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Will 'old' seed grow?

Beets do best in at-home trial, but other vegetables can still sprout, too

Beet seedlings
This Dutch Baby Ball beet sprouted from 6-year-old seed. (Photos: Debbie Arrington)






It’s a common dilemma: Leftover seeds.

Like most longtime vegetable gardeners, I accumulate way more seed packets than I can actually grow in my limited space. And each year, I tend to acquire more seeds in different varieties -- wowed by pretty pictures or tantalizing descriptions – instead of using up what I have on hand.

But this season with seed shortages online and limited offerings in stores, I revisited my collection of leftovers and was shocked to see the age on those pretty packets. Some were more than a decade old.

Can you plant old seeds? Sure; it depends on how old is “old.” The real question is: Will they grow?

Seed packets are stamped with the year they’re intended for planting. It’s not an expiration date, but a packing date.

Seeds lose their vitality – their life force and ability to sprout – at different rates, depending on species. Onions and leeks lose their vitality in just one year. Other seeds will still sprout five years or more after packing.

Beet seed packets
These older beet seeds were still good to grow.

In a winter garden experiment, I planted a dozen packets of seeds – all of them older than five years – in blocks in a backyard raised bed. I gave them lots of time and water. Sprouts of lettuce, carrots, onions and radishes never appeared.

The only blocks to sprout and grow? The beets. From Renee’s Garden, Heirloom Chioggia (vintage 2013) and Dutch Baby Ball (packed for 2015) both are growing and maturing.

So, “old” beet seeds can be planted with some success. I suspect the same will hold true of chard.

Of course, seed companies would prefer that we buy more seed each year. I know I will and already have.

But I also plan to be more mindful of using the seed I have on hand in a more timely fashion.

Seed vitality is often tied to how that seed was stored. Seed should be stored in a cool, dark place (below 50 degrees) in its original packaging. That helps maintain a stable moisture content. Too much moisture, the seed will sprout or rot. Not enough, it dries out and loses its vitality.

High Mowing Organic Seeds came up with this handy chart almost 10 years ago. It’s a good reference point when sorting your seed packets and deciding what to grow – and what won’t grow.


Seed type Longevity with proper seed storage

Artichokes

5 years

Arugula

3 years

Beans

3 years

Beets

4 years

Broccoli

3 years

Brussels Sprouts

4 years

Cabbage

4 years

Carrots

3 years

Cauliflower

4 years

Celery/Celeriac

5 years

Chard

4 years

Collards

5 years

Corn

2 years

Cress

5 years

Cucumbers

5 years

Eggplant

4 years

Endive/Escarole

5 years

Fennel

4 years

Kale

4 years

Kohlrabi

4 years

Leeks

1 year

Lettuce

5 years

Melons

5 years

Mustard

4 years

Okra

2 years

Onions

1 year

Peas

3 years

Peppers

2 years

Pumpkins

4 years

Radish

5 years

Rutabagas

4 years

Spinach

2-3 years

Summer Squash

4 years

Tomatoes

4 years

Turnips

5 years

Watermelon

4 years

Winter Squash

4 years





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Garden Checklist for week of June 8

Get out early to enjoy those nice mornings. There’s plenty to keep gardeners busy:

* Warm weather brings rapid growth in the vegetable garden, with tomatoes and squash enjoying the heat. Deep-water, then feed with a balanced fertilizer. Bone meal or rock phosphate can spur the bloom cycle and help set fruit.

* Generally, tomatoes need deep watering two to three times a week, but don’t let them dry out completely. Inconsistent soil moisture can encourage blossom-end rot.

* It’s not too late to transplant tomatoes, peppers or eggplant.

* From seed, plant corn, melons, pumpkins, radishes, squash and sunflowers.

* Plant basil to go with your tomatoes.

* Transplant summer annuals such as petunias, marigolds and zinnias.

* It’s also a good time to transplant perennial flowers including astilbe, columbine, coneflowers, coreopsis, dahlias, rudbeckia, salvia and verbena.

* Feed camellias, azaleas and other acid-loving plants. Mulch to conserve moisture and reduce heat stress.

* Cut back Shasta daisies after flowering to encourage a second bloom in the fall.

* Trim off dead flowers from rose bushes to keep them blooming through the summer. Roses also benefit from deep watering and feeding now. A top dressing of aged compost will keep them happy. It feeds as well as keeps roots moist.

* Pinch back chrysanthemums for bushier plants with many more flowers in September.

* Tie up vines and stake tall plants such as gladiolus and lilies. That gives their heavy flowers some support.

* Dig and divide crowded bulbs after the tops have died down.

* Feed summer flowers with a slow-release fertilizer.

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