Have fresh cleome, shasta daisy and others

Have fresh cleome, purple and white, shasta daisy, yarrow summer pastel, bee balm, butterfly brush pink delight and black night for trade.

Rose

you have mail!

Hi Rose,
What color is your bee balm?
Is there anything special that you're looking for?
OD :-)

bee balm is purple and I have a few red ones. Looking for almost anything that will grow in zone 5.
Rose

Hi Rose,

How did you harvest your Cleome seeds? I have a beauty, but I've no idea how to find the seeds on it. It's pink & white.

Thx :)

Hi Rose,
You have mail!
OD :-)
P.S. Morph, someone else might have a better method for collecting seeds for cleome,
but I just keep an eye on the cleome seed pods
(that sort of look like a little, hand-dipped candle,
that stick off the sides of the stalk)
and when they start to turn slightly brownish,
pop them into a paper bag. They'll split open,
and out will fall your seeds. :-)

Got it! Thanks so much. I just love this beauty as did my DH :) I'll have seeds soon too, then!

Morph
I collect me cleome seeds the same way. The seed pods look like string beans growing off the side of the stalk under the flower. They are ready when you touch them and they start to open. The seeds will be dark in color if they are white they are not ready. Cleomes produce a lot of seeds.
Rose

RoseOOPS, welcome to DG!!

"eyes"

Thanks "eyes" it's nice to be here.
Rose

Hello, and you've got mail.

Where do I go on the forum to learn how to harvest seeds? I have been harvesting from the portculla, but would love to harvest the bee balm, the echinachia, the shasta daisy, moonvine and more! I start a class this friday at the extension agency to learn how to propagate plants. I'm assuming this is from stems, not seed. And I want to learn how to gather and find the seeds of differnt plants. Any suggestions?

Thanks

d

All I can tell you Belladonna is most of the seeds are in the flower heads. With the Shasta Daisy just run your finger over the dried flower and the seeds will come out. The bee balm is more difficult. The flower head has tubes and the seeds are way down in there. Some people say to put the heads in a bag in shake it orthers say it tap it hard and the seeds will come out. Both work but you get very little seeds for your work. I just crush the head and plant the whole thing!
I have some plants that I can't find the seeds in; salvia and hyssop. Last year I had tons of seeds from my Liatris but someone told me because I only had one plant, even though it was a large plant that the seeds would be sterile. So I never tried the seeds:( Sorry I wasn't much help but maybe some can help us both.
Rose

Thanks Rose, it just seems there is a certain "Time" to harvest the seeds and I haven't quite figured that out yet. How dry is too dry, and if you wait till it's dry enough to harvest you might miss it because it pops out on the ground. So does that mean I should pick it and wait for it to dry? Or will that cause it to be sterile and I have to catch it while still on the vine? Maybe these are dumb questions :-) sorry.


d

Remember there are no dumb questions. I think you just have to keep a close eye on the flowers. I heard some people but bags on the flower heads. I don't know how to do that. So I just look at them ever day. I'm still new to this to. Just keep looking and playing with the flowers and you'll figure it out. Here's a seed site that tells you a lot about seeds and shows you pictures of what the seeds look like.
http://theseedsite.co.uk/index.html
Rose

Cool beans, bags on the flower heads! Plastic or paper? :-)

I don't know. I guess which ever you can get to stay. Let me know how it works.

Another usefull method is to tie a stocking over the seed head and then they can continue to grow but when they pop open, all the seeds are still there ready for the taking!

Thanks RoseOOPS and Welcome to DGs, too! I also like your idea, Karen7! I was assuming a paper bag if the bag method was used because that way you could hear the seeds dropping if there were any... But, I have not tried this approach yet, so I don't know...

I was taught by articles written by our County Extension agent and Master Gardeners to use paper bags for the seedheads. The high moisture in most fresh seed would make them rot or mold in plastic if they aren't removed within a day or so. I took that advice without trying plastic or nylon or anything else, so I don't know if they would work.

When I bag my seedheads, I usually cut the flower head off, bag it, hang it upside down on a drying rack, and wait. Usually the seeds come out in a few days.

I also haven't tried to save many seeds before this year, but I am finding it very fun: like a treasure hunt!

Hi Rose! I'm a "Rose" in zone 5 also! I'd be interested in some of the bee balm. Take a look at my trade list and see if there's anything you'd like.

Hi Rose,
I received the seeds of bee balm and marigolds. I look forward to seeing them in my garden next summer! Thanks so much. Rose