T hi n gs to con sider
Remember that saving seed of hybrid varieties will mean the seed doesn’t stay true to type and will revert back to a parent. Collect from species plants to create identical plants. For ease of collection, choose a dry, windless day to extract seed.
If lots of rain or wind is forecast, or flower heads are looking decidedly flimsy, you can collect seed heads before they’re fully dry and let them dry out further indoors.
If collecting exploding seed heads, take the whole head in a paper bag and check every few days whether its contents have burst.
Always try and clean away all the chaff, or seed casings, from the seed – if left it could rot and lead to mould or disease.
6 HONESTY What to do:
Once honesty has set seed, it’s actually as attractive as the flowering plant! Its rounded discs are a superb sight in the autumn-winter garden. It’s so simple to save honesty seed, and not too fiddly. Remove the seeded discs when they’re brown and crispy. Three or four seeds sit inside two discs; using the protruding part of the edge, prise them apart and remove the flat seed. Either sow them now, or save them to sow in late spring next year. 7 RUNNER BEANS What to do: If you want to save a particular variety of runner bean it may be tricky as insects can cross them with other varieties nearby. But if you don’t mind what comes out at the end of it, you don’t have to worry whether anyone grows runner beans near you. Wait until pods have dried on the plant at the end of the season and turn yellow. If rain is forecast collect yellowing pods beforehand. Leave them to dry fully, then pod the beans, which should be hard. Store in an airtight container in a cool, dark place until next spring.
8 ROWAN
What to do: Rowans are in full berry now, so if you want to propagate one, collect a nice plump, healthy bunch to work with. Either squish each berry to extract the seed over a kitchen towel, or use a sieve to spoon the berries in and work away all the surrounding flesh under the tap. Use grit or sand-improved, loamy compost in pots and place the seed on the surface before adding a thin layer of compost over the top. Water well and place in a cold frame or sheltered spot in the garden. Prick out when seedlings have a few leaves.