cperesc said:This article on seed swapping would be great if it included also know- how hints:
1. Seed preservants. Many times seeds are not properly dried and have fungi. What substances could be used to avoid fungi growth ex:thiuram, mercaptan etc
2.Seeds have an expiry date. A table with botanical and common names of the plant and germination characteristics would be very usefull .
3. Use of germination stimulating techniques: Gibberelic acid, hydrogen peroxide etc.
@cperesc,
Thank you for the input! Perhaps in a future article I will go over some of those things. This article, though, was primarily intended as a how-to for using the Seed Swap system here on NGA, though. The three items that you commented on are probably each worthy of their own, individual articles.
#1 is something I'm not familiar with and likely never will be an expert in because I am very focused on organic gardening and reducing or eliminating all unnatural chemicals throughout the growing process. Other NGA members may be able to answer this for you, but as for me, I simply dry the seeds out. Most of my seeds that come in the house are relatively dry already, so I simply open the seed pods and put them in either paper bags, K-cups, or some other container to allow them to air dry for a day or two, depending on the type of seed. (For instance, paper bags are not recommended for seeds that are extremely tiny, such as heuchera/coral bells seeds or poppy seeds.) Note: if you use chemicals,
please make sure you state this in your seed descriptions and even put a note on the label in the seed packet; many other swappers are also organic gardeners or at least try to stay as natural as possible, and they might be quite upset to discover that the seeds were treated and they weren't informed of that beforehand.
#2 As much as I wish I were an expert on every single plant out there and how long their seeds last for, I'm not and never will be. This is a huge topic and there are some articles out there that can give you guidelines as to how long to expect a decent (subjective) germination rate. If you're looking for information like this, you could start here:
http://www.realseeds.co.uk/see... . For more exotic seeds, Google is the best bet, but take everything with a grain of salt. I always say that if the seeds are older than a year or two, be honest in the swap about what year they were harvested (or packed for); you're still likely to get bidders on it. There are a lot of swappers that are willing to give old seeds a try (I'm one of them).
I know #3 has been talked at great length for daylily seeds, alone. Then add in all of the other types of seeds out there that might have their own 'best methods' and it could be a book! Maybe ten! Most seeds do fine just planted outside since that's the way it works in nature, so that's the easy, quick answer to almost anything. As for giving seeds the 'added oomph' to get going, I'm only knowledgeable about the methods I use for stimulating daylily seeds (and maybe a few others), and I'm still experimenting with that to determine what method works best for me. I recently learned that tomato seeds should, generally, be fermented in order to eliminate the goopy, germination-inhibiting substance that's on them (which, in nature, is washed away after repeated freeze/thaw cycles and spring rains). Iris seeds also have a natural inhibitor, I believe, but I am just starting to research how to grow iris from seed, so I'd recommend a google search on those and any other seeds you might have questions about. Although I highly recommend being cautious
