collecting seed

[Cheerypeabrain]

Hlo...I plan to collect seed from my cerinthe plants (kindly donated by 4P) and heleniums...am I right in thinking that F1 hybrid plants are sterile? how do you tell? I don't want to gaily collect and sow seed that isn't going to grow!

What seed is everybody else collecting? and should seed be sown 'fresh' or stored?

[Drunken Gardener]

Good question. Found this article that explains it better than I could but this phrase sums it up. Having tried growing plants from seeds collected last year, I can vouch for the validity of the statement;

Except that there's a catch (and this brings us back to question number one: are hybrids bad for gardening?) You can't save your own seeds from these F1 hybrids to grow next season. Oh, you can save them all right, but when you plant them there is no telling what you will get. F1 hybrids are a one-shot deal. The seeds that come from the fruit of plants grown from F1 seed (technically called F2 seeds, by the way) will produce plants with wildly varying characteristics. In other words, they won't breed true.

Full article;

www.gardenguides.com/how-to/tipstechniques/seedsbulbs/hybrid.asp

[Chuckles]

Some of the fun for me of collecting your own seeds will be to see what you do end up with ;D

Have collected some of my White Aqualegia and pansies also some Delpniniums from my friends allotment, not her plot I might add

This is what I've sown so far gardenworld.proboards103.com/index.cgi?board=prop&action=display&thread=1187259455

[4pygmies]

I love collecting seeds and don't very often deadhead so I can get as much as possible over a period of time. It's often a good idea to sow fresh seed from perennials as many need a period of cold to perform well. Some such as Angelica & Evening Primrose won't germinate unless the seed is fresh. I grow a lot of wild flowers and they are nearly all the better for an Autumn sowing. If I have enough I often sow some in the Autumn and some in Spring.
Cerinthe is extremely easy to collect but as it never self seeds in my garden (too cold I guess) I store it in a brown paper envelope (the little ones post offices sell for wage packets are ideal) and store in my conservatory which is only just above freezing in the winter.

[Deleted]

Hi all,

For the first time this year I grew Malope, and would love to save the seed since they're not that easy to buy (I think only Suttons did it last year?) ... has anyone had success saving Malope seed?? ... cheers ...

[grannyjanny]

I have some white malope plants in the garden, courtesy of the birds I think. They have self seeded in several places.
Janet.