Losing Their Heads ~or~ Adventures in Seed Saving

Last spring I purchased a flat of marigolds at NorthSide Farmers Market to add some color to the low beds that mark the beginning of the sidewalk to the house. This bed already has peonies and Stella D'ora dalylilies. Much to my surprise, these marigolds turned into giants and completely hid (but did not kill) the perennials.

Although they were a bit misplaced where I planted them, the thing is that I really like them. I think that next year this type will look fantastic blooming at the barn and I set out to save the seeds.

Seed saving, for the most part, is not difficult. I rate marigolds as "super easy" on the SSDR (Seed Saving Difficulty Rating) meter. Another benefit is that marigolds are probably the easiest flower to start from seed indoors. A win/win situation if I ever saw one!

The picture also shows that the marigolds are dropping their petals and that the seeds in the pods have started to drop. Now is a perfect time to declare "Off with their heads!" and collect the seeds.

For this process, I used pruning shears to clip off the dried seed pod and put them in an enamelware pan.  I relaxed on the porch and pulled the seeds out of the pods. I left the seeds in the pan for a few days to make sure that they are really dry. Another way would be to lay them out on a fine mesh screen, but really, how many of us have such a thing handy?

The seeds can now be put in envelopes and marked or, the lazy way that I do it, put in a glass jar. Even though I know that these are marigold seeds, you betcha that I'll label them as:

****Ginormously Giant Marigolds, 

plant with caution****

 :)

A few days after I collected the seeds, I bought the latest edition of Mother Earth Living magazine. It has a beneficial article on seed saving and another great article on drying/freezing herbs (my next project). 

If you want to save seeds, I recommend this article. You can also find tips online if you do a web search. So...why not save some money by saving the seeds of your favorite flowers?

Marcheta *frugal gardener