Save seeds from late tomatoes or not?

[habitat_gardener]

We've picked the last of the tomatoes, finally. One Druzba that's light red (not fully ripe) is cracked and starting to go bad. I'm wondering if it's worth saving the seed from this late tomato, or if I should just compost it.

And is it ok to ferment the seeds outdoors, with nighttime temperatures mostly in the 40s but occasionally dipping into the mid-30s?

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by habitat_gardener

We've picked the last of the tomatoes, finally. One Druzba that's light red (not fully ripe) is cracked and starting to go bad. I'm wondering if it's worth saving the seed from this late tomato, or if I should just compost it.

And is it ok to ferment the seeds outdoors, with nighttime temperatures mostly in the 40s but occasionally dipping into the mid-30s?

If you have saved no other seed from your Druzba's, then I'd go ahead but it's always better to save seed from several fruits of the same variety in case any cross pollination has occurred.

Fermentation is really quite temperature dependent and those low temps, even close to freezing, don't look that good to me. It's the enzymes that the various bacteria and fungi synthesize in the mat that forms on top of the fermentation contents that makes fermentation what it is, in terms of removing the gel capsules, etc., and enzymes are what's so temperature dependent.

Isn't there some place you could put that one Druzba fermentation where it wouldn't get that cold at night?

[TZ-OH6]

I do all of my fermentations in capped deli containers right in on the counter top