A Favourite Tool: My Seed Storage Jar

 

Storing seeds properly is a minor but very important task.  And it can be successful and easy.  You need two things:  A large Glass Jar with a tight lid and a Rechargeable Silica Gel Desiccant.  

Lee Valley Tools markets one desiccant as Reusable Dehumidifier Bags containing about half a pound of silica gel inside a cloth bag the size of your hand.  The bag changes colour when it needs to be recharged – in that case in a microwave oven.  

I have their 40 gram desiccant packet that comes in an aluminum tin about the size of a deck of cards.  This one is recharged by gently baking 3 hours in a toaster oven at 300° F.  It currently sells for $15.

The best Jars I’ve found are the commercial 4 liter pickle jars. They have wider mouths than the normal quart sealer jar.  I’ve picked them up at the local second-hand store for 3 bucks or from any catering company or small restaurant.  Up until Covid, I enjoyed volunteering with our church's funeral catering crew and we went through those big pickle jars occasionally. 

I’m very organized so I just stuff my seed packets into my Seed Jar and keep it in my cool garage away from direct sunlight. However, I do keep a list of all varieties with their source, age, and current germination rates. That list is key for making my new seed order.  I keep an eye on my germination rates and once a variety starts to slow down or lose vigor, I replace it with a new packet of seeds.  

I used to keep my Seed Jar in my Lovely Wife’s fridge but that took up too much of Her Valuable Space.  So I tried the deep freeze but found every time I wanted to get out some seeds, the humidity in the room would quickly condense onto the very cold seeds and get them damp.

In the old days I had read that the three worst seed varieties for maintaining their germination rates were onions, peppers and parsnips.  These, I was informed, needed to be replaced each year.  But that is all wrong if you use a Rechargeable Silica Gel Desiccant and a Pickle Jar.  Out of those three 'worst' I can easily get 3 years.  And other seeds I can often get more.

Buying from a seed rack that sits in a humid area (like with a fountain nearby) is far from optimum.  Ordering seed from good suppliers is the better bet. Good quality seed is getting more and more costly.  Storing that investment properly is the answer.

Happy Gardening.