Seedsaving

Whatisaseed?

Seedsarelifeinwaiting
Everythingaplantneedstostayaliveuntilitcanformrootsand
starttophotosynthesisingforitself
o Nutrientrichmanyedible
Diverse,specialised,fromtinypoppyseedstobigavocadoseeds
Designedforconditions
o Distributionsystems:floating(coconut),flying(dandelion),scatter(impatiens),animaldispersal
(fruits&burrs)
o Protectionfromdrying,sun,salt,heat&cold(e.g.nuts)
Geneticdiversity!
o Sexualreproduction,asopposedtovegetativepropagation(offspringvsclones)

Whysaveseeds?

Seedsfromhealthyplantsyouvegrowncapturethegenesthatsuityourconditions
Allowsustobreedplantsthatarebetteradaptedtolocalconditions
Allowsdevelopmentofnewstrainsandvarieties,withspecificcharacteristics(flavour,aroma,
weathertolerance,soiltolerance,etc.)eg.Tasmaniannonboltingcoriander

Seedsaving&theplanet

Seedsareavitalsourceofbiodiversity:biodiversitymattersbecauseitdeterminesnotonlywhatlife
existsnow,butwhatlifecanevolveinthefuture
Savingseed&propagatingyourownplantsfromitincreasesbiodiversity:itkeepsmoregenesaround
intheplantswegrow!
Geneticdiversitymeansplantscanbetteradapttochangingconditions
o Climatechange,droughts,salinity
o Lossofarableland&increasinglymarginalgrowingconditions
Seedsyoukeepwillbemorediversethanwhatyoucanbuy
o Allowsdevelopmentofnewvarieties
o Keepsplantspeciesincultivationthatarentgrowncommerciallymeanstheseplantswillstill
bearoundandcanfeeduslongintothefuture(andmaybebecomecommercialcropsoneday)
Seedsarerevolutionary:awayofresistingthecopyrightingoflifeandDNAbybiotech,andof
undermininglegislationthataimstocontrolcropvarietiestothoseownedbycorporations
Seedsletusbuildourownfoodfuture!

Howtosaveseed:

Pollination
o Letyourplantsgotofloweronceyouveharvestedenough(forbroccoli&caulifloweryoullneed
toleavepartoftheflowerhead)
o Inmostcasesthebees&otherinsectswilldothejobforyouencouragebeesintoyourgarden
byplantingflowers(theyloveborageanditmakesafantasticgreenmanure),andconsider
buildinganinsecthotel.
o Ifyouwanttocontrolwhichplantsyoucrosstobreedforspecifictraits,consider
handpollinationflowerswillneedtobekeptcoveredtopreventnaturalpollination,thenyou

canplaybee.Differenttypesofflowershaveverydifferentpollinationtricksthough,sothe
simplewayistoletnaturedoitforyou.
Seedsetting
o Letpodsformandmatureontheplantwherepossible
o Seedpodsusuallystartoutgreenthenturnbrownastheydry.Whentheyarecompletelydry
theycrack,releasingtheseeds.Youneedtoharvesttheseedsbeforethispoint!
o Seedsarenutritious!Youmightneedtoprotectthemfrominsectsandotheranimalsifthey
aregettingeaten,youcanputaplasticbagovertheseedheadswhiletheyripen.
o Youwantthebestseed,notthelastseed!Dontwaituntiltheplantisonitslastlegstoletseed
setifyoucanhelpit.Especiallyforlegumes(beans&peas)leavesomepodstomaturetoseed
inthemiddleoftheharvestglutastheseareformedwhentheplanthasthemostenergy,and
thereforewillbebetterquality.
Seedselection&harvesting
o Collectthebestheadsofseed/pods/nutsontheplantlookforoneswiththepodsintact,
veryfullofgoodsizedseedsandnosignsofinsectentry,mould,fungusordisease
o Harvesttheseedsbeforethepodsarecompletelydry,buthavelargelydriedout.Ifhumidityis
anissueyoucanharvestearlierandleavepodstodryindoors.
o Therearemanywaystocollectseeds,nonerightorwrong!Iprefertosniptheseedheadsoff
theplantandputthemintoopenplasticcontainersthatIleaveonabenchinside(cool&dry)
whilethepods/headsfinishdryingout.
o Oncedry,seedsneedtobeseparatedfromtherestoftheplantmaterialforstorage.Thisisa
handsontaskthatcanbeveryfiddlyfortinyseeds!Crackopenanypodstoextracttheseeds,or
rubseedheadsbetweenyourhandstoseparatetheseedsfromtheplant,thenremoveallthe
plantmatter,leavingonlytheseed(usetheweightoftheseedstohelpyouwhereyoucan!)
o Rememberitdoesntneedtobeperfectalittlebitofdriedplantmaterialwonthurt!
o Setyourcollectedseedsasideinadry,shadedplacetofinishdryingouthowlongthistakes
willdependonthematurityoftheseed,thetypeofplantandyourweather.
Storage
o Onceyourseedsaredryyouneedtostorethemawayuntilyouarereadytoplant!
o Storageconditionsaffecttheviabilityofyourseeds.Storeinacool,dry,darkplacetomaximise
storagetime&preventmoulds&fungus.
o Transferyourdriedseedintoastoragepacket:Ilikelittlemanilaenvelopesstoredinaplastic
tup,toallowaircirculation,butplasticsnaplockbagscanbeusedtoo,aswellasnormal
envelopes.
o Labelthem!Youneedtoknowwhateachpacketcontains(handoutexamplelabels).Ifswapping
seedsorcreatingaseedlibrary,themoredetailsthebetter,asitallowspeopletoworkoutwhat
seedsmightbestsuitthem!
Plantname(+varietyifknown)
Dateseedsharvested
Locationgrown
Gardenconditions(sun,shade,greenhouse,etc.)
Soilconditions(sand,clay,loam,commercialmix,etc.)
Anyrelevantcommentsnotesaboutwhatgeneration,specificsonformorfruiting,
diseaseissues,bestplantingtime,etc.
Propagation
o Yourseedsarenowreadytoplantinthenextgrowingseason!
o Howlongaseedcanbestoredandremainviableishighlyvariable.Dependentontheplant,
theseedquality&storageconditions
Besttoplantthenextyear,andtouseallwithin3years.Seedover5yearsoldis
unlikelytoremainviable.

Goforthandsaveseed!Swapwithgardenerfriendsandtradeintheseedlibrarytosharethatgreat
biodiversityandhelptocultivateplantsthatthriveinyourlocalconditions.