Have any of you had any luck saving seeds for the next growing season...and how on some plants can you tell what the pod is...I am especially interested in Thumbergia, Lantana and Million Bells Calibrachoa which are so tiny, I can't even see the seeds.
For Lantana here is a small link:
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/seedsave/msg052103264829.html#
Thunbergia has too many hits to find a link easily .... go figure
Heres a gardenweb hit for Calibrachoa:
http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/seed/msg031211556413.html?3=
small start :-)
P.s. Can you believe I went to the lady who runs a local reputable garden nursery and asked if they had any blue thunbergia .... she gave me a very odd look and said I have NEVER heard of a blue thunbergia. Guess where I ain't shoppin any more....
I ordered a "Blue Thumbergia plant" paid $20.00 for two, and they are still only a few inches long...I got took and very unhappy about it..I saw the blue at a Cape Cod garden center...it is absolutely beautiful..It was called Batiscombe" spelling not sure of but it is beautiful...Did you ever find the seed?
Thanks for replying.
Liza
I have ordered From Logee's online, they are awesome. The wonderful lady I used to work for made an annual pilgrimage there every spring. I have many plants still from those days. Though, the blue thunbergia, no longer .... I need more. :-)
A good GOOGLE search tip is to add a + before the word (meaning that word HAS to be in the page)
+Thunbergia +seeds .... The more terms the more it narrowers the search. +blue, etc.
for example .... also a lot of people type it as ThuMbergia, so check that spelling too.
To everyone who got "Summer Dreams" cosmos seeds from me (which were all new, not collected), i can happily verify that they do return from seed. i had a couple that reseeded, and they are blooming now, and they look just like the parent plants. (i wasn't sure what i'd get...)
(last year's blooms)
Mendel always confused me ... I think the odds are 25% better ; 25% scrawny ; and 50% a mix??
Haha Willie. You're tickling me, no end today.
I have saved seed of Thunbergia, but not the other flowers. I save mostly vegetable seed and have done some hand pollinating, but am trying to learn more about plants that I have no experience with. I'm definitely not an expert but this is what I do...In the case of small flower seed (and most others, I usually collect on white paper towels by cutting seed heads directly on to the towel. I then label the towel and put it somewhere warm and dry, Several weeks later I try to spill the seed from the flower heads. I usually freeze seed for a few days to kill bugs in recycled plastic quart bags and then store in one of the three sizes of small bags you can get at Walmart in the crafts dept. for beads, etc. I write on the bag with a Sharpie and include the year of harvest. Some folks write on paper and place it in the bag so they can reuse their bags for other seeds or use labels that peel off. I have also saved seeds from tomatoes by placing them on a paper towel and letting them dry on the towel. I label and store the towel in a plastic bag and just cut the seeds in strips to start them in Spring. Hope this helps.
Laurel
I don't think i have ever saw a seed pod on the calibrachoa.... since what I bought this year were rooted cuttings of the calibrachoa and the lantana..... I might try to root some and see how it goes
Liza - I save seeds from lots of my plants and have pretty good luck with them. The million bells may be a problem, because hybrids don't produce plants that are true to the parent you have. I believe the million bells are hybrids.
Generally, if you cut off the flower after it is spent, for many plants you can open it up and find the seeds. I have great luck with marigolds - which I collect and sow here and then in Florida around my veggies for bug control. They are the easiest seeds in history! Bleeding heart seeds are also pretty easy. They are in the little "green bean" looking pods on the plant. I pull the beans off and put them in a paper cup; then I write what they are on the cup with a sharpie; the pods dry and fall out into the cup. I then put them in little zip lock bags once I'm sure they are completely dry. Lupine seeds and hardy hibiscus seeds are easy too.
If anyone has any blue thumbergia seeds, I'd kill for a few!
I'd kill too! ... I mean two!
If you dont want your seeds to pop out and go on the ground or if they are very small, I found this on another thread.
I went out and bought these at walmart. I put this on a columbine just to show an example.
They had two sized bags and I got the small ones. They are in the wedding department. You could go to a fabric store and buy some nylon curtain material and make them with a needle and thread for the size you want. For goodness sakes you could make the bag and staple the tops. For small ziplock bags try looking for some coin bags.
Michael's carries these small fabric bags in their wedding section too. I use those to keep the seeds in as well. That's a good idea to clip it right on the plant, Sherrie - especially for those plants that drop their seeds pretty easily.
all y'all have the best ideas
Mama saves me all her old nylon. Never thought to do that. Usually gets used to hold up the tomatoes, etc. I like the idea of stapling, esp. My fingers thank me for not going near the sewing needles.
Great tips everyone. I have a lantana this year that I just love ( don't know the name, but it is orange and red and just vibrant) so will try cuttings and seed collecting too.
Jan
Willie - I use nylons for lots of things. I cut them in strips to tie my tomatoes, and I use the feet parts to stuff them with dog hair and hang them on the lilacs and fruit trees I want to keep the deer away from. Works well for me.
wow.... that's cool ... would have never thought to put my hair in a bag and put it out to freak out the deer.... with my hair it would be easy to spread it all over.... thanks!!!!
