The Mystery Squash Experiment

While chopping down some out-of-control weeds for my neighbors. (See my Weed Getting post.) I happened upon a few old, dried up squashes in their garden. I decided to take them home and conduct an experiment. I have no idea what kind of squashes they are, or how long they have been there, but I have decided to retrieve the seeds, see if they are still viable, and find out what kind of squash they might be. My method for this experiment is simple: smash open the husks, sift through the contents and retrieve the seeds. This being done, I shall plant the seeds, and wait for them to grow. If the seeds are still viable, they will grow and make more squashes, and those squashes can subsequently be identified based on their physical characteristic. (I've been reading HG Wells, can you tell by my grammar and wording?)

First things first, I have spread out some newspaper on my kitchen counter. Using a hammer I have carefully broken open the husk of my first squash, revealing the dried up "guts" inside. Judging by the formation of the guts, I should think that these squashes may be spaghetti squash, but we will have to wait and see! 

It doesn't take much effort to break apart the guts and pick out the seeds. At first my intention was to break open both husks, however, upon finding that there are a great many seeds to be harvested from the first of the two, I think that one shall suffice. Since the husk, guts, and seeds were already dried by the sun, I shouldn't think that any further processing is in order.

I have simply picked out the seeds, rubbed gently to remove any excess remnants of the guts, and set the seeds aside. Many of the seeds at the bottom of the husk (where it had previously rested upon the ground) were stuck, and the guts had packed them down firmly. These seeds, I decided, would not likely be viable, and were discarded. So, now that the seeds have been retrieved from the squash husks, where shall the experiment go?

 I will use these seeds in my upcoming Starting Seeds post, to see if they will sprout and grow. Therefore, it needs be that you should check with me again at a later date and see what transpires. When my Starting Seeds post is uploaded, I will update this page with a link for you to follow.

Saving Seeds from Onions

An onion flower

Onions are a biennial plant, therefore, they only produce seeds their second year. This allows you to have edible onions your first year, and if you want seeds the next year, all you need do is keep the plant in the ground over winter. Next year, your onions will flower and produce seeds. If you're onions become stressed, however, they may "bolt." Bolting is when a biennial plant goes to seed in its first year. If you do not want your plant to go to seed, snip off he flower as soon as you see it begin to develop. These onions won't last as long as other onions,  but will still be edible if you get the flower out of the way quickly. I had a plant bolt this year, so I decided to let it go so that I could show you all how to save the seeds. Once the flower has fully developed it will lose its little petals and the little flowers will turn into little papery envelopes. This is where your seeds live! 

This flower is drying up. See the black seeds poking out?

When these little envelopes start to dry up, it is time to trim your flower and bring it inside to finish drying.

My onion flower, drying in a paper bag

Snip it off the plant and put it into a brown paper bag to finish drying. Mine took a few weeks to dry out completely.

Smashed flower, showing black onion seeds.

Once it is completely dry, smash it all up!  The seeds will be big enough that you can pick them out easily from the chaff.

All my little onion seeds!

Put your little onion seeds in a zip top bag or envelope and put it away for next year! 

Saving Melon Seeds

 I wanted to purchase some fruit to chop up and freeze for smoothies, and this little melon was one of my selections! I figured, after I brought it home, that it would also afford me the opportunity to show you how to save melon seeds. As discussed in my Finding Seeds to Plant post, watermelon seeds are pretty easy to save. Eat the watermelon, spit out the seeds, wash them and let them dry. Other types of melon are pretty dang easy, too! Most melons resemble squash and pumpkins in how their seeds are situated, so you just need to scrape out their "guts" to get to the seeds! First off, gather together your tools: a cutting board, a sharp knife, a spoon, a mesh sieve, a small bowl, and some paper towels.




Cut your melon in half, then use your spoon to scrape out the guts. After I scraped out my melon I put my guts into a bowl and used my spoon to separate the seeds from the guts.







I peeled and chopped up the fruit, putting the fruit in the freezer and flinging the rinds out for the animals to eat. The chickens peck the fruit off, then the goats eat the rinds. The ducks are clueless about food flung out the door. They do not realize what they are missing out on.

Once you have your seeds and guts thoroughly separated (it's okay if a little fruit matter gets in) put them into your sieve and rinse thoroughly under cold water. Make sure you rinse away all of the sugar and pick out any remnants of the guts. A sticky seed is an unhappy seed, and may turn into a rotten seed.









Lay your newly washed seeds out on some paper towels and allow them to dry completely. Store in an envelope or zip top bag to plant next year. I always mark my seed receptacle with the date, and the type of seed, so that there is no confusion on what it is or how long it will last.

