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Home » Blog » How to Test Old Seeds For Viability

How to Test Old Seeds For Viability

By PreparednessMama on July 4, 2018 * 4 Comments

Learn to Test Old Seeds and Save Them the Right Way

Every year my seed catalog eyes are bigger than my gardening effort and I end up purchasing more seed than I use. I keep this seed in a simple box and every year I wonder whether it is still good for planting.

How to test old seeds for viability | PreparednessMamaThere are the old standbys that I plant every year – broccoli, lettuce and pumpkin and I also try to purchase seed for something I’ve never grown before. That means I always have a bunch of left over seed. This year I’m going to be smarter about my seed storage. For now, it’s time to weed out the old, see what’s still viable, and order new seed.

How Long Will Seed Last?

As a general rule seed stored at room temperature will still be viable after one year. So last years seeds are still good. You can extend that for up to 10 years under certain circumstances (which I have not followed!) by paying attention to the seed moisture content and storage temperature.

What’s the best way to store your seed? Make sure your seeds are completely dry and place them in a paper bag and then in a mason jar with silica at the bottom. The drier the seed the longer its storage life will be.

These are the general guidelines for storing seed if you have been moderately careful about their moisture exposure:

How long can you keep old seeds? | PreparednessMama Discard these seeds after 2 years | PreparednessMama Discard these seeds after 3 years | PreparednessMama Discard these seeds after 4 years | PreparednessMama Discard these seeds after 5 years | PreparednessMama

How To Test Old Seeds for Viability

This is the time-tested method for proofing old seed. It can take as little as three days and as long as two weeks, depending on which seed you are trying to germinate.

You will need:

  • 10 seeds
  • Paper towel
  • Plastic zip bag or mason jar
  • Water
  1. Thoroughly wet the paper towel and fold it in fourths.
  2. Put your 10 seeds inside the paper towel; make sure the seeds are not touching.
  3. Place the wet paper towel inside a plastic zip bag or mason jar.
  4. Cool weather crops should be kept between 50 and 70 degrees. Warm weather crops need to be kept between 70 and 85 degrees.  Light is not necessary.
  5. Check the package for average sprout time and check back after a few days.

Once they’ve sprouted do the math – 10 seeds sprouting is 100%, 9 seeds is 90%. Even 50% germination will work, just compensate by sowing more seed. Anything less than 50% will probably not be worth your effort.

Be frugal about your seed purchases this year. Save them properly for the future and test those old seeds before you take the time to use them. Happy planting!

 

PreparednessMama
Preparedness Mama and its collaborators have created a one-stop shop of critical resources for families looking to prepare for disaster. We know firsthand that getting ready for the worst with a big family poses some particular challenges.
 
We’ve learned from the past so that you don’t have to make the same mistakes again. Fear of the unknown is one of the scariest things in life, but we hope that Preparedness Mama’s treasure trove of practical advice will make that unknown less daunting and ultimately help take the scared out of being prepared for every single one of our readers.

Comments

  1. Mona Reed says

    January 17, 2014 at 5:04 pm

    Don’t ‘discard,’ no matter how old the seeds are. Plant them SOMEWHERE. You never know what will come up. I had a baggy full of amaranth seeds that were well over 6 years old. I tossed them into a planting bed, and not only did they come up once, but some came up the following season.

    Reply
    • PreparednessMama says

      January 22, 2014 at 1:09 pm

      I have a hard time getting rid of my seed too! I think I would be more inclined to throw a handful of flower seed in the beds than I would vegetable seed, though. I always think of my vegetable garden as “prime” growing space.

      Reply
  2. Sandra says

    January 21, 2014 at 7:39 am

    Thanks for the post. Will be featuring it at the HomeAcre Hop Thursday!

    Reply
    • PreparednessMama says

      January 22, 2014 at 1:06 pm

      Wonderful, I’m honored!

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Seeds and Seedings | Pearltrees says:
    July 22, 2016 at 4:33 pm

    […] Neat way to grow strawberry plants from the seeds on the berries you buy from the store. Seed saving: a great idea, and now's the time to start thinking about it -Low impact living info, training, products & services. One of the pleasures of autumn is gathering seeds. How to Test Old Seeds For Viability. […]

    Reply
  2. 10 Things to do While Waiting to Garden | PreparednessMama says:
    January 20, 2017 at 6:05 am

    […] they are seeds that cannot be replaced, a viability test will help to determine the germination rate. If they are common seeds, they are over 7 years old, and you haven’t stored them well – it’s […]

    Reply

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