Using Old Seed: Checking Germination

If you've ever planted your garden and had seeds leftover, are they still good to use the next year?

It depends. Sometimes seeds will last for a few years as long as you have stored the seeds in a cool, dry spot. You can do a germination test to see if they're able to grow!

How do you do a germination test? We show a quick way to find out if your seeds are still good below, using year-old pea seeds as our example. Keep reading! ⬇️

Lay out seeds.

First, place a wet paper towel inside a container or gallon-sized bag. Lay a minimum of 10 seeds onto the wet paper towel. The more seeds you do, the more precise your results will be. We did 50 seeds for our test.

Cover seeds.

Place another warm, wet paper towel over the top of the peas. If using a bag, don't seal it. Place them in a warm spot, such as a window sill, laundry room, or the top of your refrigerator.

Observe.

Check them every couple of days to make sure the paper towels are still damp and wet them as needed with a spray bottle. After a couple of days, see what they look like. If they begin to sprout, that's a good sign! Our pea seed began sprouting on day 2!

Determine germination.

Some of the seeds may not sprout at all. Count the ones that sprout to determine the germination percentage. For example, if 18 out of 20 seeds germinated, you have 90% germination.

If you have at least 80% germination, you can still use the seed. Just take that into consideration and plant your seeds thicker than you normally would to account for the seeds that won't germinate. Anything lower than that, you might not have as good of a crop. It's always best before planting what you have on hand, to test them first, saving your time and efforts! It's no fun when you work hard planting and have nothing to show for it!

We thought it was pretty cool that the sprouts even grew through the paper towel! Our particular germination rate ended up being 46/50, or 92%. Our seeds are still good to go!

What about you?? Have you tried a germination test? Let us know!