The tomato season is upon us and it is time to think about next years crop as well, not just enjoying the well deserved harvest. You can save your tomato seeds with a little work very easily. Open pollinated and heirloom tomato varieties are most suitable to save the seeds from, as the hybrid ones could not come true the next season, as being a hybrid they have been produced by crossing 2 different parent plants.
Getting the best seeds:
Choose the healthiest plants and the healthiest fruits to save the seeds from. Leave the fruits to ripen fully on the plant. The easiest to get your tomato seeds out to cut the tomato across the equator and scoop the seeds out into a small jar, bowl. The seeds protected by the jelly like liquid, this is what you have to get rid of nicely.
Smelly business:
What happens in nature is that the ripe tomato drops on the floor, the fruit rots while the seeds inside go through a fermentation process. This is what you have to speed up a little. Got rid of the flesh, great, now you can ferment the seeds a bit!
Poor a little water over the seeds, make sure you have the jelly bit as well, this will help the fermentation. Cover the jar with a paper towel, or plastic, if you use plastic make sure you make some wholes on it. Place the jar in a windowsill and leave it for 4-5 days. Preferably somewhere out of your way as during the process mould will form and the mixture will be quite smelly.
Separating the tomato seeds:
To get the seeds out of the horrible fermented liquid add lots of water to it and stir it well, often you will be able to remove the top of the mix before adding the water as it will become very mouldy and the seeds will sink on to the bottom of the jar. Let the tomato seeds sink to the bottom again after stirring the mix, and then pour the seed liquid mixture through a sieve and wash the seeds under running water.
Dry the tomato seeds on a plate on your windowsill, or anywhere dry. Make sure you don’t force the drying process by exposing the seeds to some heat. The seeds should be viable for quite a long time, 5-7 years. Store them in a cool and dry place.
Enjoy your tomato seed saving experience and have a great harvest over the weekend!
