Seed Saving for More Garden Blooms

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Seed Saving for More Garden Blooms is a great way to expand your garden for free.  Keep the seeds for yourself, join a seed swap, or give them as gifts.

Enjoy the free downloadable seed packet pattern available near the end of this post!

Why save seeds?

Seed saving is a great way to get more flowers in your garden for free. Late summer and early Fall is the time of year when many of my garden favorites are going to seed.

Seed saving is also a great way to share or trade for more flowers and veggies.

The time frame to save seeds depends upon the plant. My foxgloves go to seed earlier in Summer as it blooms primarily in Spring, early Summer.

Collect seeds when they ripen on the plant, no matter what time of year.

Pink Zinnias, seed saving

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Seed heads

Though the seed heads lack the flamboyance of the flowers they do have a beauty all their own.

Cosmos seed head

Saving seeds from your favorite flowers is easy and fun to replant for more gorgeous blooms. Plan for next summer by collecting seeds in Fall.

To me, the beauty is mostly knowing these little spiky things will produce beautiful flowers next Spring and Summer and they provide food for critters during the cold months of winter.

Note: There are many hybrids that set seeds but are sterile and will not grow from seed.  I mention this in my Echinacea post.

Also, your flowers will cross-pollinate and you will not always get the same colors from seeds saved of a particular flower.  The only way to get a plant exactly the same is to clone it from cuttings, root division or layering.

Russel Lupines

You can let the seeds fall to the ground to reseed themselves in place, but if you want to grow some in a different area or your garden, you will need to collect them before they naturally disperse.

Collecting them also gives you the opportunity to not only keep some to re-plant but you will have some seeds to swap with another gardener. (the flowers produce tons of seeds, you will have plenty to keep and to give away).

Seed swapping is a great way to get flowers and veggies you don’t already have.

How to Save Seeds

Use a few empty containers large enough to catch seeds as they fall.  I use larger cottage cheese or sour cream tubs.

Just walk your garden, clip off the seed heads with your pruners, and let them fall into the container.

I have recently purchased these garden snips which I find easier to use for this job.

As you see in my video I collect most of the seeds this same way.

For information specific to harvesting zinnia seeds head on over to that article.

How can you tell your Seeds are Ready?

Make sure to let them ripen first.  Here I am saving Sweet Pea seeds but green seeds are worthless.  This Sweet Pea pod is still too green.

Saving seeds from your favorite flowers is easy and fun to replant for more gorgeous blooms. Plan for next summer by collecting seeds in Fall.

But give the sweet pea seeds another week or so in warm weather and you are ready to clip it off into your tub.  

Saving seeds from your favorite flowers is easy and fun to replant for more gorgeous blooms. Plan for next summer by collecting seeds in Fall.

See how these are a bit browner than the photo before, these are ripe enough to collect. If you wait too long they could pop open and scatter the seeds on the ground.

Leave them in the tub with a loose top on it, a coffee filter will work, it will let air come in and moisture out.  You want the seeds to stay dry.

The tub needs something like a filter on top because when the pods pop open as they continue to dry the seeds will spring out everywhere and not stay in the tub.

Once the pods have opened remove the shells, and the seeds will have joined their friends on the bottom of the tub.

Want to know How to Grow Sweet Peas? Tap here.

woman holding seed packet pattern in front of her and flowers beside her and text overlay that read Want More?

Some seeds can be tricky

Saving seeds from your favorite flowers is easy and fun to replant for more gorgeous blooms. Plan for next summer by collecting seeds in Fall.

Delphiniums ripen as they have bloomed, from the bottom to the top.  The seed heads on the bottom will be ripe while the top ones are still green.  

I usually just clip off the ones ready and wait to collect more but I also tried this method which I saw on a t.v. show.  

Place a large brown grocery bag over the stalks and bend it over and shook it to release the seeds that were ripe.

I did collect the seeds faster than clipping individual pods off.  

One stem snapped so I don’t know if I recommend this way unless the delphinium is done blooming.   

Saving Seeds in Fall (7 of 13)

I did make the mistake of trying to bend it over the support frame that kept it upright.  Maybe if it had not been there it would’ve worked better.

