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[email protected]

I started an experiment on Feb 1st. what I did is took 10 seeds, froze them in the Deep freeze for a week, Thawed them for 3 days, did this 20 times, took another 10 seeds, and did this for 15 cycles, and for 10, and for 5, and lastly, no freezing at all.
What I was trying to figure out is , if a seed get traded 10 times over the course of time,and is frozen, then sent, and so on, what would the germination rates be. Well here are the results.
Oh ya all the seeds were from the same pumpkin, and all germinated at the same time.
20 cycles 2 out of 10
15 cycles 5 out of 10
10 cycles 7 out of 10
5 cycles 10 out of 10
0 cycles 9 out of 10

After 10 days the germination test was stopped and the seeds dug out, All non germinating seeds had no hint of growth. Also after 10 days of growth the 5 cycle freeze thaw had the best root development, and leaf size.
In the spring I will freeze thaw half of my own seeds, for 5 cycles and see if there is a difference over the course of a growing season.
This was done totally in a contolled setting, but I was quite surprised by the results.
Eddy

9/4/2005 1:56:07 PM

Newcastle England

well done eddy now thats what i call dedication.peter

9/4/2005 2:32:09 PM

Rhode Island

interesting test ice man
we have never frozen our seeds but i know plenty of people that do
it does bring out a point of concern should you be trading or even worse bidding on seeds that have been previously frozen
i think age is also a factor vs how many times a seed might be traded and/or possibly frozen

9/4/2005 7:03:03 PM

Thornhill, Ontario, Canada

How about this story?

http://www.pumpkinnook.com/commune/pie1957.htm

In 2002 a guy was able to grow plants from pumpkin seeds that were in a shed in Michigan since 1957. That's 45 years of freezing and thawing! Pretty impressive.

9/4/2005 10:49:32 PM

[email protected]

Hey Eddy,

That's good stuff here. How warm was the thaw cycle? Was any attempt made to control the humidity during the thaw?

Thanks for sharing this data.

Steve

9/5/2005 12:47:16 AM

[email protected]

Steve
No attemp at humidity control. All thaw cycles were at room temperature.
Pap. I believe that we can control seed aging somewhat, by keeping the temperature controlled. If I can speed up aging, basically take a 2004 seed and age it 20 years in 4 months. We should be able to prolong it by keeping temperatures of the seed contolled. Like the article Crammed showed us, the seeds were probably in an ideal condition of storage.
I am going to attemt the same Experiment this winter but I will only have the seeds in the fridge for the cold cycle.
I really think the rates will change dramatically.
Eddy

9/5/2005 10:32:49 AM

Long Island,New York

So thats like leaving seeds in your car during the growing season in Alberta right?

9/5/2005 10:45:17 AM

[email protected]

Your abslutely right G. I should of thought about that in Feb and I could have saved a bunch of time. LOL

9/5/2005 11:08:50 AM