Do You Freeze Your Seeds?

[Smiles Jr.]

canesisters - I use an old rusty metal toolbox. I year or two ago I had my seeds in the top tray of the toolbox and after getting into the bottom of the box I forgot to close it. Three days later I had no seeds left at all, just light fluffy chaff in a big pile. I know, I know - school of hard knocks :/.

Jay-rod, I think ammo boxes would be perfect.

thistle - the freeze/thaw cycle is exactly what the seeds need. It most closely matches what Mother Nature does all the time.

 

[897tgigvib]

Most of my seeds are in paper envelopes of one kind or another, including some of my beans, but most of my bean seeds are in coffee cans in my dresser drawers. Those in envelopes are in plastic boxes.

I really should do a germination test on some of my older seeds.

 

[thistlebloom]

thistle - the freeze/thaw cycle is exactly what the seeds need. It most closely matches what Mother Nature does all the time.

I won't argue with success . I just wonder about some things.
Like for instance, what about condensation that forms on seeds that are taken out of a freezer? Moisture is good when you want a seed to germinate, but not if you're saving it. Right?
I know there are ways around letting the condensation form on the actual seed....

If a plant naturally grows in a warm climate where there are no freeze thaw cycles then how does freezing benefit the seed?

I'm just thinking aloud...maybe I should be quiet now.

 

[Smiles Jr.]

...maybe I should be quiet now.

Oh please don't. Your questions and opinions are as good as anyone's.

You bring up a very good point with the condensation issue. But, on the other hand, seeds that lie in the soil all winter long also get very moist with snow and rain.

Since I usually do not grow hot types of pepper plants very much I don't have a lot of experience with warm climate plants. I have had good germination results with them after a cold winter in the barn though.

Perhaps we're concerning ourselves with something that doesn't deserve it. ???

 

[bj taylor]

i have two containers of self pollinating vegetable seeds i bought about a year ago. they're sealed & supposed to be good for several years. it's enough for one acre garden (each container). i've kept them in a closet. hope that is good enough environment.

 

[thistlebloom]

Perhaps we're concerning ourselves with something that doesn't deserve it. ???

I think you're right Smiles. We all have our ways of doing things, and if we're happy with the results I see no need to change
things. Most of my seeds are in a big glass jar in a cool dark closet. Then there are those in a buffet drawer, the ones tucked on top of the books in the bookcase, and the flower seeds I organized in a cd folder and forgot about.

I haven't had germination issues with seeds. Except for hot peppers, which don't seem to keep their viability for very long.
In fact the worst time I had with pepper seeds - zero germination _ was with a packet for that current season that I had ordered.

I hope I didn't come across offensively, didn't mean to seem like I was on the attack.

 

[journey11]

I started keeping mine in the freezer after starting to collect heirloom beans. The folks I bought my beans from recommended it, so I didn't argue with them since I figured they knew what they were doing. Then I thought, heck, I'll just keep them all together in there, flowers and everything, so I don't have to worry about cold stratification for the ones that needed it. I recall my grandpa kept jars of corn and beans in his freezer too.

Here's a good article I found that explains the why. And another on banking seeds.

Putting your food in the freezer extends its longevity...and seeds are "food" too, if you think about it. Any temp 50 degrees or under is suitable and it doesn't necessarily need to be dark--other than to avoid the effects of direct sunlight. The biggest factor though is MOISTURE.

They have to be dry enough to store. I don't have a handy method for measuring moisture in my saved seeds, but I can just tell when it's about right. I take mine in and out periodically and have never witnessed condensation on them. Mine are in paper packets inside of plastic baggies, so that and the dryness of the seed may have something to do with it. They also don't expand and contract if they are sufficiently dry.

Something else I learned looking this up is that I should be keeping my seeds in glass jars. Even plastic containers don't block moisture well enough. Those aluminum vacuum-sealed packets are also supposed to work well. One place I buy seeds from packs them in those. Finally, I have a good use for all those baby food jars I've been saving! I assume the drying effect of my frost-free freezer is why I haven't had moisture seep in despite the plastic baggies.

There's a chart at the end of that first article I posted that gives the general storage life of different seeds. By freezing them, you can extend that to 10 years or more. I have heard several cases of beans that were discovered in a freezer and still grew after over 20 years. What freezing does is that it prevents the carbohydrates in the cotyledons and endosperm from breaking down that are to be the food source and "power pack" for the developing seedling. Well kept, they do not lose their vigor.

And the weed seeds in your garden, the tenacious little survivalists that they are; some weed seeds can be tilled up from the deep to sprout and persist many years later. I would think hard shelled seeds have a built in resistance to moisture. Some flowers I plant have to be nicked or filed first so that moisture can get in there.

BJ Taylor, one of the articles on survival seeds I read said that you still need to keep those packages below 50 degrees. The special packaging will keep out the moisture, but heat will still degrade them. You've only had them a year, so your investment should still be safe. If you want to start stocking up seeds you've saved yourself for that purpose, you will want to freeze them.

I've accummulated a nice collection of heirloom tomatoes, beans and now some peppers and corn. I don't have room to plant all of them each year, so freezing the seed guarantees that they will be ready to grow when I come back to them later. If you prefer to buy new seeds each year or have just a little leftover to use the next year, then freezing them is probably not a big deal to you. Just keep them tightly sealed and cool.

 

[Carol Dee]

I use Smiles method of storing them in the garage, barn, shed etc... I figure the freeze thaw would simulate Mother Nature better than a freezer.

 

[journey11]

There are actually not many seeds that do require cold stratification...no veggies that I can think of. Mostly just flowers, mostly perennials. The main reason to fridge/freeze is to preserve viability. If you only want to keep your seeds a couple of years, you are ok as long as they don't get too warm or take on moisture.

The folks who sell seeds aren't going to write this recommendation on the backs of their seed packets because naturally they want you to come back and buy seeds each year.

Marshall, for your purposes, you might want to keep your beans under 50 degrees and sealed up tight. I can mail you some baby food jars...I've got plenty!

 

[Jared77]

Journey your post got me thinking....what about using the food saver? Make little air tight packets of each seed, label and into the freezer they go.