When do I collect seeds from Jack-in-the-Pulpit

I have 1 Jack-in-the-Pulpit, When do I collect seeds from it . I need to know when the seeds are ready. It has mostly turned to red. Do they need to turn brown and be dried up first or what?

Thanks everyone for you help,
Anna

I just went through this process with my own Jacks. When all the berries are bright red, you can harvest them. The berries should not be allowed to dry out. It makes it easier to pull the seeds out of the berries if you let them soak in water for a day or two before you clean them. Also, I would recommend wearing gloves. I have done it without gloves before and gotten away with it since there is little calcium oxalate in the berry pulps, but I got it good while I was cleaning the last stalk of berries this year. It feels like getting stung by a bee or getting ground glass in your fingers.

-Greg

Thank you so much for your help. Mine are ready now.

Anna

My jack in the pulpit is red and ready to have its seeds saved right now too - Do you plant the seeds immediately, or wait for the Spring?

Thanks!

I would plant the seeds immediately, whether indoors or outdoors. If you want to sow them outdoors, just poke them into the ground in a suitable area, and seedlings will appear pretty reliably in the spring. If you want to speed up their maturity, you can try sowing seeds in pots and keeping them as container plants for the first couple of cycles of their life. Contrary to what a lot of people believe, the common Jack-in-the-Pulpit Arisaema triphyllum does not need cold treatment before germination, though it does need a period of cold to trigger its second growth cycle. This is a good link: http://www.plantdelights.com/Tony/arisaema.html

Great info there. Thanks a bunch

I just came inside to ask this same question. When are they ripe? Ok, now they are red and ripe, but what if I want to save some to trade? How do I dry them?
Should I just leave the berries on a paper towel until they shrivel?
Pam

Pam, Don't let the seeds dry at all. You'll have to clean the red pulp off of the seeds, as the pulp contains a germination inhibitor. I usually let them soak in water for a night or two, then put the seeds in a strainer and mash the pulp through it. Like I said above, just be careful to wear gloves when you are doing it. Once the seeds are clean, either sow them immediately, or put them in a bag of moist (but not soggy) peat moss, or some other medium that holds moisture, and put them in the fridge or some other cool place until you want to trade. If the seeds dry out completely, they can go into dormancy and can be very difficult to germinate for a few years. There are products available that can be used to stimulate germination in dormant seeds, but it is much easier to just keep them moist.

-Greg

Thanks, Greg. I just cut off a bunch of seed heads and will soak them and refrigerate.
Pam