I used to be terrified at the thought of collecting seeds from my garden crop and saving them for the next year. Without even looking up exactly how this process works, I blew it off as way too hard and way too time consuming. Boy, was I wrong. Go pick a nice ripe tomato and let’s get to work!
Much to my surprise there are only 6 simple and easy steps to saving tomato seeds. Ready? Don’t blink! Here we go:
- Pick a beautiful ripe tomato. Unripe seeds will not germinate.
- Slice your tomatoes down the middle and scoop out the seeds into a bowl. Add a bit of water to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and poke a couple holes into it (to allow for air circulation during the fermentation process).
- Let your seeds sit out at room temperature for about a week, changing the water and stirring everyday. Any seeds that float to the top aren’t any good ~ so toss them out with the water change.
- Strain your seeds and give them a really good rinse. Don’t leave any of that tomato-goo on your seeds.
- Leave your seeds to dry on a flat surface covered with wax paper for a few more days. Don’t rush this step as we don’t want to store seeds that will mold.
- Label an envelope and enclose your seeds. Take it a step further and add a couple tablespoons of untreated cat littler to a few layers of tulle to make a sachet to help preserve your seeds.
Put your seed envelop and the moisture-absorbing sachet into a mason jar and your seeds will last for 4 years, or more!
