How do you save the seeds from your marigolds for next year?

Question

I heard you save the dried top do you pick them as a full live flower a dry indoors or I was thinking a shoe box with wax paper? Pick when dead not sure?

Answer 1

when the flower head dies it turns to seed, leave the bloom on until it dies then pick off the dead bloom and roll it between your fingers and the seeds will fall out...I have a planter box that I have planted once with marigolds, I usually just pick off the dead blooms and put the seed right back in the planter, this is the fourth year I've had marigolds from the first planting....very easy to grow from seed.

Answer 2

Marigolds don't produce pods so you will have to wait until the spent flower has dried and then you can remove the flower and collect the seeds. Wait until the flower is dead and completely dry. Some things you need to consider about marigolds are that if they've been hybridized then your not going to get the marigold you planted this season so don't be shocked if they look different. You can store the seeds in an envelope in a cool dark location until you are ready to sow them. You can start them inside a couple of months before last frost or you can wait until last frost and sow them directly outside. They are very easy to start so you should have any problems. Just make sure you keep the soil moist until they germinate and have grown about 4-6 inches.

EDIT: another reason you need to wait until the flower is dead and dry is because it needs to be pollinated first.

Good Luck

Answer 3

As the flowers start to die pick them and store them in a dry container. These are the actual seeds. As you pick them you will see them start to fall apart into individual 'petals' about 12mm long by 1mm wide. These are the bits you need to save.
I live in the UK so by next March I will sow these on top of potting compost and cover them with just enough compost to block out the light. I will make sure the soil is damp and place it into a heated propagator. In around 5 days the seedlings will start to show.
If you haven't got a propagator then cover them with clear plastic or a sheet of glass and put them somewhere bright and warm, (I used to put a warm hot water bottle underneath them especially at night), this will work but the seeds may take a little longer to appear.
Good luck.

Answer 4

wait until the blossoms are fully dead, then if u want them to grow in the same spot again next year, roll the blackened pod between your fingers and let all the seeds fall back into the dirt. you can loosen the soil a bit, but you don't have to. otherwise if you would like to plant them in a new spot in spring, save the TOTALLY dried pod in an old coffee can until spring and scatter the seed where you would like it to grow. you will be amazed at what can come back ...

Answer 5

Agree with Spt. I keep my seeds in labeled envelopes. Live flowers have embryonic, immature seeds, the flower must be spent and brown for viable seed.

Answer 6

simple, cut the flowers and take them inside, when the flower dies you will find many seeds on the surface [I put them in the bathroom and this makes theseeds easy to find]

Answer 7

i'm not totally sure eather but i would think you would have to pich them live cuz if you pick them dead the seads would have probably already fallen out