The first fall meeting of the Yorkton and District Horticultural Society will be on Wednesday, September 21 at 7:00 p.m. at SIGN on North Street. Our special guest speakers, Frank Woloschuk and Glen Tymiak, will give us a team presentation, telling us about “How to store dahlias, glads, calla/canna lilies, geraniums and more” for the winter. You don’t have to be a member to attend, feel free to come and hear these wonderful gardeners share some valuable and timely pointers with us! New members are always welcome!
And remember, Friday, September 23 is the date of the Fall Plant and Bulb sale beginning at 9:30 a.m. at the Parkland Mall. Come early for best selection, or if you are looking for specific plants. This is the perfect time to get some new plants to re-landscape or refurbish your garden. The plants will still have time to get settled in before winter!
Many people are interested in saving seeds for next year. I know my Sweet Pea used to save the seeds of her favorite and best-producing tomatoes, and assorted flowers, too. She always had a plastic shopping bag of assorted envelopes, carefully labelled, containing all kinds of seeds that she saved. I can still picture her sitting by the kitchen table on a cold winter evening, sipping a cup of tea, and blissfully going through the envelopes one by one, no doubt already thinking ahead to next spring and planning her lovely garden!
Now is the time to save seeds, as we are harvesting the last of our gardens or flowerbeds. Some plants do all the work for us, as long as we give them ample time to mature and dry. Marigold seeds, especially of the smaller varieties, are easy to save. Just let the blooms become totally dry and brown on the plant, then pick them carefully, pop them into an envelope, and done! Columbines are the same: these lovely plants create their own funnels as the blooms dry up, just pick them carefully and empty them out! Calendula is a great flower for beginner seed-savers: let the flower dry up on the plant, and you will be able to gather many of the crescent-shaped seeds from one bloom: ready for next year!
I did some homework and read about complicated procedures for saving tomato seeds, but it seemed easier the way my Mom did it: she would scoop out the seeds from a fully ripe tomato, spread them out on a paper towel on a plate, and just let them dry. The process takes a few days, but yields the seeds just fine. She did peppers the same way. The key is using a fully ripe, fully mature specimen to gather the seeds from. With peas or beans, let the pods dry on the plant until they are no longer tender and pliable but dry and papery. Then you can pick the pods, and dry them further indoors. At this point, you can shell them if you like, or leave them in the pods until next spring and shell them when you are ready to plant.
When you are saving seeds, try to choose plants that are “open-pollinated”, that is, plants that are pollinated by the wind of insects. Open pollinated plants will bear fruit and seeds that are like the parents. They come “true” from seed. Hybrid plants are crossed between two different varieties, and what you will get from these seeds may bear no resemblance to what you had this year. Hybrid plants won’t give the gardener reliable seeds.
Whatever seeds you save, be sure to store them in a cool, dark, dry space in either envelopes or small jars or old pill bottles. I read that you can even store them in the refrigerator, if you have room. And be sure to label them well!
Enjoy these closing gardening days! Have a great week!