You might need gloves to save seeds

This depends on the plant.

Gaillardia seed heads are super prickly and will stab your fingers like a cactus so you may wish to wear gloves when saving seeds.

If you are extra careful just nipping them off and letting them land in the container you are using may work fine.

Saving Seeds (2 of 3)

Hollyhock seeds ripen like the Delphiniums, bottom to top.

Related: How to Grow Hollyhocks 

Hollyhocks can still have some flowers on top of the stalk as you collect the ripe seeds lower down.  Wait until the paper casing is dried and opening up, that is when the seeds are ready.

Saving seeds from your favorite flowers is easy and fun to replant for more gorgeous blooms. Plan for next summer by collecting seeds in Fall.

How to Store Seeds

If you don’t wish to use the seed packet pattern available then some regular envelopes work well too.  I use the ones that come with bills I typically pay online. This is a good way to make use of what would be tossed in the trash or recycle bin.

Saving seeds from your favorite flowers is easy and fun to replant for more gorgeous blooms. Plan for next summer by collecting seeds in Fall.

Mark them with the names of the plants or you will be wondering what the seeds are when Spring arrives.

A free printable seed packet is available below. The pattern will print 2 seed packets on 8″ x 11″ size paper.

You will want something to store your seed packets in! Try this sweet box: Wood Seed Box

Saving seeds from your favorite flowers is easy and fun to replant for more gorgeous blooms. Plan for next summer by collecting seeds in Fall.

Before storing seeds you need to separate the seeds from the chaff.  Pour the contents of the sour cream tub onto a paper towel.  

Most of the time the seeds are heavier than the chaff and fall to the bottom of the pile.

These Larkspur seeds are a good example.  Pick up the stems and shake them a bit more to get more seeds to come out of their casings and then pick out the little casing pieces to leave mostly just seeds.  

Next, toss the casings into a bucket headed for the compost heap, fold the paper towel carefully in half and pour the seeds into the proper envelope.

I show how I collect larkspur in this particular video.

bright pin zinnias with text overlay, press here for video, easy seed saving, red play button

Related How to Grow Shasta Daisies (all kinds, Silver Princess, Crazy Daisy, and more)

Saving seeds from your favorite flowers is easy and fun to replant for more gorgeous blooms. Plan for next summer by collecting seeds in Fall.

Storing seeds

The paper of the envelopes lets any moisture escape that could cause fungus to grow on the seeds.

I have a metal box I keep them in but I don’t put the lid on it.  A shoebox is great too. 

(I have had to rethink my box without the lid as I had mice eat many of my seeds, so now I use the lid but put desiccant packets I have saved from vitamin bottles into the box to absorb moisture)

It is recommended you keep seeds in a cool, dry place.  My basement stays cool and dry all winter long.

Leave some seeds for the wildlife.

Don’t collect all the seeds, that would just be overkill as there are millions.  

But leave many of these perennials and biennials to overwinter in place.  It provides needed food for birds and other wildlife.

True it does not look neat as many prefer but they are beautiful glistening in the sunshine on a frosty winter morning.

I love watching birds landing on top of the daisy, echinacea, and or Black-eyed Susan seed heads to snack on. 

It is beautiful to see especially when there is snow on the ground and it is tough for the birds to find other food sources.

Saving seeds from your favorite flowers is easy and fun to replant for more gorgeous blooms. Plan for next summer by collecting seeds in Fall.

Rose Campion (Lychnis Coronaria)

If you need to dig up any of them to make room for something different or to thin them pile them up nearby. 

Saving Seeds in Fall (12 of 13)

It may not look attractive but you should see the wildlife that makes this a refreshment stop or winter haven before heavy snows bury it deeply.  

Right now the Junco’s and Mountain Chickadees flock to my piles to pick at the seeds each morning.

Saving Seeds in Fall (13 of 13)

Closer to winter I will pour a few buckets of chicken litter on top of my flower debris piles so they will compost in place just fine.

Nursery bed

The photo below is of a new nursery bed.  It is where I will sow my seeds in the Fall. They will overwinter in place and have a head start next Spring.

Come Spring I will plant them in different places around the garden.

Saving Seeds in Fall (8 of 13)

To prepare a nursery bed just clear all plants from a section of soil. Mulch with some compost. Water it in.

