High-quality tomato seeds are the key to a future bountiful harvest of fruits. If the quality of the seeds for any reason raises suspicions, it is possible to check their germination in advance before planting.
Terms and conditions of storage of tomato seeds and their effect on germination
The initial quality of tomato seeds depends primarily on how ripe the fruits from which they were obtained were. Ideally, tomatoes that are fully ripe in plants are used for seeds, they produce seeds of the highest quality. Seeds from fruits harvested brown or fully formed green, which were then allowed to fully ripen indoors, are also quite suitable. From underdeveloped fruits, poor seeds with low germination are obtained.
The second important point is that the seed fruits should not be overexposed for too long after their final ripening, otherwise the seeds begin to germinate prematurely already in the fruits, and later, when dried, such seeds die. The right moment to extract the seeds is when the tomatoes have become soft, but not yet sour. The extracted seeds are thoroughly washed with clean water and dried on a saucer, then stored.
Quality tomato seeds - light, with a characteristic slightly fleecy surface
Violation of the technology for obtaining seeds is one of the most common reasons for their poor germination.
- It is also important to consider how well the seed was stored:
- It is necessary to store tomato seeds in a dry room with a room temperature of about +15 .. + 20 degrees.
- Seeds should not be stored near heating devices - they can lose their germination from overheating and drying out.
- Dampness is no less dangerous, so you should not leave seeds in unheated country houses for the winter.
- It is recommended to store seeds from your garden in paper bags or tightly closed glass medicine bottles.
- For branded purchased seeds, sealed foil packaging is considered ideal for storage.
With proper storage, tomato seeds retain good germination for at least 4–5 years, and very high quality seeds sometimes up to 7–8 years. Older seeds rarely germinate.
Germination conditions for tomato seeds and how quickly they germinate
For the germination of tomato seeds, the minimum temperature is +8 .. + 10 degrees, under these conditions the seedlings will appear in 8-12 days. The optimum temperature for their germination is about +20 degrees, in this case the seedlings will be in 4-5 days.
Tomato seeds do not need light for germination, they can be germinated in the dark, and after the emergence of seedlings, move to a bright place. Can be sown with dry seeds or pre-germinated seeds to speed up the process.
This is how tomato seedlings look: first, whole-edged cotyledons of an elongated shape appear, and only then typical tomato carved leaves
The actual germination test is directly germinating seeds in a damp cloth or on a moistened filter paper. For germination, seeds require both water and air, so they should not be flooded with too deep a layer of water, they will suffocate and will not sprout.
- They just need to be wrapped in a wet cloth or placed between two layers of filter paper and moisten the structure with water.
- Every day, in the morning and in the evening, it is necessary to check the entire economy and, if necessary, spray it with water so that the awakened seeds do not die from drying out.
- Naked seeds must be sown immediately in pots with soil to a depth of 1 centimeter, after 2-3 days the seedlings will be visible.
- If less than half of the seeds have hatched, the planting material is considered to be of low quality. Better to take other seeds.
To check the germination of seeds, germinate in a damp cloth
If seed germination is low, but the seeds are valuable, they can be treated with growth stimulants (0.003% heteroauxin solution or 0.002% succinic acid solution) according to the instructions for the preparation.
Checking tomato seeds with salt water
Salt water is used to sort seeds by specific gravity, not to test germination. For seed germination, salt is harmful, therefore, after such a check, they must be rinsed well with clean water. The seeds are placed for 20 minutes in a sodium chloride solution. The most commonly recommended proportions are:
- 1 teaspoon of salt in 1 glass of water
- or 1 tablespoon of salt in 1 liter of water.
After that, the light seeds that have floated to the surface are thrown away, and the heavy ones that have settled to the bottom are considered complete and are subsequently used for sowing.
Checking tomato seeds with salt water - video
Checking the germination of seeds is optional. If the quality of the seeds is not in doubt, all these manipulations can be avoided.
