beckygardener said:Sue - How in the world do you cut a tiny seed like that?
Very carefully
As seeds go, daylily seeds are quite big. I steadied the seed with a fingernail and cut it in half - I guess having a scalpel helped but you could presumably do it with a box cutter/exacto knife or whatever they are called (but be very careful if you try, not worth risking a nasty cut yourself).
One of the seeds in your picture looks like it has rotted?
beckygardener said:I don't have the tools or a microscope,
You don't need a microscope if you have a digital camera that can do macros. You simply take a picture as close as you can focus and then it is magnified when you look at it on the computer. If your camera doesn't do good macros then taking a picture through an ordinary magnifying glass is another possibility.
beckygardener said: Can seeds die?
Yes, or they can be non-viable from the start. Some that I've cut open just had mush where the embryo should be. Some shriveled flattish looking daylily seeds are still viable, depends just how flat they are. The floaters or sinkers test is also not reliable. What you could do is put a couple of suspects in household strength hydrogen peroxide diluted with water to 1:5 or thereabouts and give them a several days in the solution to see if there is any sign of germination.
