Lawn grass seeds - how to store? Seed storage How long do lawn grass seeds last
01.08.2018
By the way, you can order seeds in our online store www.site.
When buying seeds, pay attention to their expiration date. When reviewing the seeds of your own harvest, determine if they are suitable for planting by comparing with the storage limits given below.
●10-12 years - purslane;
●6-8 years - watermelon, melon, leafy cabbage, cucumber, squash, pumpkin;
●5-7 years - endive, escariole, sweet corn;
●5-6 years - vegetable peas, watercress, beans;
●4-5 years - white cabbage, Brussels sprouts, Chinese, cauliflower and kohlrabi, radish, radish, turnip, table beet, asparagus, tomato, physalis;
●3-5 years - eggplant, okra, hyssop, broccoli, red cabbage, Beijing and Savoy,
● 3-4 years - basil, salad mustard, oregano, chervil, coriander (cilantro), batun and leek, lovage, chard, carrot, borage (borage), pepper, lettuce, salad chicory, spinach;
●2-3 years - anise, katran, catnip, turnip onion, marjoram, lemon balm, peppermint, parsley, rhubarb, cumin, dill, fennel, sorrel, tarragon;
●1-2 years - parsnip, celery, skortsioner, savory.
It must be borne in mind that with an increase in the shelf life of seeds, their germination decreases, the growth force changes slightly, and the number of female flowers in a number of crops increases.
✔ Expired seeds
By the way, even if the seeds have expired, do not rush to throw them away. So, for example, seeds of pumpkin crops (zucchini, squash, cucumbers) do not lose their germination capacity for 6-8 years. And even after the expiration date indicated on the label, they can sprout normally.
Tomato seeds are slightly less viable - 5-6 years old, but almost every summer resident had the opportunity to verify the high germination of older tomato seeds. The margin of safety for seeds of pepper, eggplant, beets, cabbage is 3-5 years.
Well, the seeds of onion, dill, carrots, parsnips, parsley lose their sowing qualities faster than others. Under favorable conditions, seeds can retain their germination much longer, and under unfavorable conditions, they lose it before the term.
There is practically no doubt about the germination of seeds packed in foil bags. Unless the packages have been opened, of course. Old seeds should definitely be checked in advance so that, if they are unsuitable, there is time to buy fresh ones.
First, just inspect the seeds. If they look beautiful, without obvious flaws, feel cool to the touch, a little damp, then there is hope that the seeds and their germination have been preserved. Wrinkled, gray-looking, dry and warm to the touch seeds cannot be awakened to life.
The exception is sugar pea seeds: their wrinkling should not scare you. The germination of dill, carrot, celery, parsley, parsnip, cumin, marjoram seeds can be determined by smell: old seeds lose their inherent aroma and, therefore, germination.
Germination of seeds, terms of germination and ripening vegetable crops
Very often gardeners ask such questions.
How to check seed germination?
➤In how many days will they rise?
➤ What is the germination time?
➤When to sow and when to wait for seedlings?
How many days do the seeds of a particular vegetable germinate? When will the first shoots emerge from the ground?
How many days to wait for the harvest after germination?
➤ When can I harvest?
Knowing the timing of the emergence of a particular vegetable crop is very important for calculating the date of sowing vegetables for seedlings.
Remember that all seeds have an expiration date, after which germination can be doubted. For example, the shelf life of seeds of celery, onion, batun, leek, sorrel, rhubarb - 2-3 years, dill, parsley, tomatoes, eggplant, pepper, carrot - 3-4 years, peas, beans, cabbage, radishes, turnips, salad mustard - 4-6 years, watermelon, melon, pumpkin, cucumber, zucchini, squash - from 6 to 8 years.
Beet seeds can be stored for 10 or even 20 years. And the beans do not lose their germination capacity until 700 years (it’s even hard to imagine). These terms cannot be considered strictly established.
If certain conditions are observed (the desired humidity, temperature, tightness), then the seeds of many crops can be stored for more long time. And under poor storage conditions, their germination can drop sharply. A useful procedure in preparing seeds for sowing is calibration.
It allows you to separate high-quality from empty flowers. To reject empty flowers, it is customary to dilute salt in water, throw seeds in there, leave them for a while (from half an hour to 2 hours).
Those that pop up must be thrown away. There is no 100% germination, but you can find out what percentage will rise in advance. Determining the germination of seeds is easy. We need to create favorable conditions for them to grow. We take seeds of any culture and place them between two layers of gauze.
It is not necessary to take a lot to check the germination. Enough 8-10 pieces. From above we cover the moistened seeds in gauze with a film or a saucer and put it where it is warm.
✔ expiration date of vegetable seeds
Periodically, at least once a day, ventilate so that mold does not appear, check whether they have sprouted. Seeds that have roots or sprouts are considered germinated. Each culture has its own period through which they sprout.
If radish, for example, did not sprout after 7 days, and zucchini after 10 days, then do not even try to sow such seeds. If they didn’t germinate at home, then they definitely won’t germinate in the garden.
