3 Things You Need To Know Before Saving Black-Eyed Susan Seeds

Every time I compose about black - eyed Susans , I make it a point to refer how we should n’t prune these perennials in the fall . Not only do they look fairly covered in frost and snow , but they make an excellent source of food for thought for birds over the winter month .

It seems that some of the bird universe in my neighborhood has been read my article . How else could I explicate the fact that they ’ve descended upon my garden and settle to take their fair plowshare of disastrous - eyed Susan seed heads as betimes as November this class ?

At first , I thought it was the job of a mouse , but I see the theft in activity from my plate federal agency windowpane . As I was work out on a gardening article , ironically .

It was a good year for black-eyed Susans. Once established, they’ll come back reliably.

The birdie are more than welcome to their food , but I realized I ’d well get to work saving smuggled - eyed Susan come before they vanish overnight .

If collecting Rudbeckia seeded player is also on your to - do inclination this calendar month , here ’s what I ’d recommend you pay attention to .

Tip 1: You have to get the timing right.

When pick up contraband - eyed Susan cum for saving , it ’s all about the timing .

Over the age , I have learned that the more I mime nature in my garden , the high my chance of success . The same object lesson applies with deliver seed – not just for Rudbeckia come , but for perennials in universal .

Here ’s what I mean : without any external ( human ) intercession , the seeds wo n’t come off the plant unless they ’re really dry . And that often happens much by and by than we intend . It seems we ’re sometimes misguided in thinking that once the petal are shriveled and fall , the seed read/write head must also be ready .

They ’re not . The source are fully executable only when the seminal fluid heads are in full matured .

For black - eyed Susans in special , it can take more than a month between the time the flower petal have fallen and the clock time the seeds are ready for pick .

How can we tell when the seeds are ready?

Let ’s have a flavour at the photos below . If the sepals are still greenish , the seeds are n’t amply quick yet . The seed pass will also look slimly lighter in color and sense a snatch more velvety to the touch .

If the sepals are fully brownish or bleak and the seeded player head feels rough to the touch sensation , then the blackened - eyed Susan come are quick for ingathering .

you may test them beforehand by giving them a aristocratical bread with your fingernail . If there are seeds jumping out left and correct from the cod , go ahead and hoard them .

It was a good year for black-eyed Susans. Once established, they’ll come back reliably.

you’re able to snip off just the seed caput – the brownness - ish or shameful button - like eyes that the flowers are dub after . I prefer to cut down them lower down and keep a duration of the stem attached , just for the contraption of maneuver them .

Tip 2: Give them a thorough inspection.

If you ’re collect these seeds at the right time , chances are that as soon as you snap them off , they ’ll self - seed like crazy . That ’s perfectly fine , if that ’s what you ’re after .

I keep them check in a jar as soon as I trim them off . This also give up the insects and spiders to make their mode out . This year , they stayed in the shock for a daytime , until I got the chance to give them a once - over and spread them out on a tray .

Watch out for moldy seeds!

We ’ve had a very damp crepuscule around these parts , so I thought I should give the seed heads a thorough inspection . And I ’m glad I did .

Can you see what I find on these three seed heads ?

Yes , they were quite moldy . I do n’t know if you’re able to tell very well from the photo , but the tiny hazy dots on them are cast spore .

The birds got to so many seed heads before I even started thinking about seed collection.

In hindsight , I should have paid good attention to the ejaculate heads before I nip them off the mother - plant . But I think the job was that I could n’t see the mold on the plant life in the low November good afternoon light .

These moldy seed heads went into the compost .

Tip 3: Be very thorough when you prepare the black-eyed Susan seeds for storage.

I ’m very cautious and thorough when it comes to preparing seeds for storage . The contraband - eyed Susan seeds must be dry ! And I can not accent this enough .

I place them on a tray on a kitchen towel and had them teetotal in the sun for an intact solar day . Then I make a motion the tray indoors to continue to dry out the seeds for a few days .

If you do n’t have enough time to babysit drying Rudbeckia seed , you’re able to use your fingernail to gently scrape up the pod and turn the seeds . They will dry faster without the core of the seed head to keep them moist . But son , will they make a mess .

Not yet ready for seed collection.

Be prepared to clean house them up from everywhere because they will propagate around like jumping noodle . They ’re meant to be dispersed by a strong wind , so they will be quite tender to being handled .

What about the chaff?

There is a lot of husk mix in with the disastrous - eyed Susan seeds . you’re able to see it in the photograph below – it ’s basically anything that ’s not a viable black seed .

Since I ’m not a commercial raiser , I frankly never annoy to separate the seed from the stalk at this stage . The trick is recollect to do so if you ’re starting raw seeds in containers next spring . Do n’t found bits of husk expecting anything to develop . ( Learned this the hard way withVerbena bonariensisseeds , which are also notoriously “ one-half stubble . ” )

In my former years of gardening , when I was less attuned to seed saving , I got into the habit of write reminder to my future self : Mind the chaff when you plant , Mickey!Let ’s just say springtime - me was thankful to be learning a example from declivity - me .

The sepals are still green. The seed head is still soft. I’ll let them mature longer.

How do you store black-eyed Susan seeds?

I opt to hive away Rudbeckia seeds as dry seed head word in a paper bag . Of course , in the unconscious process some seeds will fare loose on the drying tray , so I just scoop them up and add them to the bag . If I were storing informal seeds , I ’d put them in a glass jar .

Since I ’m storing them as ejaculate read/write head , I ’m keeping them in a newspaper bag , to continue to dry out up . I keep the paper bag in a sealed semen boxwood ( a decorative composition board boxwood ) in which I also put some sac of drier .

Do n’t draw a blank to mark the bag with the type of seeds and the year of compendium .

Everything is brown. The seed head feels rough and dry to the touch. Proceed with seed collection.

One more note to self about black-eyed Susan seeds.

Like most perennial that drop their seeded player in the fall , black - eyed Susans will gain from a period of inhuman stratification in rules of order to better sprouting .

Write down a reminder for yourself – whether in your calendar , your gardening daybook or the bag of ejaculate itself – to get this done before you plant them .

Just a note to put the hold open seeds in the fridge for a couple of weeks before you plan on establish them .

I cut them down a few inches below the seed heads at first.

If you forget , there are other way to do social stratification that will still work . Have a look at my ( almost ) comprehensive guide to germ stratification . I save down six methods with step - by - step photo instructions .

And for another method to propagate black - eyed Susans , here ’s my guide on how to divide them .