Seed vault

Each year I set aside a seed vault of heirloom seeds that I store by vacuum sealing with descant packs and then double bag it inside mylar bags with oxygen absorbers. I then store these in the basement (total darkness and under 65F degrees.)

I have a few of these seed vaults and I buy from a variety of seed sellers online but one of my favorite sellers is Baker seeds (Rareseeds.com) because  of low prices and free shipping and they will throw in some free seeds and I find they have a high  germination rate.  

This is my recent order from them that I should get in the mail in a few days. I take the seeds I get from all the diff. sellers to make these seed vaults each year. I do this in the event that I would be unable to get seeds.

How long are you hoping these vaults will last? And out of curiosity, why don't you save seeds from what you grow?

Christopher Weeks wrote:How long are you hoping these vaults will last? And out of curiosity, why don't you save seeds from what you grow?

I do save seeds. Im a seed hoarder. Germination rates will drop over time but never to zero with proper storage. Its a simple and low cost insurance policy. Its why there are two massive doomsday seeds vaults (one in the USA and the other in Norway) that have been storing seeds since the 50's.

I am curious, why buy seeds?

Why not use the seeds from your seed vaults or from the seeds that you saved from plants that you grew?

I can fully respect having seed vaults since I have seeds I keep in the freezer.

I am very interested in having my own seed vault for various reasons, but primarily, I have more seed breeding projects than I can get to within a reasonable amount of time.  If I could hit the "pause" button on degrading viability, I would.  As time goes on, and my landraces get to where I want them, I can see myself growing the oldest seed each year as part of a yearly rotation.  Also, after acquiring many seeds/varieties it's nice to preserve them until it's their turn to grow in a limited space situation.  Some seeds are rare or hard to find, or not available commercially every year.  There are some that were offered commercially one or two years, then never again.  This is a way to keep them for future growing seasons, while maintaining fresh seed until then.  If you are into seed trading/bartering, hard to find seeds have more value.

Anne Miller wrote:I am curious, why buy seeds?

Why not use the seeds from your seed vaults or from the seeds that you saved from plants that you grew?

I can fully respect having seed vaults since I have seeds I keep in the freezer.

I do use seeds from my harvests. I like having an abundance of seeds for that time that will come when we wont be able to buy seeds.

I think of seeds as living, breathing beings. I wonder how well they survive oxygen deprivation?

Joseph Lofthouse wrote:I think of seeds as living, breathing beings. I wonder how well they survive oxygen deprivation?

Ive used them from time to time with no ill effects.

is it a tough crowd here? anyway, ron's methods will surely fare better than my seed vault mega catastrophe, but here's some info that may be interesting to someone, to possibly help when it's time to bring things out of a vault: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7952943/

My seed vault is two antique stainless steel milk cans buried in the ground containing a number of smaller stainless steel canisters and plastic bottles full of seeds. These are my own seeds saved over the last few years. Although not deep enough in the ground to be perfectly stable at 55 degrees or whatever they are still kept cooler and more stable than in the house and they also never actually freeze.  

I don't use desiccants or vacuum packing and have never had an issue with my seeds going bad. Five-year-old seeds, as a rule germinate with little difference from one year old seeds. Although I am interested in prolonging the viability of my seeds, my primary concern is a disaster proof backup. If I haven't grown something for five years, I'm probably not going to. An added bonus to my underground vault is that it requires no electricity. I open the vault every two or three years and rotate in newer seeds. Excess of older seeds are used in the current season, given away, sold, planted for biomass, or fed to critters.

Ron Kulas said, "I do use seeds from my harvests. I like having an abundance of seeds for that time that will come when we wont be able to buy seeds.

My suggestion would be when you put in a new addition to your seed vault, take out the oldest and use that seed vault for your current planting.

I was taught to save seed and not buy seeds, though if you want to buy seeds use rotation to keep everything going.

I was in adolescence during the most unstable of times in nuclear war brinkmanship. I understand it more fully now, and understand the game theory. But the scars remain.

I consider it perfectly rational to store seeds. This is an affirmation of life in the face of the potential madness we cannot control. Not guns, ammo, body armour, C4 and detonators. Just seeds and shovels and brains. IMHO that is a good path forward. My 2c.

Another aspect of periodically adding new seeds into either your annually planted landrace or your seed saving/growing rotation is disease/fungus resistance.  While I agree that growing locally adapted varieties is a solid practice that I fully endorse, there's also value in commercial seed selection.  

For example, I've seen where certain colleges, scientists, farmers, other people with interest will plant an entire field in my specific area.  This field is a literally a test bed to trial new strains & crosses of different crops to test what resistance they carry, how they handle pests, & how productive they are.  This is a way to fast track the genetic material to add to your landrace or seed stash.  Wholesale seed producers can work on a strain for decades before releasing it to the store shelves as an "Improved" strain of the old standby.

You are free to choose whether the "Improved" strain suits your needs or not based on any input criteria you value.  Bush beans/pole beans, bush habit squash/vining habit squash, SH2/SE/SU sweet corn/field corn eaten during the milk stage, Fungus resistant cucurbits, etc.  Different situations warrant different selections.    I can absolutely see the value in adding seeds with a higher chance of success to possibly integrate when/if you so choose.  Some food for thought anyway.

I commonly add new commercial seed, based on descriptions that match my goals. Especially in the case of wind or insect pollinated species I grow them separately the first year. If they pass the test, they get added to mine the next year, if not I'm done with them.

Mark,

I think that's a very good way to trial new varieties to see if they are a good fit for your saved seed goals.

It truly surprises me at how some individual plants will have outstanding qualities amongst their seemingly identical peers (same seed packet, planting time, soil, temp, free access to pollinators, etc.).  Those really exceptional specimens are the ones I'm after for my mixes.  

I would really love to have a whole field to grow my OP mixes in, but then I'd want 2 fields, then 3 fields, and on & on.

I try to save seeds every year. I love the sensory feeling of the various seeds as I collect them. I'll collect them even if I don't need them. They go into the top shelf of the refrigerator. That's the most temperature stable space I have.

Every once in a while, when I have a ton of some kind of seed, I'll just toss the old stuff out randomly and see what comes up.

One of the best things about saving seed is how amazing it feels to share some of those seeds with friends, family, and neighbors!