Old Squash Seeds

[meteor]

I found an old opened packet of squash seeds with a used by date of 2005 while helping to clear a friends shed . The variety is Jaspee De Vende and the blurb on the back of the packet said " with flesh so sweet it can be eaten raw" so intrigued I decided to take a chance and sowed them on Friday last. To my surprise this morning I found four of the five seeds have germinated. What's the oldest seeds that have germinated for you?
Has anyone else ever grown this variety of squash , does it live up to the claim on the packet.
cheers.

[snakeshack]

My loofah seeds in an old envelope marked " loofah 1999" have just produced 2 plants out of 10 seeds , they don't look too grand however( in fact they don't even look two quid)


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[BertieFox]

Your squash is an old traditional 'melonette' variety from the Vendee in south west France. I haven't grown it but if it is like similar ones here, then it should be good eating. I have yet to find anything that is really good eating raw, unless you are the sort of person who likes raw courgettes and that sort of thing, which I don't. Steamed with some butter....... that's another thing!

On the storage date, cucurbit seed is very good at longevity and I have a tin full of old packets of squash seed, which I have usually found to be viable for ten years. Storage is vital though and as long as you store them in a cool, dry place they will keep for ages. Let them get damp or too warm and they won't even last a year.

Good luck with this old variety. If you grow them in isolation you could save the seed for future use, or you could self pollinate them and cover the flower with a muslin type netting to prevent pollination from insects. Perhaps you could post back at the end of the season to let us know whether this is really a good eating variety.