Old seeds

[daffodiltulip]

Someone gave me some seeds, some packets were open, that are a year or two out of date. How likely is it that they will still grow?

[diggernotdreamer]

Depends on what they are and how they have been stored. Carrots and parsnips won't be very viable if they aren't all sown. Brassicas can last for years, I had some that were about 2007 and sowed them last year and they all germinated

[tosca]

You could do some tests by putting some on some damp kitchen paper indoors and seeing if they sprout.

[becks77]

Love this idea, can you then pop them into compost and grow them into fully fledged plants or are they then done for, daft question I guess??

[tosca]

I don't see why not, if you're careful. But the idea is just ti try a couple to see if they are viable. Even so, older seeds will have a lower germination rate so I would sow more than I needed. It's hard to have to chuck out seedlings though. I have just over-sown the local pink beefsteak tomatoes as the seed is out of date, got far too many and had to ditch them. I know if I grew them on I would want to keep them. As it is I have kept ten, far too many for a single family as there are five other varieties going in!

[diggernotdreamer]

Chitting is a good way of ensuring you get germinated seed. I often chit parsnip and carrots until they are about an inch long and then make up a jelly of potato flour and water, stir in the chitted seeds and then put into a plastic bag, snip a small bit off the corner and then 'ice' into your pre-prepared drills and cover over as normal. You can sow any chitted seed into the top of a pot and cover lightly with sieved compost and they will be fine