I'm deadheading plants so they'll continue to bloom. How ripe must the seeds be before I should save them. I've pulled pods off the native Columbine and the seeds are clearly black & ripe. The Scabiosa heads are a different story.Some of the balls are green, some are light brown, but all the seeds are tight in those little balls.Is there a best time of day to pull pods?
Thanks,
Maggie
How ripe do seeds have to be?
I consider my seeds "ripe" when they are easy to disperse off the plant, to the point where nature would help them fall off, usually. If you shake the "pod" and the seeds come out, or if they are easy to pull out, they are likely done.
Some seeds, like columbine, will "fall out of" the pod when they are ripe. In those cases, the little pods actually begin to crack open -- and if a strong wind comes along, they are ripe.
Some things like zinnias, it is harder to tell -- but the whole flower needs to be pretty dry to allow the seeds to mature. In most cases - that means that the seeds, themselves, should be pretty brown.
You might consider harvesting seeds from every other plant, or waiting to allow the seeds to mature in the end of their growing season -- to compromise between reblooming and seeds maturing.
Good luck,
T
Theresa
Maggie, Thwoods is right.
You don't get to do both, it's an 'either / or' situation. If you wait until the seeds are ripe enough to harvest, it's too late for the plant to conserve energy and make a big reblooming effort. If you deadhead in time to help the plant rebloom, those seeds are not ripe, and will probbaly not be far enough along to ripen on their own. Bummer, isn't it?
Suzy
Foo! Thanks for the input. My columbine at least is putting out ripe black seeds while still budding.
Maggie
Columbine can be like that -- some other plants, too, will mature seeds while still blooming -- and I LOVE that kind. Others can be more touchy.
Just enjoy what you are able to collect. I tend to just let them take their course.... and I can enjoy the "beauty" of maturing seed pods. Some folks thing they are unattractive -- NOT ME!
Blessings,
Theresa
T
Columbine seeds are "ripe" when the "pods" split open at the top and you can just pour the seeds out. Lots of other plants are like that, too -- if the pod splits open naturally, the seeds are pretty much "ready".
T
Theresa