After fermentation?

[lexxluthor]

First year of trying to save seeds and I put them in the jar and placed seeds onto wax paper after 5 days. When all seeds are dried after 2 or 3 days is there a trick or any suggestions what I do so that I don't end up with a pile of seeds all stuck together. Does everyone just start separating one at a time?

Thanks,
lexx

[JamesL]

You need to space them out on the plate or paper now or they will be stuck. Not the end of the world of course but easier to separate now and they will dry better too.
Use a toothpick, pen cap, etc. whatever works.

[lexxluthor]

Thanks for the tip I will give it a try.

[Worth1]

Those Bamboo BBQ skewers work great.

Worth

[Father'sDaughter]

I use a round, wooden chopstick which has a slightly larger, blunt tip, and separate the seeds while they are still wet.

I've also found that the wet seeds will easily stick to the blunt end of the chopstick which makes removing individual seeds I want to discard very easy.

[ContainerTed]

Here's a link that can help with your questions. Most folks use something similar to this, but all folks use some things in this. It might help you get better results than with the "wax paper" method. It also talks about those "bamboo skewers" mentioned above.

http://t.tatianastomatobase.com/wiki...g_Fermentation

[carolyn137]

I dumped out the processed seeds onto non coated paper plates, if you use coated ones the water doesn't evaporate as quickly and any maggots still squirm. Yes, I'm sure none of you have maggot problems but let's not get into that.

I used my right hand index finger to spread the seeds out and also push to the side those pesky maggots, if present, where they would squirm until dead.

After the seeds were fully dry and that depends on ambient temps and humidity I'd scrape the seeds off the plates, leaving them in small clumps, into vials or envelopes.

I only separated those clumps to individual seeds when I was packing up seeds to send to folks for my seed offers or SSE requests or sending to friends or sending to certain seed vendors for trial.

Carolyn

[travis]

simple. fluff them up a bit with your fingertips after the first day or two of drying, while they are still just a mite damp. they will separate easily. then continue drying them until they are dry enough to pack.

[ginger2778]

Once the wet pile comes out of the rinse and onto the absorbent area,I use paper plates with a coffee filter, then I use the back of a spoon to spread them into a single layer. No sticking, takes only seconds. Easy peasy.

[clara]

After cleaning the seeds after the fermentation is finished, I try to separate them with a small bamboo stick into single seeds, but when I have lots of seeds, I try to at least have small clumps. The next day, when the seeds are not completely dry, I gently rub the clumps between two fingers to separate them and let them dry further on. For me, it's more comfortable to do it this way than waiting till they are absolutely dry - less hard work. Only when the clumps are still too wet imo, I wait another day.

[Tormato]

I dry them in a clump about two seeds deep, peel them off of a paper towel in one mass, and crumble them in my hand over a bowl 'til they're singles. Then they go into their recycled Smirnoff nip bottle for storage, until it's time for zip baggies.

[joseph]

After fermenting tomato seeds, I decant them and rinse a few times in the jar they were fermented in. Then I dump them through a screen that is used as a food-catcher in drains, or for straining tea. I scrub them around good to make sure all the residual gel coats (if any) are gone. Then I plop them back into the (rinsed and empty) jar in a big gob, and spread them around the sides of the jar. (It already has a label on it, so I don't have to make another label.) After they have dried for a week or two I dump the clump into my palm, and rub the seeds between my hands, or crush them with my fingers. Then they go into a seed envelope. If a few seeds are stuck together, I'd be unlikely to notice.

[JRinPA]

lexx I hope yours turn out better than mine.

I fermented tomato seeds for the first time this summer, but I'm a bit worried I screwed it up. Usually we just dry them on paper plates and they sprout fine.

After reading about fermentation this year, I did it that way in a plastic cup outside, then rinsed until clear, took the non-floaters and then let dry on paper plate. Some cups were out too long probably, and the seeds turned blackish; others not so long and looked okay.

I planted some of each out to test germination rate - 20 each of 5 types - and I am seeing 1 little plant after more than 2 weeks outside being misted a few times a day. I am wondering if most of those seeds I fermented actually cooked in the sun. I'm really kicking myself for not simply drying half as we normally do.

[Gardeneer]

If the fermentation has been long enough/efective, then most of the sticky gel around the seeds should have been broken off.
Then I pour the stuff into a tall glass , add cold water almost to the brim, stir it vigorously and wait a couple of second, dump out the floating debris.... Repeat until all the residue are dumped and all you have is just the seeds.
Then strain it, dump on coffee filter. THIS IS THE TIME to try to break the lumps. As Worth mentioned a bamboo skew can do it.
Now the other way is to wait until the seeds have dried crisp.. Using your thumb and indext finger you can separate them.

THERE IS MORE THAN ONE WAY TO SKIN A DEAD CAT !!

[FarmerShawn]

After cleaning, I dump the seeds and water through a small sieve, rinse, then press the bottom of the sieve onto paper towels to wick away any extra water. Then I dump them onto an uncoated paper plate, and tap them with the sieve bottom to spread them into one layer, which makes them easy to separate when dry. BTW, when I start the process, I write the name on a Post-it, then tape it to the cup. After fermentation, it's easy to peel the label from the cup and stick it on the paper plate. The seeds do stick to the plate, so I just use a thin spatula to scrape them off for packaging.