Sprouting older seeds
 

I got gifted a bag of different tomato varieties last year by my friend Dave. I have been able to sprout most, but there is one labeled Rutgers grown at Mt Vernon garden that I am having trouble with. I have about 25-30 seeds left and need to know if I can do something to make them more viable, or easier to sprout? There is another Rutgers in there that is 2009 from Ohio Heirlooms, but only 5 seeds, so I am holding off on them until I hear something about enhancing sprouting.
Thanks

Soaking the seeds overnight in warm water, often with just a bit of water soluable fert like MG is what I do but I think there are probably other / better ways to encourage old seeds to germinate. Perhaps some others will post.

Carolyn, a master at waking up old seeds from what I've heard, has posted about her technique several times. Not sure how easy it would be to find it by searching. I do remember it included soaking in diluted Miracle Grow.

Carolyn does the same thing as I do with old seeds as fare as I know.
I think my oldest is some that were around 10 or 15 years old.
instructions are soak seeds overnight or longer in water with a pinch of the blue stuff. (MG)
The seeds that sink should sprout but it can take a while sometimes even 15 to 20 days.
Some very old seeds she sent me some time ago had a very good germination rate at over 10 years old.
Seeds from 2009 should be a breeze to sprout I dont even consider them old.

I hope this helps.
Worth

I had some twenty year old seeds that I got to germinate. I used Byron's method.
Make a cup of tea, anything that you have. Let it steep for 4 min, then dump it.
Make a second cup with the same bag. Let this steep for 4 min.
Add this to water to make 1 qt. Place seeds between 2 layers of paper towel on a plate. Moisten towel with tea. Place in fridge over night.

I think I used a combo of regular tea and chamomile.
Barb

Thanks everyone, some of the seeds are only 6 years old, but I only have a few, others are older, I do not know how old though.

I did get one he called "Mom's Old Yellow", to sprout, the seed was 2009. He he has told me several times they have had the strain since the 60's, so I am curious to compare it to Hillbilly,yellow BW, etc. When I see him next I will ask him to call his mom and try to get some clarity. Dave used to be on T.V. a few years ago, I think he was Bogeydave.

I really never had tomato seeds that were hard to germinate. But I used the soaking overnight warm water/miracle grow combination on Jacaranda seeds and had much better germination rates.

I can post here the method I used to wake up old seeds if you want me to since doing a search here for same would be difficult.

My best save was 22 yo seeds of September Dawn.

Carolyn

That would probably be nice Carolyn, I really am frustrated with a batch of Rutgers and want to compare with other Rutgers I am growing side by side this year. Nice to see you back.

Here are some old threads with some suggestions from folks I don't see around here any more as well as others who are:

[url]http://tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=33841[/url]

[url]http://tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=20603[/url]

[url]http://tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=13094[/url]

[url]http://tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=4547[/url]

[url]http://tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=4785[/url]

Wishing you luck!

kath

[QUOTE=carolyn137;449458]I can post here the method I used to wake up old seeds if you want me to since doing a search here for same would be difficult.

My best save was 22 yo seeds of September Dawn.

Carolyn[/QUOTE]

Here is Carolyn's germination technique for older seeds that she previously posted:

"First, with much older seeds it depends on how many seeds are available, but never use ALL the seeds you have at the first attempt.

Put the seeds in a small container, maybe half a cup of water to which is added a pinch of Blue stuff, like Miracle Grow or Peters, or several drops of concentrated Fish or seaweed prep if wanting something organic.

Stir the seeds from time to time, for at least 24-48 hours and hopefully you'll see the seeds sink when they become rehydrated since older seeds can be very dehydrated.

Sow the seeds in a good artificial mix, cover with a baggie, or whatever, with one end propped open for airflow. Water with water to which has been added the same blue stuff or organic stuff, when needed.

Sit back and wait.

I've had to wait up to two monthe before I saw any germination. Seeds from heart varieties are much harder to wake up since they lose viability faster than others.

Many years ago Craig L ( nctomatoman) and I tried many different methods that had been suggested, such as tea, microwave, K nitrate, giberellic acid, you name it, but the above method worked best for me.

What the blue stuff or fish or seaweed provide is a high concentration of nitrate ions which are known to be important in seed germination, and not just for tomato seed."

On a side note I have had seeds sprout more than a month later.
I keep my seeds where I left them sometimes, on a shelf in the storage barn or sitting on my table saw in the garage.
Seeds are pretty darn tough.
So patients is a real must for sprouting old seeds, you will feel like an idiot caring for a seed you planted and one day two months later the silly thing sprouts.:lol:

Worth

If you already placed some old seeds in, say, Ultrasorb, and they did not sprout, can you retrieve said seeds and start over with this soaking/MG method?
Ultrasorb is grainy and easy to work with, so finding the seeds would be easy. Just curious, if once a seed is sowed (normally), can you start over with the same seed, using this different method?

Thanks for the responses, I will soak them this week, and will post the results.

I have tomato seeds from 2005 which I would like to plant this week. Following the instructions above, I placed them in warm water with a pinch of MG. They sunk immediately. How long should I let them soak? Or should I not soak them, if they sink? I have about 30 seeds and am only soaking 3, just in case I'm doing it wrong.