saving tomato seed

[gan heather]

I want to save my own tomato seeds. The other day I squeezed some seeds into a jar, put the top on loosely, and left it for 3 days. Then I filled the jar with water, stirred it around, and drained it through a nylon sieve. I put the seeds on a glass dish and left it in a warm place for a few days. The seeds are now dry, but don't look like they do when you get them from a packet - they have a dark coating on them, not the usual smooth tan color. Have I done something wrong? There are a few tomatoes I'd like to save seed from, so I want to get this right. Please help.

[rustylady]

They probably just need to dry out a bit more.

[taff]

I usually put water in the jar with them, then shake them every day until they're all sunk to the bottom and the scummy stuff is floating

[zazen999]

They need to be IN water for the 3 days, not just in a jam jar. The colour is probably from the jelly that has set on the outside.

[gan heather]

Ah, in the water for 3 days...oops. So should I throw out those seeds and just start again?

[Jeanied]

My tomato seeds have been in a jar of water for a while now and I have just put them out on a plate to dry, removing any pulp left. They are a range of colours - some quite dark orangey brown and others a pale colour. I noticed that was what they were when I took them out of the fruit - which was a white oxheart tomato, ripened to a yellow colour. It may just be that is how the tomato seeds are!

[zazen999]

Ah, in the water for 3 days...oops. So should I throw out those seeds and just start again?

No - I'd just put them in water for 3 days and start the process again.

Or just dry, bag and tag the ones you have done.

The water starts the jelly fermenting, so you end up with lovely fluffy tomato seeds, and not hard stuck to kitchen towel tomato seeds.

[womble]

and not hard stuck to kitchen towel tomato seeds.

I do all mine like that, out of tomato, straight into paper, cut up kitchen towel into bite sized pieces and just sow next year like that.
Works for me!

Means I don't have jars of rotting tomato pulp sitting round, when I forget to empty them out after 3 days too.

[21again]

I just put the seeds onto a paper towel, spread them out and drag one across the dry part of the towel with my finger.

The dragging pulls the membrane off the seed and it is intantly dry and free of the rest of the tomato.

I just leave them somewhere warm overnight and the put them in an envelope the next day.

[nomis]

and not hard stuck to kitchen towel tomato seeds.

Those ones work just fine.

I never wash mine, just straight onto towel, on window ledge for a few days to dry then tipped off into an envelope.

[zazen999]

Those ones work just fine.

I never wash mine, just straight onto towel, on window ledge for a few days to dry then tipped off into an envelope.

I know they work just fine; but if you are saving to swap it just looks better if they are done properly.

I once had a swapper PM me complaining about the bits of paper stuck to the tomato seeds and have done it the water way ever since.

[womble]

I once had a swapper PM me complaining about the bits of paper stuck to the tomato seeds and have done it the water way ever since.

What!

I'd have told them where to go.

[Bren In Pots]

After reading this thread I've started saving my first seeds, they're in a a jar in the airing cupboard.

[maytreefrannie]

I saved them two years ago by washing the seeds through a sieve, drying on a plate and then kept them in a brown envelope - shaking whenever I thought about it to make sure they were not sticking. They germinated fine and produced fruit.

This year, though, I think I'll try the water method as it seems to have been good for many people here - thanks all, I hadn't heard of the whole 3-day thing before.

[gan heather]

My seeds are now drying on a plate after my second attempt (this time using the water method). They look better this time, more like ones that come in a packet from the store. Let's hope it works!