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Ray, North Dakota

Everyone has different ways from food dehydrators to window screens with fans. I am looking for some more ideas.

I have a food dehydrator, but it is small, and when I put a thermometer in it, I feel it is too hot and may kill the germ. It gets around 95 with the top off.

Anyway, you people that have done this for quite a while, tell me how you dry your seeds.

Also, I work in a grain elevator and have a Motomco 919 moisture tester that I can download the charts for squash seed. What is considered dry and dormant for these seeds?

9/22/2008 10:00:15 AM

Picton,ON (j.vincent@xplornet.ca)

That is a real good question Herbie. I also have access to this equipment but have never thought about testing the pumpkin seeds in it. I wasn't aware there were charts for squash seeds either...interesting. I would seggest that they would need to be below 15% in order to keep, likley 14% would be better. This is just from experiance with other "grains".
I have had experiance with seed grains and generally speaking, you don't want any heat at all. My dehydrator is also a little on the warm side. I put a thermometer in and it will run 95-100F. This seems hot, but so far hasn't caused any germination issues that I am aware of, just don't dry them too long.

9/22/2008 10:31:18 AM

I make it simple here, seeds get cleaned well washed a few times rubbing between my hands under running water over a colander. Then add a drop of antibacterial dish soap repeat the washing and at least a 3 times rinse. Then they go in a single layer sandwiched between 2 old window screens(mouse proof) and propped on top of a pipe under the basement overhead joists. Fan setup underneath on low to keep the air moving, 2 weeks seeds are finished. Put into a large bowl and outside in the wind I once again rub them,,toss a few times to remove that shiney dryed membrane. Done deal.(I saw a post here somewhere from Brett Hestor awhile back,,thanks Brett for that)

I would question any heat applied unless very low. I prefer the extra time and room temps. Just my .02

9/22/2008 12:32:53 PM

Ray, North Dakota

Seed grains can be dried at low temp to keep their germination, but I believe it is lower than 90 degrees.

CountyKid, just email Seedburo and they will email you the chart. Gotta love the old 919, pretty straight forward.

I'll do the screen thing this year, and give it a whirl. Thanks guys.

9/22/2008 1:18:41 PM

Kevinstinindians@yahoo.com

I've been using a food dehydrator for the last couple years and haven't had any germination problems. I've tried other ways as well but the dehydrator is the fastest and easiest. It only takes about 24 hours to dry them in the dehydrator. Then I put them into an open bowl, no lid, and give them a stir a couple times a day. As Dan said if you take the bowl outside and stir them up you can get most of the skins out too. I let them in the open bowl for a week or two them I put them into a sealed container. I use about the same cleaning method as Dan as well.

One thing you have to watch out for is mice. If you have them out in the open where mice can get to them, they most likely will. I had a friend who layed them out on a cookie sheet in his house with a fan on them to dry. The morning after he layed them out they were all gone. One mouse took several hundred seeds in one night. Luckily he seached the house and eventually found them all. The mouse had stashed them all in one spot.

9/22/2008 1:25:41 PM

Going Green

That wasn't a mouse...that was the guys wife saying pay attention to me.....those #@#*^&%$ seeds!

9/23/2008 6:55:30 PM