Three to four months ago, I soaked my seeds in a fungicide and put them in moist paper towells in a baggie, then put them in the refrigerator. Most of them now have mildew. I am going to switch to Henry Kuska’s method of soaking the paper towells in a hydrogen peroxide solution. My question is: are the seeds ruined from the mildew, or will they still possibly germinate if cleaned?
Thank you!
P.S. I posted this message on the GardenWeb Rose Propagation and Exchange forum and received a reply that said he thought mildew “aided the breakdown of the seed shell.”
Moldy seeds can germinate, so I wouldn’t worry too much about it. I seem to remember someone posting a message to the forum a while back about a white mold that sped up germination, but I don’t remember the details.
It sounds like you’ve had your seeds in the refrigerator long enough, and you could take the seeds out, treat them with hydrogen peroxide, and plant them.
Hi Gail,
I had mold on some of my seeds this year. I had soaked them in a bleach/water solution and wrapped them in a paper towel, just as you did. They seemed to germinate okay. Next year I will take them out periodically and re-wrap them with a fresh bleach(5%) and water soaked paper towel to prevent the mold from growing.
Libby