The shelf life of vegetable seeds "The shelf life of vegetable seeds"

Validity Period of Vegetable Seeds

The editor introduces you to the knowledge of melons, fruits, and vegetables, the validity period of vegetable seeds, let's follow the editor to see the specific content!

The freshness of vegetable seeds is closely related to the good or bad growth of vegetables. Some vegetables must use new seeds, and others are better with old seeds. In order to help farmers do a good job in vegetable production, some commonly used vegetable seeds' validity periods are introduced as follows:

Cabbage Seeds Cabbage seeds can be stored for two years. Seeds harvested in the current year can be sown in the same year. However, seeds stored for more than two years generally have a seedling emergence rate 20%~30% lower, and their disease resistance is also poor. The longer they are stored, the worse their disease resistance. Cabbage seeds should be stored in a cool, ventilated, and dry place. Do not put seeds in airtight containers such as plastic bags, water jars, or iron buckets, as this may cause them to rot and affect the germination rate.

Parsley Seeds Parsley seeds can be kept for 5 years. However, the seeds produced in the current year cannot be used for planting; seeds that have been stored for more than one year can be used. New seeds have a strong parsley flavor, while old seeds have a milder taste.

Scallion Seeds Must use fresh seeds of the current year for planting scallions. If the seeds from the previous year are planted, they will not germinate easily, and even if some seedlings do come out, they will wither quickly. However, if scallion seeds can be stored in a warehouse below 0°C, they can still be planted the following year.

Coriander Seeds Coriander seeds from the current year cannot be used as seeds; they must be stored for a year before they can be used. However, the storage time should not exceed 3 years. New seeds have a strong coriander flavor, while old seeds have a lighter flavor.

Cucumber Seeds If stored for more than 3 years, the seedling emergence rate generally decreases by about 30%. Although some seeds can germinate, they often lack cotyledons and are not easy to survive. The freshness of cucumber seeds can be distinguished by looking at the color, smell, and germination test.

The standard for looking at the color is: new seeds have a light white outer skin with luster, and the kernel is pure white with fine hair at the top. Old seeds have a slightly tan outer skin, and the darker the color, the longer they have been stored. Over time, the seed coat turns black, and the color of the kernel also turns black, with tiny black spots on the top.

The standard for smelling is: new seeds have a rancid cucumber smell, while old seeds do not have a rancid smell, just a slight earthy smell.

Germination test: When new seeds just sprout, the skin tightly wraps the sprout, and the skin begins to crack after five or six days; the sprout of old seeds cracks as soon as it comes out of the skin.

Turnip Seeds Turnip seeds can be stored for 5 years. Turnip seeds harvested in the current year cannot be planted in the same year; if planted, they will germinate very few or not at all. Therefore, turnip seeds must be selected and seeds stored for more than one year must be used for planting.

Onion Seeds This refers to planting summer onions. For summer planting of onions, seeds from the previous spring must be used. If the seeds from the previous year are used, the seedlings will bolt.

Tomato Seeds Tomato seeds can be stored for 4 years; if longer, the seedling emergence rate will decrease. New seeds have many fine hairs and a rancid tomato smell.

Eggplant Seeds Eggplant seeds can be kept for 6 years; after 6 years, the seedling emergence rate decreases. New seeds have a lustrous outer skin, which fades slowly as storage time increases.

Chili Seeds The storage time of chili seeds should not exceed 3 years. Not only does the seedling emergence rate decrease, but even the surviving seedlings will have a low yield of chili peppers. New seeds are golden yellow, while old seeds are apricot yellow. If they turn brown, they cannot be used as seeds.

White Pole Bean Seeds The storage time should not exceed 3 years. During storage, if black or yellow spots are found on the seeds, they cannot be used as seeds.

The above shares the full content of the validity period of vegetable seeds, and green plant enthusiasts can refer to this aspect.