Finding Seeds to Plant

When contemplating what to plant in your garden, bear in mind that you can grow almost anything from seed, with the right amount of attention and persistence. Seeds are certainly your cheapest option, especially since you can find them already in your pantry, spice cabinet, crisper drawer, and garden. Sure, you can just go to the store and buy them, but why not be an adventurous soul and seek out your own?

Seeds from Your Pantry

The cache crop in your pantry is, by far and away, legumes. They are abundant, sprout readily, and come in a wide variety. Any kind of dried whole bean, pea, chickpea, and lentil may be planted. 

You can separate bulbs of garlic into individual cloves. Allow the cloves to dry, pop them in the ground, and each one will grow you a whole new bulb.

Potatoes and sweet potatoes can be used as seed potatoes. Cut each potato into chunks, dry for a few days, and they can be planted to grow potato and sweet potato plants.

Whole, raw grains can also be planted. Whole wheat kernels, whole oats, barley, and dried corn are good examples.

Whole, unroasted, unshelled nuts can be planted to grow into trees, provided they are not too old, and if planting conditions are correct.

Seeds from Your Spice Cabinet

Planting seeds from your spice cabinet can be kind of iffy. You never really know how long they have been on the shelf at the grocery store, and often times one can lose track of how long they have been in your spice cabinet. Also, some seeds may have been heat-dried and may not germinate as a result. Good options for you to try to plant are mustard, coriander, fennel, and dill. Others that may work, but are less likely to germinate, are cumin and celery. Cumin, because it is often heat-dried, and celery because it can be difficult to germinate, even under ideal conditions.

Seeds from Your Crisper Drawer

So, maybe some of these produce items you don't keep in your crisper drawer. The point I am making is that you can grow plants and trees by saving the seeds from produce you use for cooking and eating. The vast majority of fruits and fruit-type vegetables yield seeds suitable for planting. The grocery store may not be the best place to find your seed-containing produce, but most varieties should be okay. The best place by far to get produce for seeds is your garden, your neighbor's garden, or from a local farmer at a farmer's market.

Cucumbers, squash, pumpkins and melons have seeds that are easily removed and dried for planting. Watermelons may be the most enjoyable melon to save seeds from, as one needs only eat, spit, and plant more watermelons!

Peppers can easily be separated from their seeds, you simply need to use your thumb to scrape the seeds away from the core.

Pits from stone fruit such as peaches, apricots, plums, and cherries can be scrubbed clean and planted in the fall, or refrigerated for a few months and planted anytime year-round.

Although it is a strange and somewhat tedious engagement, tomato seeds can be liberated from their gelatinous goo, dried and planted.

You can sprout grape vines from saving your grape seeds. I think this is the only reason I might be tempted to buy any grapes other than seedless. 

Berries can be mashed and strained to retrieve their seeds, or frozen or dehydrated and planted whole. The first blackberry bush we ever had only bore one single berry. I saved it and dried it to plant another bush, but the little dried berry got lost while we were moving, and the blackberry bush didn't survive long enough to move with us.

Some seeds that may yield less-than-favorable results are apple and pear seeds, and seeds from fruits or vegetables that are hybrids. Apple and pear seeds each contain a genetic sequence all their own, not one related to the sequence of their parents. If you decide to plant apples or pears from seed, the chances of ending up with a tasty end product are not unlike your chances at winning the lottery. The seeds of hybrid strains of fruits or vegetables are a game of chance as well, as the seeds may grow plants like one of the crossed plant types or the other, or may contain an undesirable mix of characteristics from both. Seldom will you find a seed that will grow up to resemble its hybrid parent.

Seeds from Your Garden

Basically anything you grow in your garden will produce a seed that you can plant next year. As explained above, you can harvest seeds from within fruit and fruit-type produce. Some plants produce flowers which are seed-bearing, while others use a bit of the root or bulb to propagate.
Peas, beans, and chickpeas are seeds in themselves. When your plants begin to turn yellow and die, leave at least a few pods on the plant. As the plant dries out, the pods will dry out as well, giving you seeds for your next planting.
Onions, carrots, asparagus, spinach, lettuce and most herbs make flowers that produce seeds. Asparagus can also be grown from root crowns.
Corn can be grown from dried kernels. Allow ears to fully ripen on the stalk, remove the ear, and hang upside down to dry. Once dried the kernels can be removed and stored for planting later.
Potatoes can be set aside as "seed" potatoes. When you are ready to plant, cut potatoes into chunks, taking care to leave one or two eyes in each chunk. Allow them to cure a day or two, then pop them into the ground!
Garlic is grown by pulling apart the bulb into separate cloves, and planting the individual cloves in the ground.