Raise your hand if at this time of year you have walked out into the garage or wherever you have stored your seed stash from the previous year or years, and wondered, "Hmmmm,are these seeds any good?"
Will they sprout (begin to grow, give off shoots or buds)? Will I be wasting my time and energy planting these seeds? My hand is up. I have seeds (flower and vegetable) left over from last year, seeds collected, and seeds given to me from others. Seeds are an expense and some seeds have special meaning or memories attached to them because they came from special friends and/or loved ones. So what can you do?
There are a couple of tests that can be used to see if the seeds in question will germinate (process by which an organism grows from a seed or similar structure) or are viable (able to take root or grow).
One method to check for seed viability is the water test. Take the seeds and place them in a container of water. Let the seeds sit for 15minutes. If the seeds sink, they are still viable; if they float, discard, because they probably will not sprout.
Question: Can the seeds that sink still be planted?
Answer: Yes.
Sow the seeds directly in the soil if it is the proper planting time or thoroughly dry seeds and plant when it is the appropriate time.
Another method that is more dependable is the germination test.
Take at least 10 seeds from the package of seeds in question and place them in a row on top of a slightly damp paper towel. Fold the towel over the seeds and place towel in a clear plastic bag. Seal the bag and place it in a warm (above 70 degrees) location. Although light is not a major factor for most seeds, a warm windowsill works well or the top of the refrigerator is a good location. (Note: You could also place the damp towel on a plate and cover with cling wrap. This way more variety of seeds can be placed on the damp towel in individual rows.
Next, use a permanent marker to record date and type of seed on the outside of the bag. Look at the seed packet (if you have one) and note the germination times. Based on the average germination times listed on the seed packet, check the seeds in a few days to see if any have sprouted.
If no packet, check seeds in sevento 10 days. If you are like me, I will be checking them every day, probably more than once a day, just because. Once the seeds have started to germinate remove the paper towel-wrapped seeds from the bag and count the number that have sprouted. If only half sprouted it is most likely only half will germinate. Don’t hit the panic button just yet.
The solution is to just spread the seeds thicker than normal in your container or garden. According to the University of Illinois Extension Office, if less than 70 percentgerminate, it might be better to buy new seeds.
Question: Can the sprouted seeds be planted?
Answer: Yes.
Plan to do the germination test close to the time of planting so they can be seeded. Now for the parents and grandparents outthere, here is a fun children’s “Garden in a Glove” project to teach children about germination.
Materials needed: clear plastic glove, permanent marker, five different seed varieties, cotton balls, pencil, twist tie or string. Have the child write his or her name and date of project on the glove with the permanent marker. Write the name of each seed variety on a glove finger. Wet the cotton balls and squeeze out the excess moisture. Place three to fourseeds in each cotton ball and fold ball over to secure seed.
Place cotton ball in appropriately labeled glove finger and push ball down into the fingertip with the pencil. Once all seeded cotton balls have been placed, blow air into glove and secure top of glove with a twist tie or string. Hang the glove in a window or a warm location and watch for success. The seeds should germinate in threeto fivedays. Once they have germinated, cut off tips of gloves to remove cotton balls and plant the seeded cotton balls in the soil.
Here are some sources for more information:
University of Illinois Extension https://extension.illinois.edu/home;
Colorado State University Extension https://extension.colstate.edu/home;
Oregon State University Extension https://extension.oregonstate.edu/home;
Sandusky County Extension The Ohio State University https://sandusky.osu.edu/home, 419-334-6340;
Ottawa County Extension The Ohio State University https://extension.osu.edu/ottawa-countyoffice,419-898-3631.
Watch for my August article on how to collect and store seeds for maximum shelf life. Happy planting!
Carolyn Johnson is a Master Gardener with the OSU Extension Offices in Sandusky County and Ottawa counties.
