Mid-Atlantic Gardening: Really end of summer blooms- September almost here, 1 by Gitagal

Gitagal wrote:
Karen---

It is almost impossible to separate the seeds from the chaff on plants
like Ageratum, Forget-Me-Nots, and the Dwarf red Coreopsis I have.
This Coreopsis seeds all over and comes up next year. it is a pretty
flower--dark, velvety red blooms on thin stalks. I have seeds....(see Pic.)

To save these seeds--the best you can do is be vigilant when the little
flower heads dry up, but before they burst. To minimize the amt. of
"junk" (chaff) you will have anyway when collecting these seeds, take a
decent-sized container--like a Cool Whip bowl--and scissors in hand,
holding bowl below the flower heads you are cutting off, collect all the
ones that are dry. Let dry completely in the bowl--or on a plate.

Now--nice, mundane TV watching task....gently rub each flower head
between your fingers and collect whatever falls from it. Discard the rest of the bloom.
What you will now have is a bowl-full of mixed, miniscule seeds and some fine chaff.

You could bag these up and share as is--OR--you can try to "maybe" separate
some of the seeds by dumping all these in the finest mesh strainer you have.
I use one that has a handle on it and 2 hooks to rest it over a cup or bowl.

Gently shaking it--or bumping on it--some of the seeds should fall through.
They will probably be just tiny,elongated, black wisps. You will never get them all
sifted out--that is why I said just keep the chaff+seed for saving/sharing,
or give away the intact, dried flower-heads. The most practical way out.

IF it is a true Biennial (is it?)--just you pulling up the dead plants in the fall
will disperse thousands of seeds...which will germinate in the spring.

When you collect larger seeds--like Basil, Heliopsis, BE Susans, etc.
you can do the same with the strainer--just one with medium-sized mesh.
Good to shop at Thrift stores for these metal mesh strainers...

To remove all the remaining chaff--(ON bigger seeds)--put your seeds in s small,
deep bowl. Go outside--and blow gently over the seeds. The chaff will go flying--not the seeds.
Gently shake and rotate the bowl and keep blowing. You should end up with
about 80% of clean seeds.

Yes! Please save me some of the seed heads....Just a few....Thanks! Gita

Happy--I don't think any Ageratum is perennial--just biennial.

Dwarf red Coreopsis--have had this for a few years already....about 14"-16" tall.