Weeds may germinate but just pull them out. Repeat the watering and then clearing of weeds.

Doing this ensures that when it is time to plant the flower seeds there will be much fewer weed seeds left to germinate and compete with the flower seedlings.

For the free printable seed packet sign in our sign up. No worries, it is free. (I am replacing the resource library with this so that you won’t need to go to a separate page to get your printable downloads)

Printable Seed Packet

Print at home

Download and Print this Free Pattern Pack for Seeds!

 Click on this post to get a list of my favorite garden tools

Come Spring you will have tons of seeds to start and plenty already growing from sowing them in Fall.

A big plus is you can plant what you know thrives in your garden.  Masses of flowers make for a beautiful garden and most of the varieties I have shared here are pollinator-friendly. 

Happy Gardening!

Hi, I’m Pamela

I am a 40-year master gardening enthusiast who loves to share the simple tips, tricks, and inspiration I have learned from personal experience.
My goal is to cultivate the love of gardening and help make your gardening life more enjoyable!
a Garden Friend!
Blue and yellow flowers with text overlay, How to Save Seeds, with seed packet printable, Flower Patch Farmhouse dot come

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18 Comments

  1. I really love this article! thanks for sharing a lot of information.

  2. What I like about the article is the fact that it helps people who are going to be planting with seeds understand the importance of the seed packets, as they can help keep out moisture that would otherwise accumulate on the seeds and have mold growing on them. While there are some gardeners who like to keep their seeds in metal boxes, I myself prefer keeping them in tightly-sealed shoeboxes, stored well away from wet surfaces as well as hot places. It also helps that whenever someone starts planting seeds, that some are left in the ground over the winter so that they’ll be ready for replanting come spring time.

  3. Thanks, Patti. I am working on the painting demos as we speak. First one was a flop so I have to redo it. πŸ˜‰

  4. I tend to over do it in saving seeds and have plenty leftover but sharing is a good way to get rid of all the extras. πŸ™‚

  5. Thank you Julie. Seed saving is so much fun for me but I see the potential for more flowers, which I love. πŸ™‚

  6. Wow! What an awesome post! So much info, and so helpful! I would love to harvest seeds like this, some day! Pinned for the future!

  7. Although I am not the gardener in the family I have seen this done by my husband, He always has lots of jars filled with seeds.

  8. Great tips. I need to get out and start saving some of mine for next year. I also love the handy printable and look forward to your painting demo on how to paint and identify the flowers.

  9. Yes seed swapping does sound fun! Let us know Peggy…

  10. Peggy, how are you sending, receiving seeds “from all over” ? I want in on that action! TY

  11. It has been a long while since I seed swapped but I know what you mean. It is fun!

  12. Peggy barr says:

    When it comes to seeds savers and sharing different personalities are so noticeable!!! Some people are so particular about how they package and label and send seeds and some just send lose seeds in the actual envelope. Some send a lot of seeds and some send a tiny amount. I am having so much fun sending and getting seeds from all over.

  13. Thanks so much for sharing. It is so much fun to save seeds, especially when there is enough to share and spread the flowery glory. πŸ™‚

  14. Such wonderful tips, I’m sharing it tomorrow on my FB page for others to read! Thank for so much info πŸ™‚

  15. My husband is in the process of bidding a project that would require us to go to New Zealand so I told him it is the perfect time of year as we are entering winter they will be approaching summer and I will love going somewhere that is in full gardening swing.

  16. You make a very valid point Judith and one I should go back in and mention in this post. Many hybrid seeds are sterile and even if they are not if you have a few different varieties of the same plant they will cross pollinate so you will not always get the same colors as the plant you are saving from. Thank you for the reminder.

  17. Good to know; thanks for sharing! I’ve found that seed saving doesn’t work with hybrid plants. I’ve never been able to achieve positive results with seeds I’ve saved from hybrid plants.

  18. Thanks Pamela! Now I know how to collect and where to look on delphiniums and hollyhocks to get the seeds from whatever bloom I like! (Seems funny writing this as I am in the process of planting my seedlings out now that spring is here!)

    Happy gardening!

    Rae

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