It also happens that the test showed good germination, you sowed them in a bowl for seedlings, but they do not sprout. There is a very simple way to prepare seeds - to "make" seedlings appear faster from the ground.
True, it is more suitable for small containers. Place your seed bowl inside a plastic bag and breathe into it. Then quickly tie the bag, put it in its original place.
The carbon dioxide you exhale, its concentration inside the bag will have a beneficial effect on seedlings. Soon you will see the first sprouts. Germination can be increased by heating. To do this, place the seeds in a thermos with water, the temperature of which is 40-50 ° C.
☀ Keep them there for at least 6 hours.
This method is contraindicated for tomato seeds!
It is better to subject them to the hardening procedure. Rinse seeds calibrated in salt water. It is advisable to disinfect them with a solution of manganese or a solution of colloidal silver.
After all this, place the bowl with seeds in a plastic bag and refrigerate where you store vegetables for 10-12 hours. Repeat this procedure daily for a week.
That is, the seeds are at room temperature for 12 hours, and the remaining 12 hours in the refrigerator. Seeds of crops such as carrots, celery, parsley germinate for a very long time, because the essential oils that are present in their shell prevent water from entering the embryo. Therefore, the seeds of these plants must be processed before sowing. The seeds of these crops are placed on a marlechka (one marlechka is one vegetable), placed in a saucer and poured with a thin layer of vodka (40 °).
Leave them there for 15 minutes. During this time, most essential oils will dissolve. Then rinse the gauze with seeds in cool water several times.
Dry until flowability. All. You can sow. Thanks to this method of processing, the seeds will sprout much faster.
The summer season has come to an end, but gardeners probably have seeds - purchased with a long shelf life and grown on their site - that will be sown in the spring. Is it possible to leave the seeds for the winter on an unheated one, will frost damage the seeds? Is it possible to store seeds in a city apartment? We figure out how to properly store seeds in the winter.
It is important to keep the seeds in conditions that ensure the preservation of high sowing qualities.
When ripe, the seed gives off water and dries. Since life processes can only take place in an aquatic environment, as the seed matures and dries, they fade. Mature seeds contain an embryo in a dormant state and spare nutrients in solid form. They are very dry (moisture content 12–20%). Like a protective shell, the hardened seed coat surrounds them.
Maintaining the dryness of seeds during storage is the main condition for maintaining their viability.
At what temperature should seeds be stored
The worst enemy of dormant seeds is warm, moist air. Where it is hot and humid, seeds can lose their viability in a matter of months, and in free access to air, in a few weeks. Sharp changes in temperature are also unfavorable for them. The ideal conditions for storing most seeds are moderate temperatures (12–15°C) without significant fluctuations and moderate relative humidity (not higher than 50%).
Do not leave seeds for the winter in unheated rooms on garden plots, it is better to transport them to the city, without leaving them in dampness and cold for a long time. For damp seeds, shallow freezing (from 0° to -10°) is often fatal, especially when repeatedly passing through 0°.
With deep freezing (from -15 ° and below), dry seeds of vegetable crops retain their viability well, but storage of seeds at sub-zero temperatures is still undesirable. They fall into a state of deep dormancy and under normal germination conditions behave like dissimilar. To bring them into an active state, stimulating effects, such as warming up, are required.
Where is the best place to store seeds? living conditions, in particular, in a city apartment? It is clear that the seeds cannot be stored in the kitchen due to large changes in humidity. They should also not be kept in the refrigerator door, as each time the door is opened, cold objects on the door come into contact with warm air and moisture condenses on them.
The most suitable place to store seeds is living rooms, although they are not there. ideal conditions. The temperature in the living rooms is several degrees above the optimum, and when the central heating is turned on, the air in them is too dry (relative humidity is usually about 25% in winter).
But the temperature fluctuations there are small and not sharp. Under these conditions, drying out is a danger: if seed moisture drops below 10–12%, this leads to a rapid loss of germination. And yet we won't find best place for seed storage than the bottom shelf of a linen closet in a living room or the bottom drawer of a desk.
By packing the seeds in plastic bags or foil, we will limit the access of air to the seeds and prevent them from drying out.
If you prefer to keep the seeds in the refrigerator, then keep them in the lower compartment. Before sowing seedlings, seeds stored in the cold must be activated.
Either the seeds are removed from the refrigerator in advance (one month before sowing) and kept at a temperature of 25-30 ° C, placing the seed bags in a plastic bag to prevent drying.
Or you need a short warm-up in hot water- at 50-52°C for 25 minutes, which is also a thermal disinfection.
The longevity of seeds of different crops is not the same. Under normal storage conditions, it ranges from 1–2 to 6–8 years. Under particularly favorable conditions, seeds can remain viable for much longer than the average periods indicated in the table.
The time during which the seeds remain viable depends not only on the type of crop and storage conditions, but also on the weather conditions of the season in which the seeds were obtained. Seeds grown in a warm, sunny summer last longer than those grown in a cold, rainy one.
Shelf life of vegetable seeds
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If for some reason you were unable to sow the seeds this year, you can do so next season. Seeds are afraid of 2 things: dampness and rodents.
