OLD YELLER PART II - SAVING CUCUMBER SEEDS IS EASY!

OLD YELLER, POST PLUCKAGE

In our first installment about saving cucumber seeds we had plucked an elderly, yellowed cucumber from our patch and set it aside to soften, to simplify the process of separating the seeds from the pulp that will result.

SUCCESS - CUCUMBER PULLS APART UNDER LIGHT FINGER PRESSURE

Timing is by no means critical for success in this project but in this case we were very lucky. This cucumber literally fell apart under mild finger pressure; the natural fermentation process which frees the seeds to germinate on their own is already underway.

We removed all the chunky, non seed bearing portions and placed the remainder in a container with about a quart of water, stirring mildly to blend seeds, pulp and water as evenly as possible. Most containers, glass, food grade plastic or as in this case, an old pot from a crock pot that had burned out long ago will do just fine. Do clean the container thoroughly first, however.

SEEDS AND PULP FLOATING IN CLEAN WATER IN CROCK POT
 

If you have the pots original lid, simply put it in place and store the crock in a room temperature, dimly lit environment until the fermentation process has freed the bulk of the seeds. Most folks start with a sturdier cucumber than we have here; the process might take as long as 5 days.

In this case I'm betting on less than 72 hours but we shall see. Once a day open and examine the contents of the crock, stirring lightly. When almost all the seeds are on the bottom, it is time for phase 3 of our seed saving process, This will be detailed in another post, shortly.

Perhaps you do not have the pots' original lid? You do want to cover the crock. If you have a plate that fits properly, that is fine or you can make do with plastic, as we have here.

PLASTIC SECURED WITH RUBBER BAND MAKES A SUITABLE COVER

Poke several holes in the plastic to allow the fermentation gases to escape, and you are well on your way to starting your own stock of heirloom cucumber seeds!

That is about all we have for today, thanks as always for visiting Uncle Mac's Garden Shed!  

FARM GIRL'S CORNER - The seediness of Uncle Mac, Part 2

Hi there, you know me its Farm Girl, I help out (as in, do most of the mundane gardening work) around the Shed and in the garden and so on. You know how seedy a guy Uncle Mac is, seems he can't find enough places to deposit seed. But I digress...

Every once in a while in the course of what we like to call "doing research" ie., "making shit up" we come across a factoid or blog or website that deserves promoting. And we found one, and we need to give them all kinds of credit and a plug as well. But first, a picture, which we have determined is not worth a thousand words, but only 914. But you know, close enough.

What is THIS, you may ask, and who can blame you?
Its called "Petrowski's turnip" named after the famous Petrowski and it has the distinction of being a quick growing biggish yellow turnip that tastes nothing like a white turnip, not that there's anything wrong with that, of course.

You can get it from the folks at "Real Seeds" just by clicking on the link. We'll be buying a few packets tomorrow, still plenty of time for a fall crop of these beauties in our zone. (5 - 6) 

But that turnip, interesting as it is only scratches the surface. This company has many heirloom seeds, (in fact, they have no hybrids at all), many of which will be new to US gardeners.

This includes a white turnip big as a dinner plate but let's not hold that against them.


Real Seeds also tells you how to save your own seeds for next years planting, and people, if you take nothing seriously from our blog listen to this, we all have to learn how to do this and we need to learn fast. Monsanto is coming. And it ain't gonna be pretty. (See related article HERE)

We have saved squash, cuke, tomato and pepper seeds here at the Shed for some time but now we are going to branch out. Use Real Seeds info as a jumping off point and you can do so too. Hey, its fun and you can swap with your friends!

And that's it for Farm Girl's Corner, enjoy those yellow turnips and thanks a bunch for stopping by!