How To Tell If Old Or Self-Harvested Seeds Are Still Good For Planting

We just recently hosted a seed exchange and seed library checkout - a first for us.  Some great and interesting seeds showed up, some which we are quite excited to try out. 

Probably the most interesting seeds someone brought were in a bag labelled "Virginia Tobacco".  I am anxious to try them out as tobacco plants have beautiful flowers!

One of the questions many people asked was how to tell if seeds are still good for planting.

The easiest way to find out if seeds are still able to grow is to pour the seeds into a bowl or container full of water and allow them to sit for a few hours.  The seeds that are still able to germinate will sink to the bottom of the container while the bad seeds will remain floating on top.

You then simply scoop the bad seeds off the top of the water, and plant the seeds on the bottom as soon as possible.  By sitting in the water overnight, the seeds will be given a head start on germinating.

If you want to be double sure, you can put the wet seeds inside two sheets of moistened paper towel and put in a window for a few days.  Check daily.  You should be able to see them sprout fairly quickly after being in the water and then being exposed to sunlight. 


Keep in mind that some seeds may take up to ten days to start sprouting.

Any other tricks out there?  Feel free to leave your experiences and tips in the comments...

- John Briner