Save those seeds!!!

Have you ever brought a vegetable home from your local store, farmer's market or friend's garden and it was so good you were afraid you would never have something as tasty as that again? Well if that's the case, save the seeds!!! My family and I have been doing this for years. My dad showed me this easy trick when I was a kid and I still haven't forgotten it.

Earlier this year I bought a mixed pack of heirloom cherry tomatoes from my local store. One of which was the best tasting store bought tomato I have had in a long time. Of course it was a 'special selection' or something along those lines as they have not carried them since. Well luckily I noticed they stopped carrying them before I finished my last pack. So, I sacrificed one of those tasty treats just so I could get the seeds for my garden this year. I cut open the tomato and put the seeds on a paper towel and let it dry. Once dry I stored it in a cool, dry place.

This may not be the most scientific way to do it but it has worked for me for years. I have actually found two other websites that give other options for harvesting seeds. One from the University of Minnesota and one from Mother Earth News.

When I started my garden this year I couldn't wait to get these planted. I actually grew three different varieties of heirloom tomatoes this year. The Purple Cherry Tomatoes (as they were called on the box), Yellow Pear Tomatoes (sometimes known as Teardrop Tomatoes) which were saved from the garden of a friend of the family, and Box Car Willie Tomatoes which were seeds I bought at my local Ace Hardware. All three have given me great tomatoes this year. Just check out a sampling of my tomatoes. Some of the photos are extreme close up, so it is hard to tell the size. The Box Car Willie is the only variety that produce your larger, sandwich style tomato.

 Purple Cherry Tomatoes

Yellow Pear Tomatoes

Second harvest of the year

Today's batch

Box Car Willie Heirloom

Now I only grow tomatoes for my own home. If you are thinking about selling any of these yourself at a local market, there are a number of local and national laws governing the collection and saving of seeds for farmers to resell... so much so it will make your head swim. Do some research to make sure you are okay.