First of all, we’d like to extend our
apologies for some of the technical difficulties experienced at the start of
the show but we managed to persevere nonetheless! Also apologies for the late
blog, we had some problems uploading the podcast but that’s all fixed now!
Once again we had our wonderful resident
gardening expert, Jodi Jackson in to discuss helpful tips for seed saving. According
to Jodi, the art of seed saving is a great, cost effective way to grow your own
plants. Now it isn’t as hard as it sounds because plants are naturally designed
to set seeds and by saving those seeds you’re not only helping your hip pocket
but also helping to keep plant diversity alive.
Harvesting seeds can be tricky but there
are many different ways to do it. Take for example, Kale. Part of the cabbage family,
Jodi was able to share with us that she harvests its seeds by ripping the
leaves off.
Some
important things to remember about harvesting seeds are:
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| Courtsey of thisoldhouse.com |
- This can occur annually, bi-annually, seasonally depending on the plant
- Don’t try to save everything and to share seeds around with family and friends
- Finer seeds such as lettuce have a shorter shelf life of about 1 year
Often people wonder which seeds to save and according to Jodi, saving seeds can be subjective and she’s shared the following three handy tips to help you identify which plants are the best.
Save seeds from:
- The healthiest plants
- Those that bear the biggest fruit
- Those that produce the best colour/shape – brightest colour, shape of leaf, shape of fruit etc
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| Courtesy of drgrowgood.co.uk |
Once
you harvest those seeds, it’s also important to make sure you make the most of them
by storing them correctly. Now there are different opinions on how with some
people going as far as storing their seeds in specials fridges with
thermometers but fear not! Jodi recommends the following fail safe tips for
seed storage.
- Store in a cool place, out of sunlight
- Make sure it’s stored in an air tight jar/container, snap lock bag or a paper envelope will do
- Storage must be dry
Different seeds have different germination
techniques but Jodi recommends 9/10 times on growing more directly from
planting seeds in the ground than in punnets. In the ground not only do they
have a greater chance of absorbing more nutrients but also being pollinated
either by wind or through insects and animals.
For a fantastic guide to saving seeds, Jodi
highly recommends “The Seed Savers Handbook” by Michel & Jude Fanton.
For
step by step visuals and more information from our specialist Jodi, also visit http://www.everydayinthegarden.com/
Just a reminder that Hume City Council in conjunction
with Environment Victoria has opened up the HumeEnvironmental Champions Program
for 2013 where Hume residents are encouraged to come together to learn, share
interests and knowledge on the environment and sustainability. In groups, residents
are also encouraged to come up with their own environmental initiatives to help
the community and it would be great to see some familiar and fresh faces
getting involved! The top community initiatives of 2012 came from Sunbury Organic Fruit and Veggie Co-op,
Community Garden on Private Land and The Lemon TreeProject.
Happy seed saving!
If you have any questions for Jodie please
twitter, sms or comment on the blog. And don’t forget to listen to the podcastfor the full show!
Songs played during this show:
Strangers by Portishead
500 (shake baby shake) by Lush
His indie world by Mary Lou Lord
A track from Grizzle bear’s Album
Veckatimest
Drums by Ol Mercy
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