Tomato seeds and their shelf life is the time prescribed by law during which they can be sold. Thus, in order No. 707 of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food, adopted on October 18, 1999, it is mentioned that paper bags must be marked with their expiration (sale) date.
What is the shelf life of tomato seeds? This period is one year from the date they were in paper bags. If you place them in double packaging, use foil or other materials that allow air to pass through well, then instead of 1 year the shelf life becomes 2 years.That is, for example, if the material for sowing is placed in bags in June 2017, then the sales date will be set until July 2018. If it stays in a warehouse until September 2017, and only then is packaged, then the packages must be dated stating that the seed is good until October 2018, although in fact the seeds are the same.
What does germination mean?
Seed germination is the possibility of sprouts emerging from them if germinated correctly. This is a period of time that depends on what crop the seeds belong to and is different from the expiration date.
How many years can tomato seeds be stored on average? Thus, it is believed that the shelf life of tomato seeds is 4 - 5 years - during this period the seeds germinate quietly.
How long can you store tomato seeds? Tomato seeds remain viable for up to 7 years, but they need to be checked. You don’t have to look at the packaging date, but do the test yourself at home to determine the germination of the material.
How to check material for germination? Take a plate, put 2-3 layers of napkin or 2-3 layers of toilet paper on it. Wet the paper with water. Sprinkle the seeds under the layers of napkin. Place a cellophane bag on the plate. Place the plate in a warm place so that the air temperature in the house is at least 25 degrees. If you see the paper drying out, moisten it.
After 4 - 5 days, the first shoots should appear.
If less than 30% of the tomato seeds hatch, you can throw them away. If more than 30% have sprouts, they are suitable for planting; they should be left, sown as seedlings or planted in the ground. But take more seed than required by the standards, taking into account what percentage of them has sprouted.Then place it in bags and write down what percentage rose after the test. When you decide to plant seeds, sort the bags with labels.
How to Collect and Save Seeds from Your Tomato Plants
Some vegetable growers plant material collected from bushes. This method has two advantages: you do not need to spend money on the purchase and the bushes that grow are better adapted to the given climate and planting location. But do not forget that you cannot collect seeds from tomato hybrids, since it is unknown what will grow from them.
Tomato is a self-pollinating crop, so you can easily collect seeds from varietal tomato bushes.
To collect high-quality seeds, choose the largest, most beautiful fruits. Collect them from those fruits that ripen first; in the greenhouse, remove the tomatoes from the second cluster, and in the garden - from the first, since the first clusters bloom first, when pollinating insects are not yet very active, the risk of cross-pollination is lower.
In addition, the largest tomatoes grow on the first bunches. Another reason is that if you delay picking fruits and do not remove them from the first or second cluster, the risk of various diseases increases.
It is better to pick brown tomatoes or tomatoes that are already colored in the characteristic color of the variety, but are not yet fully ripe. Overripe tomatoes are not suitable for this, since they contain germs that are ready to germinate and will not germinate after drying. Pick tomatoes only from healthy plants.
Rinse the brown tomatoes thoroughly, dry them, and place them in a warm place to ripen. Just make sure that the tomatoes are not overripe. Glue paper onto the jar and write the variety on it.
Then cut the rafts crosswise and squeeze the seeds into a glass jar. Pour in water and leave them to ferment to separate the pulp. The period of residence of tomato parts in water is 2 – 4 days. Then rinse and dry the material.
The best conditions for saving seeds
Tomato seeds are poured into cloth bags and rubbed with your hands to remove debris. Afterwards, they are poured out of the bags, placed in a weak saline solution, and left - then all the debris floats up. Then they are washed and dried.
The seeds are stored in paper bags, where they write the name of the variety and the date of collection. Germination is maintained when the bags are placed in a room with an air temperature of +6 - 12 ° C and a humidity of 55%. Many gardeners write that they stored tomato seeds in the bottom of the refrigerator or on the veranda. But remember that seed material deteriorates with sudden changes in temperature and humidity. In winter, the seed material is looked through, sorted out, the rotten ones are thrown away, and the remaining ones are then planted.
Preparing for landing
In the spring, before planting, make a salt solution. Pour 1 teaspoon of salt into a glass of clean water and stir thoroughly. Pour in the seeds. The duration of their stay in the salt solution is 10 minutes. After this time, the lightest seeds that are not suitable for planting float, they are thrown away, and those that have sunk to the bottom are collected. These are seeds suitable for sowing; they are washed and planted as seedlings.
If you purchased material for seedlings in a store, then it is already pickled and does not need to be further processed, otherwise the seeds will lose their germination. If the seeds are collected on the site, they need to be treated for diseases before planting. Place them in a fabric bag and place them in a 1% solution of potassium permanganate for 15 minutes.You cannot keep it for more minutes or make a more concentrated solution, otherwise you will destroy the material for sowing.
Instead of potassium permanganate, use a 2 - 3% solution of hydrogen peroxide, heated to a temperature of 40 - 45 ° C, place the material for sowing in the solution for 7 - 8 minutes, and then be sure to rinse.
You can also use phytosporin. Add 4 drops of phytosporin to a glass of water and place the seeds there for 15 minutes, then rinse. Fitosporin-M is a biofungicide that contains spores and cells of bacteria living in the soil.
In the spring, before planting, seeds are germinated. To do this, soak them in aloe juice, in a solution with the addition of microelements, in a solution of Epin-Extra, Zircon, Virtan-Micro, Immunocytophyte.
Zircon - the composition accelerates the growth of the crop, the formation of roots, the bush blooms more profusely and produces more fruits. Refers to phytohormones, increases the culture’s immunity to diseases.
Immunocytophyte is a natural composition that stimulates growth, the appearance of the root system, active development of the culture, reducing the risk of disease under stress. In addition, the composition increases the amount of harvest by 1/3 and reduces losses from rotting during storage. Helps to speed up the healing of wounds in plants caused by insects or weather conditions (hail).
Add 1-2 drops of Epin-Extra into half a glass of clean water. Place the seeds in a gauze bag and immerse them in the solution for 18 - 20 hours at a water temperature of +20 ° C. If the seeds lie in the solution for a longer period of time, they will suffocate. Then they are sown in boxes filled with soil.
Epin-Extra is a plant composition that stimulates crop growth and makes it more adapted to weather conditions.Tomatoes better tolerate sudden fluctuations in lighting, air temperature, humidity, and become more resistant to unfavorable weather (heat and drought, heavy rain).
