Quote:
Originally Posted by elchivito
If you were going to save seed on a heritage corn would you let it dry all the way on the stalk or pick it at maturity and dry it off the stalk. Would either way make any difference?
I usually just let it dry on the stalk but this year I'm worried about mildew. Mildew, in AZ !!
Thinking about pulling the whole stalk up and hanging them in the barn in front of the big fans.
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Just noticed this thread. FYI, there's a sub discipline of agronomy & botany called seed technology, in which heritage seed storage is a sub discipline. I don't know much about it, but that's where I'd look. Try a major land grant university. Also either Sweden or Norway has a very intensive seed storage program.
So here's what I think, unadorned by any actual knowledge.
Pick early, (but after sugars go to starch). This is to prevent diseases and bugs from getting a foothold on whole ears. Remove husk & silk but leave on cob. Air dry to constant weight. Remove seeds from ear. Remove any seed that show any blemish at all. In other words, don't save any potential pathogens. Don't wash them! Gently rub them clean of all debris
Check again for air-dried constant weight of seeds. I would not seal them air-tight. Instead, fold them into manila envelopes to allow seeds to breath. Store them in cool, constant temperature at low (and constant) humidity.
Some seeds can be frozen and some not. I don't know about corn.
I have noticed that my hybrid corn held-over for a few years lost germination rate and vitality. At a guess I would say I lost 5%-10% viability over 5 or six years. Maybe the same for vitality of the adult plants. It wasn't a deliberate study, it was a blundering oversight.