Saving Native and Other Plant Seeds

Faith in a Seed

Saving seeds from your favorite plants is an easy and economical thing to do. Whether it be native plants, pass-along flowers or heirloom vegetables, when you harvest and store seeds, you know that you are perpetuating a species of plant that might have otherwise been lost. Planting seeds is also the least expensive way to garden if you have large areas to cover. We've provided plenty of tips, books and links that tell how to collect, prepare and store your own seeds and also made some lists of some of the easiest seeds to collect and save.

Ruby-throat in Cypress Vine Postcard by naturegirl7

Seeds

Planting seeds are a good way for the gardener on a tight budget to reproduce masses of plants. Seeds can be collected, saved and stored for years. Heirloom varieties, natives and hard to find old favorites can be rescued without moving the original plant. Collecting seeds from favorite plants is easy to do and we'll give you some pointers that will ensure your success.

Most native plants start easily from seed, though some must be exposed to periods of cold and warm weather. There are some good books about propagating native plants and a lot of good information is also available on the web. We've included our favorite books below and some links, too.

Starting plants from seed is easy, though it does take a little longer than other methods and you will not be successful if the seeds were collected from hybrid plants because they will not breed true due to their mixed parentage.

Red Buckeye Postcard by naturegirl7

Seed Saving

Seed to Seed: Seed Saving and Growing Techniques for Vegetable Gardeners

by: Suzanne Ashworth, Kent Whealy

Amazon Price: $16.47 (as of 07/11/2009)

Harvesting Seed

Whether harvesting seed from the wild or from your yard, timing is crucial. It is much easier to identify plants when they are flowering, so plants should be marked in some way so that you will be sure to collect seeds from the right plant when the seeds are mature. We use surveyor's tape in the wild and/or plant labels in our yard. You can also write down specific directions, but it's easier to just mark the plant.

Some Do's and Don'ts for collecting in the wild.
Always get a landowners permission.
Never collect in public parks, refuges, preserves, etc. Most of these places prohibit plant or seed collection because they have provided a protected natural environment for the plants to thrive.
Do collect from property scheduled for construction with the land owner's permission.
Don't collect rare or endangered plants unless the bulldozers are bearing down on the stand and/or you are working with a group like The Nature Conservancy. Even collecting seeds from an endangered stand may threaten its survival.
Take no more than one-tenth of the seeds in a stand so that enough will be left for reseeding to perpetuate the stand.
Collect seeds when they are dark colored, dry and fully mature.
Don't gather seeds that have been on moist ground as they may have begun to decay, mold or could be infested with insects.

Tools and Materials needed for collecting in the wild include:
gloves
boots
drop cloths
pruning shears
boxes
baskets
paper bags
canvas bags
permanent marking pen for labeling

Saving Seeds

Saving Seeds: The Gardener's Guide to Growing and Storing Vegetable and Flower Seeds (A Down-to-Earth Gardening Book)

by: Marc Rogers

Amazon Price: $10.76 (as of 07/11/2009)

Determining if the Seeds are Ready

Because flowering and fruiting dates may vary due to weather conditions from year to year, you must learn by observing the process of seed maturation. Keep a journal or a calendar and make notes when plants flower and when the seeds mature. Joining your local native plant society will put you in contact with knowledgeable people who can give you hands-on experience with recognizing native plant seed processes.

Once seeds are dark colored, firm and dry, they are usually ready to harvest. Green seeds should not be harvested because they usually will not germinate healthy seedlings. Fleshy fruiting plant seeds should be harvested when the fruit has turned from green or yellowish to reddish or blue-purple. You must be vigilant in your observations because delaying just a few days may make the difference between success and failure.

There are many plants, like Salvia coccinea (Scarlett Sage), in which the seeds all don't mature at the same time and which drop their seeds as they mature. An easy way to gather these seeds is to tie a small paper bag placed over the immature seed head.

Ruby-throat Sips Poster by naturegirl7

Seed Sowing

Seed Sowing and Saving: Step-by-Step Techniques for Collecting and Growing More Than 100 Vegetables, Flowers, and Herbs (Storey's Gardening Skills Illustrated)

by: Carole B. Turner

Amazon Price: $13.57 (as of 07/11/2009)

Cleaning and Preparing the Seeds

It's best to collect the seeds when the pods or capsules are brown and before they open. We put our collected seeds into a brown paper bag and close it with a rubber band or a twist tie. We label the bag with the plant name, date and place collected. Then we hang a couple of bags from a coat hanger and place them in a dark, dry place. Here in the south that means inside the house somewhere. Since seed collecting usually coincides with the fall of the year, you can use white bags and draw little ghost faces on them for Halloween. (Just Kidding!)

