Growing Okra - Identifying Bad Seed

[hoodat]

^ Odd, I've read people claiming okra don't need much water at all, that you can wait till the ground starts cracking open. Then again there's a big difference between keeping them alive and keeping them productive.

Is there any trick to saving seeds or just leave a few on the plants to mature to full size, lay the seeds out on a paper towel and let them completely dry? What I do with other seeds is I have a cardboard box with a fan at one end and a hole at the other and I put seeds in little bowls inside to dry.

I have okra seed that was given to me 5 years ago in the form of dried pods. I have saved the dried pods and saved the seeds only. It doesn't seem to matter. Let the pods get dry on the plant, then pick them. That way you know the seeds are fully mature.

Okra seed has a hard shell that water has trouble penetrating. The longer it is stored the harder the shell gets. A lot of organic matter in the soil helps. The proper organisms are present to attack the shell and break it down so moisture can penetrate. An old trick is to use a triangular file and file a notch just deep enough to break through the outer shell and let the moisture get inside.

 

[grow_my_own]

I bought non-GMO okra seeds from an ebayer who sells all heirloom/non-GMO seeds, and I had 100% germination. I started them in plant starter 6-packs with Miracle Gro seed starter soil. I am in zone 9a. I started my seedlings indoors, hardened them off outdoors for 2 weeks, then put the small seedlings (only 5 inches tall at the time) in the ground at the end of April. As of yesterday, we just started seeing the first signs of tiny, itty bitty okra pods!