Saving Tomato Seeds

After posting that I was saving some tomato seeds I had a few comments saying I should do more posts on seed saving. After the suggestions I snapped a few photos of the process to share with everyone.

First of all tomatoes are self pollinating so you will most likely end up with a very similar tomato as the one you collected the seed from. The exception to this rule is potato leafed tomatoes which will cross pollinate with each other and should be separated if you want to collect the seed. Hybrid tomatoes will also not come true unless they are a stable hybrid. With that said, tomatoes do require a pollinator to vibrate the flower, this is called Sonication. This is most often done by bumble bees or solitary bees as honey bees are not very attracted to tomato flowers. The vibration from the wind or a gardener is also said to aid in the pollination. Now for the seed saving:

To save tomato seeds you need to ferment
the seed. This is done to remove the seed
gel that is problematic to remove and
inhibits germination.

Save seed from the best looking fruit,
Ideally you should save seed from a few
fruit and if possible from more then one
plant.

Start by slicing the tomato through the
center and squeeze/scoop the seeds into a bowl.

Once all the seed has been scooped into the bowl
add a little bit of water and cover with plastic wrap
or something similar to bump up the humidity. Add
a few hole for air.

In 3-7 days you should notice that the fluid has
turned cloudy, this is an indication that fermentation
has occurred and it is time to clean & dry the seed.
Don't be alarmed if mold is growing on the surface.

Pour the fermented seed into a strainer and then
rinse well with clean water. Any seed gel left at
this point should easily wash away.

With the seeds all cleaned it is time to dry them.
I use a few layers of coffee filters, you can also
use paper plates. Paper towel should be avoided
as the seed will stick to it. Leave them in a dry spot,
out of direct sunlight until they are fully dry.

Once they are dried transfer them to a labeled
envelope and store them. This is now a great
opportunity to trade your excess seed with other
gardeners.