Place the seeds (you can directly in the package) in a dry, cool place with a constant flow fresh air(never in a sealed container). Being in such conditions, the seeds lose only 1-1.5% of germination per year, starting from the 5th (fifth) year of storage.
Lawn grass seeds comply with the requirements of DSTU 2240-93, ask the seller for a certificate.
Seed Storage Basics
There are many misconceptions about seed storage among amateur gardeners, one such misconception is that seeds cannot be stored under negative temperatures otherwise they will lose viability. To dispel this misconception, I will cite excerpts from the book of B. N. Streltsov et al. Flower storage Moscow VO agropromizdat 1988.
During storage, the quality of seeds is affected by a complex of factors. environment: humidity, temperature, gas exchange, the composition of the atmosphere of the storage or packaging, the nature of the seed coats, the degree of maturity, microflora.
Temperature and humidity are the main factors limiting the storage time of viable seeds. Generally, the lower the temperature and the lower the moisture content in the storage, the longer the seeds remain viable. Some researchers believe that storage time doubles when the amount of moisture drops by 1% or the temperature drops by 5°C.
Most seeds, provided that they are not moistened, are well stored at a temperature of minus 20 ° C. Long-term storage at low and even negative temperatures is very important for saving the genetic fund of flower- ornamental plants. It is optimal to store seeds at temperatures of minus 18°C and below in hermetically sealed containers with a moisture content not exceeding 5% ± 1%.
The effect of moisture on seed viability is closely related to storage temperature. The higher the temperature at a given humidity, the faster the seeds lose their germination, lower temperatures contribute to the longevity of the seeds. If the amount of moisture in the seeds is not too high, then keeping them in cold storage (temperature 5-10 ° C) greatly increases the longevity compared to storage at room temperatures. However, if the humidity in the storage is too high, the seeds at 5°C deteriorate faster than in a dry room at a temperature of 25°C.
Negative temperatures are more favorable for the storage of seeds of many types of ornamental plants than positive ones, and some seeds tolerate deep cooling to liquid nitrogen temperature (-196 ° C) without loss of germination. IN last years It has been established that ultra-low temperatures corresponding to the temperature of liquefaction of nitrogen (-196 °C) and air (-253 °C) contribute to the almost unlimited storage of the seed fund of a number of plants. With such low temperatures ah, biochemical activity ceases, the seeds are immersed in a state of deep anabiosis.
The intensity of respiration and gas exchange of seeds during storage, and hence the durability of their storage, depend on the temperature and humidity of the environment.
In 1993, the leading Institutes of the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences developed the national standard DSTU 2240-93 "Nature of agricultural crops, varieties and strengths. Technical mind."
Every gardener, whether he is an ordinary summer resident or a professional gardener, faced the issue of buying seeds and storing them further. Saving lawn grass seeds is no different than saving any other seed. Often acquired and for some reason not sown in one year, they remain for the next year. Or, they are specially left for replanting possible bare places. But before you deal with safety, you should decide on the rules of the purchase.
When purchasing a lawn mixture, you should pay attention to some points that allow the seeds to maintain good germination after storage. What is this:
- expiration dates - safety will be better if there is more than six months before the deadline,
- the safety of the package - pests could get into the damaged package, or grass seeds could partially rot,
- composition - you should not purchase a mixture with a large and varied composition of the grass mixture. It is optimal if there are eight to ten species in it.
Now, let's figure out what you need to know about the rules for storing lawn seeds.
Some storage rules
The main thing that all seeds without exception are afraid of: super-humidity, temperature and the presence of rodents. To ensure that they are comfortable before sowing, these few conditions must be observed.
It is impossible to use for these purposes a sealed tightly closed container, such as a container, or dense plastic bags. A tightly closed container will protect the seed mixture of herbs from rodents, but without air access, germination is sharply reduced. If there is a danger of damage to the mixture by mice and other rodents, or the room is with excessive humidity, then it is reasonable to use tightly closed boxes. However, in this case, the safety and germination of herbs is supported by regular airing, at least once a week.
Storage rooms
Constant control of humidity is necessary because of the possible germination of seeds. It is also important to monitor the temperature in the room where the lawn grass mixtures are located. Best for keeping safe winter period fit:
- loggia or balcony
- country house or barn,
- garage or other technical premises.
Storage temperature
Some landscapers are mistaken about the safety of a mixture of lawn grasses at low negative temperature conditions.
However, for example, B.N. Streltsov, who has been studying the problems of plant germination for a long time, in his numerous books on floriculture and plant growing, describes the positive effect of low temperatures not only on storage, but also on germination.
He wrote: the lower the temperature and humidity content in the storage, the longer the seeds remain viable. Some experiments have shown a direct relationship in the chain temperature - humidity - storage. With a decrease in humidity by one percent, temperature by five degrees - the shelf life is doubled.
A word of advice: it is good to use fabric or paper bags or buckets with lids for storage.
Lawn grasses keep well. Keeping everything the necessary conditions- they can be purchased for eight to ten years of use - they will not lose their germination.
