I have tons of old seed and I rarely have issues with no germination. Usually when I do it's because of weather issues or my error. For a long time I believed lettuce seed had to be fresh to germinate. This Spring I tossed some old seed outside not expecting more than a couple of heads. Practically all of the seeds germinated! I guess the weather conditions were perfect.

The point is, I'm not sure how useful the information would be since there are so many factors involved. I'm willing to try old seed and if I only get a couple of plants that's fine with me. I do swaps to try out new seeds to see if they work for my area and conditions. Even if you only get one plant you can let it go to seed and get fresh seed that way.

Some people only want "new" seed and I doubt anything people write will change their minds.

My only issue with seed germination is usually caused by me , That being what mix i start them with , and care
My greens like lettuce and so forth like a litt,e shade here , Flowers it usually has to do with weather outside ,
Temperature issues ,

I was thinking isn't that why names are added to seeds
Last year , this season early I had the White Marigolds and several from Burpee that were brand new and not a one did I get , wow was I bummed with that ,, I get the Cucumber fails but usually their good

I have several say no germination to the same seeds I started and had growing , so many factors it is difficult sometimes .
Can't gaurantee anything
Several from Rick ,
Several from DnD
Several from bxncbx
several from Littlecheryl
These are ones I know I have and several growing from or had . and

These are all seeds kept and grown by me , . I know some were good , Germination rates coud be better , (always )
Morning Glory



Zinnia (mixed Giants


Tithonia



I read like I'm defensive ,, I'm not tho ,

Gorgeous Jim! Wish I had the space!

I hugely appreciate it when people let me know whether germination was OK or questionable.
Don't care if that's public or private. (I lived in NJ for years, so it ain't that easy to offend me.)

Jim said:
>> "I was thinking isn't that why names are added to seeds "

Maybe it can be said in public if people qualify it with: "Maybe it was only how I sowed them, but ... none came up."

Love the Results thread and want to contribute to it (after I retire, I guess.)

(I have many "bottom of the barrel" re-traded seeds without dates, just dusty packets that look like they should have Roman numerals instead of these new-fangled Arabic numbers! And some of those only have common names. )

But having only one packet of something, old and re-traded, makes it seem unworthy of being entered into a seed list and then making people read it, until they get to the part "unknown age and storage conditions, at least five years old". So I don't list those.)

What I'm trending towards now is mostly NOT offering seed older than 3-4 years, especially if I have something similar, newer. When I offer packets more than 3-4 years old, I double the packets so that even germination as low as 50% will not be a big problem.

When I start seeds that old, I tend to start them indoors after an overnight soak in very dilute hydrogen peroxide. With old seeds, it seems worthwhile to start them in a "mini-flat" and then prick out what comes up. I have some "insert trays" with cells bigger than I use for plants anymore, like 32 cells per tray (4x8 rows). Those make OK "mini-flats" and take up very little room.

To me, a packet with 100+ seeds with low germination is almost as good as 25 seeds with high germination and vigor.

But I agree: many people only want fresh seeds. One lady told me that, if she's going to expend her space, time and energy, she's going to start with fresh seeds.

Me, I'm interested to see how old seeds come out!

I agree with Elena, Jim and Rick. For me, germination is truly down to weather. This spring, ws'd items didn't sprout, but this fall they sure did. I have peppers growing in my flower gardens among other things. I've used old seed and fresh seed this year. Old was no worse than the commercial. Some of my commercial didn't work out. Most of everything I got from everyone this year sprouted. And if I only got one or two plants, like the black prince snaps, it has been enough to make seeds for next year. Not an abundance, but enough to make a patch now.

I do feel like storage plays a good part of seed viability with older seeds, but not to the point that I would turn down a 5 yr old seed. People have seeds that are from older times and are no longer offered anywhere. It would be nice to have an opportunity to acquire that. I will be honest, I would not track them down simply because I garden too much. My seasons are very long. But if I come across it, I'd not necessarily say no just because of age.

I do wish that I had not lost my pics of everything from you all that grew this year. They went when the computer blew up. Everything was really beautiful this year and I really did want to be able to show you all how it turned out. Well, there is always next year.

Rick I use Vitamin C and Indole Sometimes The results Are Much Better , Sprouting seeds ) (the Vitamins on a Quart bottle ) some that did not before Sprouted this time Homebrew IAA

Tiny Tim


Karen a bunch growing now that were no way earlier this season ,

Hmm! Does IAA help anything besides perennials with a lot of dormancy? I read that Dr. Deno pushed (I think it was) gibberillic Acid for those.

I would say as to breaking dormancy it does , I sprout seeds with it , seeds like Bamboo and a few it does not make much difference , All I know here is my homebrew use of Vitamins , without all that equipment does work well .
Gibberellic acid sure does make for huge trees and such ,

I am going to offer a couple of the red Tiny Tim about a dozen seeds ea. I will have more later some only today are finished , their drying now ,
I should put from Rick Corey , on them , Only If they failed (they won't ) You might get Falsely accused okay Rick

Oh my it's just around the corner!! I need to check my tomato seeds I think some are from last year and I planted them! I didn't have many of my seeds germinate from seed but weather problems I think are to blame. Also my onions are old and I have to take them out. Very exciting to start soon!!

In a few years, I'll be bidding some of those Tiny Tim Tomatoes back from you.

BTW, I added a few more veggies to my swap list. Almost finished except for a few wish-list items I still have to hunt for.

Umm, Sept 3 "Midnight" GMT.

Is that FRIDAY evening our time, or SATURDAY evening our time?
I'm thinking Friday 7 PM (PST or PDT, whichever).

Rick Sounds good to me and 7pm my time I believe it is , Besides , those little toms are gooood

I will try to add a couple more ,
These Blue asters and red Erigeron are not great germination rate , but their growing , I know their good , that is all ,,


Either tonight or the next few days

Feverfew and pink aster seeds are good , but slow to happen ,


Things go along slowly sometimes ..

Yes Rick September 2nd it starts and depends on your time zone on start time. Mines either 5:00 or 6:00 I can't remember

A better look at Germination testing , for fall planting

RickCorey said:In a few years, I'll be bidding some of those Tiny Tim Tomatoes back from you.

BTW, I added a few more veggies to my swap list. Almost finished except for a few wish-list items I still have to hunt for.

Umm, Sept 3 "Midnight" GMT.

Is that FRIDAY evening our time, or SATURDAY evening our time?
I'm thinking Friday 7 PM (PST or PDT, whichever).

It starts tomorrow! Get your dibbing fingers ready!...

@EricaBraun will your offered Pecan tree grow be hardy enough for zone 5/6?

@Littlecheryl -- I looked into that for you. Here's the info that I found:

Pecan trees are hardy in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 6 through 9. Although these trees also can survive in zone 5, they won’t produce nuts there. Locations that experience warm, lengthy growing seasons with minimal nighttime temperature drops provide the optimal climate for pecan nut production.

Thanks @EricaBraun!! I might try it we plan on getting land eventually and it will be zone 6. Have you grown one from seed before? How long do they take to grow? I want to start my fruit/nut seeds in containers when it gets closer to buying land but I haven't found much info on how fast they grow to hang out in containers, until I can plant them when we purchase property.

@Littlecheryl -- I haven't tried to grow them from seed. Although I'd love to have a pecan tree, I just don't have space for something like that.

It looks like we're getting a lot of last-minute seed additions (and retractions), so keep an eye on the 'recent events' for this swap to make sure you're seeing what's available (and no longer available). It's just a matter of hours, now, folks!...