Three Ways to Collect Tomato Seeds

That being said, as your tomatoes ripen, it is important to collect your seeds. I find that ripe tomatoes, free from pests and diseases, have the best seed.

Greetings fellow gardeners, 

I am enjoying the beautiful colours that are appearing now that we are officially in autumn. The oranges and reds are brilliant, and the yellows glow when there is a sunny day. Several of my plants looked like they were wilting, so I quickly got them some water. It is easy to forget how much our perennials need water if it hasn’t rained. I want them to be healthy and strong as they approach the winter.

The apple trees, maples, and sumac I get to see when I collect the mail.

The new-to-me Pineapple tomato has finally ripened, and it is a sweet treat. I will be collecting seed from this one, for sure. That being said, as your tomatoes ripen, it is important to collect your seeds. I find that ripe tomatoes, free from pests and diseases, have the best seed.

Harold likes the Pineapple Tomato.

Three Ways to Collect Tomato Seeds

Collecting tomato seeds is very easy, but there are so many different suggestions as to how to do this that it can be confusing.

Three methods that have worked for me:

1. Take the ripe tomato, slice, and squish out the seeds onto a paper towel. Let the seeds dry. Store when dry in paper bags. If the paper towel sticks to the seeds, no problem. Plant the seed, paper towel, and all. 
2. Take the ripe tomato, slice, and squish out the seeds into a small container of water. Leave this container alone for at least three days. Drain the seeds onto paper towels, and once dry, place them in paper bags. This adds a bit of fermentation to your seeds. 
3. Take the ripe tomato, slice, and squish out the seeds into a sieve. Run under water until the jelly coating is gone. Place on paper towels to dry, and store in paper bags. 

You can ferment tomato seeds as well.

There are so many methods to collect tomato seeds, so choose the one that you like the best. I usually collect from my heritage plants. The hybrid tomatoes will not give you a plant that is the same as the one that you grew this summer, but sometimes it is fun to experiment and see what comes up. There are many very good books written on harvesting as well as good gardening sites online. 

I have some tips here on growing tomato seeds

Reduced fall garden preparation with a cane

I am now getting around the garden using my cane instead of the walker. It is much easier. The walker was not happy with my less than tidy terrain. As I am feeling a bit stronger, I thought I might attempt to do a bit of ‘bite number six’ in my new garden journal. I have taken some bamboo canes and placed them beside plants that I want to keep. This should really help me when I start rediscovering my front garden in the spring. I won’t be planting bulbs this fall, but I hope this helps me save some of my perennials.  I know I want to keep my gorgeous clump of goldenrod. It is covered with bees, hoverflies, and beetles, and the seeds feed birds and other creatures. I will leave the stand for the winter and take my time cleaning it up in the spring. 

My show season is ramping up, so I get to work on my garden plan in between sales. I hope to have the plan finished in a month or so. The roses are putting out their last bloom. And oh! The asters are such a treat!  Enjoy your week. Judith 

(Email:  sghorticultural@gmail.com)  Veggie Bites are available at https://sghorticultural.wixsite.com/website or https://gardeningcalendar.ca/category/veggie-bites/