Saving Heirloom Tomato Seed

Do you want to save some money on garden seeds? I grow mainly heirloom and/or open pollinating seeds, especially for my tomatoes. The first time I tried this I had no idea how to do it. So I saved the seeds on a paper towel. I was unable to use the seed when they were dry due to them sticking to the paper towel.

Then I found the way to do it from several sources. When you cut open a tomato that you want seeds from, scape them into a small jar with water in it.

The jar on the left I will use to save different tomato seeds. The one on the right I started a couple of days ago. You let the jars sit until they start to ferment, stirring them daily. After a couple of weeks you should be able to smell the change in the jar. Sometimes there will be mold floating on the surface. You need to use a spoon and get that out of the jar. The viable seeds will sink to the bottom of the jar. You can see this in the jar at the right.

The jar on the right contains the seeds from a new heirloom that I tried this year. I bought the plant and it was called "Old German". If anyone recognizes this tomato and know it under a different name please let me know. Here is a picture of a couple tomatoes from the plant. (my photography is not the best on this photo):

In the jar at the right I will be saving seeds from a yellow pear tomato called Morning Sunshine. It is one of the sweetest and most delicious small tomatoes I have grown. They are slightly larger than most cherry tomatoes.

The reason for putting the seeds in water and letting them ferment is to allow the “jelly like” sack around each seed to breakdown. The reason my first attempt failed is the “jelly like” sack stuck to the paper towel, making it almost impossible to get the seeds off the paper towel.

Once the seeds are dry, and I do not rush this part, I then put them in small jars I have collected over the years. Colored jars, or jars you cannot see through would be best, although I have some seeds in clear jars.

I would like to to thank all my followers for viewing my posts. I have heard from a few of you about why so long between posts... I have been very busy working 3 jobs, although by the end of August I will have closed down 90% of my business and have more time, thus more posts. Thank you for your patience.

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