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seeds Are drying seeds necessary

StatuesCryBleeding

StatuesCryBleeding

I hate starting threads but I couldn't find the answer using the search bar... You'd think SOMEONE would've wondered about this... Anyways..

I was wondering if drying fresh of the pepper seeds are necessary. I've always done it that way, allowing two weeks or some to make sure they're bone dry before planting them, as I've always heard that's what your supposed to do, but I've heard recently that-that is not necessary. Is this true? I'd sure like to shave off 2 weeks of unnecessary crap if possible.
 
i havent had luck germinating fresh seed.. but ive seen others do it. out here in arizona they only take me a few days to dry anyways. i dry mine out then put them in the fridge for a day before doing the wet paper towel method
 
Hmmm I heard that drying was necessary to activate some sort of metabolic process. Someone else told me it's as simple as ''wet'' seeds rotting much faster... If no-one has allot of experience between the two, it might be interesting to split my seeds supply in two and test the difference between dry and fresh.
 
thanks for your question bleedman,

what i always do, after deseeding my pods, is to put the seeds into a container and let them sit in basement bathroom, it is usually dark, cool and dry. i let them dry for approximately 3 days before putting them into my seed bank.

when i plan on sowing my seeds, i then soak them for 12-24 hours in a weak epsom salt mix.\
 
Someone posted a while ago that it shouldn't matter if you're planning on using them right away. That's the way it occurs naturally in the wild anyway.
 
I tried to split open a Jalapeno and Serrano pepper from the store and planted in some potting mix in red party cups like I start all my new plants. Neither grew so I believe drying is necessary.
 
If you are going to sprout right away, no need to dry. However, if you are going to store the seeds, I think it is important to dry them thoroughly, in order to prevent mold.
 
Fresh seeds will sprout if they have the right mix of temperature and moisture. I am growing six orange manzanos this year all sprouted from seeds from a fresh pod.
 
dragon49 said:
If you are going to sprout right away, no need to dry. However, if you are going to store the seeds, I think it is important to dry them thoroughly, in order to prevent mold.
Click to expand...
Sounds about right to me. I don't think I've ever planted fresh pepper seeds, but as a little fella, I used to take seeds straight from other veges (tomatoes, pumpkins, etc) and they always grew without any problems.
 
I collected seeds from habs and scotch bonnets I got from the supermarket over the winter, pulled them out of the peppers I was cooking with, rinsed them off and let them dry, then tossed them in an open ziplock bag until late spring when I said... hey what the hell let's toss some of these in and see if any grow...

I soaked them for a few hours before planting them and tossed them in some soil and set it under a flourescent desk lamp which kept them about 75 degrees or so
after a couple weeks of seeing nothing I tossed in a few more... not quite as deep this time and bought a couple too and put them in... then after about a month some came up... the problem is they all started to come up after that.... I think eventually I probably got a 90% sprout rate.... I kept the soil almost wet... but the things are still sprouting up... I had divided them all up but some of the seeds that had not popped yet got in deep when I replanted them... so every now and then another pops up and this is a couple months later now.

just don't do what I did and use schultz's insecticidal soap on them.... that stuff almost killed off all the remaining seedling sprouts I had in a group container and severely fried the leaves on most of my others except one...

when I noticed the wilt I washed them off.. but it was too late.... but most of them are coming back and should do ok now.. the surplus sprouts were too fragile still to take the spray I guess... and I barely got them either...


I've tried planting fresh seeds from a lot of plants, and unless they are already splitting the seed and you see something coming out.. I think they have to dry out and then get a good soaking before planting... I guess it simulates the plant dying, rotting, drying out and then the spring rains coming down kind of process you might see in nature??? just my 2 cents I guess

Only ones I've seen work wet were fruit like peaches/nectarines and oranges and tomatos... perhaps it is because they have so much moist material around them that in nature they may not rot down as quick as other things and get a head start?

StatuesCryBleeding said:
I hate starting threads but I couldn't find the answer using the search bar... You'd think SOMEONE would've wondered about this... Anyways..

I was wondering if drying fresh of the pepper seeds are necessary. I've always done it that way, allowing two weeks or some to make sure they're bone dry before planting them, as I've always heard that's what your supposed to do, but I've heard recently that-that is not necessary. Is this true? I'd sure like to shave off 2 weeks of unnecessary crap if possible.
Click to expand...
 
TheLonelyHab said:
I tried to split open a Jalapeno and Serrano pepper from the store and planted in some potting mix in red party cups like I start all my new plants. Neither grew so I believe drying is necessary.
Click to expand...
Here Jalapenos and serranos are only sold green, seeds wet or dry wouldn't germinate if that is the case because the pods/seeds would all be immature.

Some seeds have internal time clocks so they overwinter before sprouting to make sure they survive. I think drying the seeds then rehydrating them would be more similar to what happens in nature, therefore greatly improving their germination rate.
 
I always thought that drying the seeds was only necessary if you intended to store them so that they wouldn't rot.

I've planted a couple seeds from fresh pods and never had any problems.
With wild varieties this might be more of a problem than with the more common types.

Bleash
 
I have peppers that drop peppers and the peppers rot on the ground and then I have babies growing around my established plants. No drying seeds in this case.

Just my observation.
 
Before man peppers were spread by bird eating pods and shitting out the seeds elsewhere. Hence the name bird pepper. We dry seeds for the purpose of saving for future seasons. If stored right they can be good for years. They found seed stored by the Egyptians long ago and scientist were able to start them. I got to raise one called King Tut Sweet Pea. Beautiful flowers not like those of modern day sweet peas. :)
 
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