When the seeds are dry, they should be removed from the pod or capsule. We place a batch of seed pods in an old margarine container and put on the lid then we agitate it. The heavier seeds go to the bottom. Then you can use a colander or screen to separate the pod / capsule from the seeds. The seeds can be stored with the chaff, but you run the risk of also storing insect eggs and mold that may ruin the seeds.

Salvia & Native Bee by naturegirl7

Seed Heads in the Garden

Seedheads in the Garden

by: Noël Kingsbury

Amazon Price: $21.86 (as of 07/11/2009)

Storing the Seeds

Seeds should be stored in paper bags or envelopes in a cool, dark place. Ideal conditions are a temperature of 50 degrees Fahrenheit or less and 50% humidity or lower. If you have room in your refrigerator, then place them there. It's best to stay away from plastic or other containers that do not provide good air circulation, unless the seeds have been thoroughly air dried. Be sure to label each packet with the plant name, date, collector's name and the place collected.

Texas Star Hibiscus Postcard by naturegirl7

Easy Seeds to Save

I've included both native and introduced flowering plants that have seeds that are easy to save and will germinate well. Most are hummingbird and butterfly plants, while some are just pretty. This is an on-going list and I'll add more later. I'll also organize them according to harvest time at a later date.

Native Plants
Cypress Vine
Red Morning Glory
Cardinal Flower and other Lobelia spp.
Coreopsis
Scarlet Sage (Salvia coccinea) and other Salvias
Black-eyed Susans and other Rudbeckia spp.
Stokes Aster (Stokesia)
Wild Asters
Butterfly Weed and other Milkweeds (Asclepias spp.)
Sunflowers (Helianthus spp.)
Monarda (Bee Balm, Spotted Horsemint, etc.)
Hibiscus family (Texas Star, Confederate Rose, H. moscheutos)
Self-heal (Prunella vulgaris)
Coral Bean
Blazing Star (Liatris)
Red Buckeye
Louisiana Irises
Beard-tongue (Penstemon spp.)

Introduced Plants
Zinnas
Marigolds
Cassia family (Rattle Box - some are native)
Luffa Gourd and others in the Gourd family
Hyacinth Bean (Lab Lab)
Impatien family (Spotted Jewelweed (native), Balsam and Impatiens are introduced)

Heirloom vegetable plants

Native Plants Photos

Azalea wild pink

arrow_wood

Viburnum_dentatum_fr...

huckleberry

parsley_hawthorne4

parsley_hawthorne

crabapple_southern

devils_walking_stick...

elderberry flowers

dogwood flowers

blackberries

yaupon_berries2

mulberries_4_03

dogwood_drupe

beauty_berry1

elderberries2

coralbean

red bud

magnoliaflmed_0730

Iris_brevicaulis4r

Monarda fistulosa

Phlox divaricata, L...

Mexican primrose

common evening primr...

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Sharing Seeds

For years, we have been sharing both native plant and easy to grow introduced plant seeds with our friends and family. We discovered that the 2 1/4" X 3 1/2" paper coin envelopes are perfect for giving seeds. We print out a label containing the planting information and description and stick that to the front of the envelope. Then we put a package of the seeds into each of our Christmas cards (more for the gardeners on our list). Most people really enjoy and will plant the little extra gift and it's our way of spreading natives and hummingbird and butterfly plants around.

Through the Folsom Native Plant Society, one of Louisiana's two native plant societies (of which I hold the office of president), we give out hundreds of seed packages at our informational booths and when we give presentations about gardening and landscaping with native plants. Besides putting native plant seeds in interested hands, these little packages also help to advertise our organization's website which contains an abundance of valuable information about the native plants of Louisiana.

Arbor Day

Alice Crowell Hoffman

I cannot dig a great big hole
And set a tree into it,
But I can make a little hole
And I am going to do it.

Then in the little hole I'll drop
This acorn brown and shiny,
And that way I can plant a tree
Although I am so tiny.

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Saving Seeds Video

Saving Seeds

Clifton Middleton explains how to save tomato seeds and in the process underscores the importance of seeds in procuring self-sufficiency and freedom.

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