Thyme and Oregano Seeds

I have both of these plants flowering at the mo and want to save some of the seeds, how do i go about it and what do i look for? (newbie i'm afraid)

lil

Don't be afraid of being a 'newbie'... we all were at one time!

lilith - thyme seeds are very,very, tiny. They're hard to collect just because they're so small. Last year was the first time I ever even bothered with them. After the plants flowers have gone by and turned brown, collect the flower stems and allow them to dry. To remove the seeds I used a cookie sheet. I crunched up the flower the best I could and removed the largest chaff through different sized strainers. Then I put the pile on a cookie sheet held with one side up higher than the other so it was at an angle. By tossing and stirring the pile, and tapping the sheet ...the eenie weenie seeds would roll down to the bottom of the cookie sheet where I could collect them.

hmm, sounds a bit fiddly, is that the same with oregano, the flowers seem a bit bigger, they're almost out and i think they'll be pink.

lil

"Fiddly" is an excellent word for it, Lil! That describes much of my experience with seed gathering. Fortunately, most plants produce enough seeds that our imperfect and fiddly methods still work.

The more you do it, the more precise the process feels.

Sue, thanks for your tips. What do you use for strainers? I have a pasta pot strainer, a kitchen colander and a screen strainer, and I could probably rig something with 1/4" wire mesh for separating out the larger stems, petals and leaves. I'm going to try your method with my basils this year.

i'll definately give it a try, thanks for the advice, guess this works with most small seeds too.

lil

I have several different strainers for seeds. Most have been garage sale finds. I even bought a kids sand pail with the shovel and gadgets inside because it had a strainer that I wanted. Tea strainers work well for the teenie weenie seeds.