a flower in the park across the street from my house
4/5, or 80%
Quinoa, from what I could salvage from the crop in my backyard
10/10 or 100% (but I wouldn't bet on it in the field)
Chiapas Wild tomatoes, the first attempt to save tomato seeds
0/10 or 0% boo!
Basil, from my own pot in the backyard
0/10 or 0%, but Basil takes longer that two weeks to sprout, or Im hopeful still
Ardwyna Paste, that lovely paste tomato that lived through the terrible tomato year
8/10 or 80%, trying this one again
Zebra Green tomato, from a tomato I bought at a Farmers Market
0/10 or 0%, so much for free seed while enjoying a salad, may try it again
Black beans, from my garden
1/5 or 20%
Flax, from my garden,
10/10 or 100% I loved how simple it was to grow, its gonna make a comeback this year too.
I'm a little sad that there were so many failures, but this is a skill that I think will take a few years to get right, I'm looking forward to seeing my results next year.
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