Although I canÂt say IÂve ever germinated one, the Judean date palm, (Phoenix dactylifera L.) holds the record for the oldest seed to be germinated - 2,000 years. ItÂs amazing that 40 years passed after the seeds were found at an archeological site before someone tried to germinate them. HereÂs a link to an article about the palm. Unfortunately, it doesnÂt mention details such as germination rate.

What an interesting article; thanks for sharing. One question, why couldn't they take tissue from this tree and clone it so they would have more to work with?

Wow, 18 year old corn -- that's hard to beat. I found a lb of 'Bolero' peas packed for 2000 in a closet this spring, and threw them in the ground just to see, got excellent germination on them, which blew my mind, since I was sure they wouldn't do a thing. They were packed in one of the foil/mylar bags which seal out all of the moisture, so I think this helped a lot in keeping them viable.

My mother keeps her seeds in the fridge in a mason jar and has kept them viable for up to 10 years. This year I've started keeping my seeds in the fridge also, curious to see how long they'll keep.

we keep ours in teh freezer. mother nature freezes seeds every year and the still grow.

my oldest is some 10 year old watermelon seeds. but on average most of my beans are 5-6 years old and i get close to 95% germination.

Well then I guess its not that far fetched then! I keep my seeds in the fridge in an airtight container so that must have helped.

I still have trouble believing that corn seed is 18 years old! I keep pulling the packet out and looking at the date to make sure I am seeing it right.

There have been many times where I had seed that was only a few years old and once planted nothing sprouted so this corn took me by suprise.

I am now wondering what seeds generally last longer in storage and which ones survive only a few years.

carrot seeds seem to not carry over good although i did plant some radish seeds that were 6 years old got good results there

I also got a "seond chance" this year with a whole bunch of packets of heirloom tomato seeds packed for 2002 and 2003 -- I had probably about 15 different kinds in my closet, along with those old peas and bunch of other old seeds. Many things, like old marigolds packed for 2001, didn't grow, but almost all of the tomato seeds grew. I especially appreciated this, since many of the packets were heirlooms I ordered and then NEVER planted any of -- so, I finally get to see what they're like, all these years later.

I wish pepper seeds were more forgiving. That's one seed that seems to extremely tank in germination rate (at least for me) after a 1-2 years. I've had some really sad results on 2-3 year old seed.

In 1984 I was given an heirloom squash by a fellow who had grown it for over 30 years. I believe he was the only one growing it. I never saw him after receiving that squash. Anyway, I removed the seeds and grew some in 1985. That was the first solid food our oldest child (son) ate, at 5 mos. of age.

At that time I was corresponding with a fellow gardener in Tulsa, OK. I sent him seed, from the same squash, so he could try it out. He grew it for several years. But, he also divided the sample I sent him and froze part of it.

Fast forward through time.... In 1988 our family left to serve for about 13 years in Mexico. During our time there I continued to grow this squash. But I continually selected for just one form of fruit. The original strain had at least three shapes. By 1996 I had accomplished my goal. But... I forgot to save any of the original strain!

In 2001 we moved back to the USA. And in 2003 I ran across a n old letter from my friend in Tulsa. I thought, "What the heck? Why not try writing?" I wrote, asking if he still had seed to this squash, and the letter was forwarded to him. He responded that, due to arthritis, he no longer gardened. But, he might have seed from 1985, in the freezer. He had his daughter dig around, and sure enough, he came up with seed from that original squash! He sent it to me. In 2004 I planted that seed and had nearly 100% germination! That was 19 years. At that time our son was now in college!

Last year I planted some more of that same seed and it still germinated very well (22 yrs). Since I got it back it has been at room temperature.

I've heard of frozen seed performing like this after about 40 years. But it's exciting to experience it oneself!

George
Tahlequah, OK

Wow! What a great history on that squash seed!

What kind of squash is it?

As for the pepper seeds, I too have found that even if stored in the freezer, I get poor germination from them.

I wish I had read this thread last winter. I had some 9 year old thai pepper seeds. My buddy figured they wouldnt grow. I was SO convinced they would grow I bet him that if they did, he would have to eat a bunch of them vs. $20 to him if they didn't. Well.... I'm out the $20, but worse than that I didn't get to watch him suffer!!!

I thought I was the only crazy person trying out old seed. I found some 1994 broccoli seed in the cupboard at my kids' school, which I believe had previously been sitting around a teacher's house and even spent a portion of the last couple of summers in her car. The germination rate wasn't all that great--maybe 50%--but then my remembering to water them regularly wasn't all that great either, so it's hard to say if seed age is at fault here. I do have 3 huge broccoli plants in my garden and am curious to see how they do.

Ditto what others have said on pepper seeds, I haven't had much luck there.

Jmsimpson9, sorry I didn't get back to this thread for a couple days. The squash is called Warsaw Buff Pie Pumpkin and is similar to a large butternut. I named the round selection Warsaw Round. Actually, I also named the original. The fellow who gave me my start didn't have a special name for it, and I forgot to get his name. I'd have probably named it after him if I had.

I'm not gifted with names : )

I was working in a grocery store in Warsaw Indiana at the time. The squash is buff colored and it makes great pies. However, some who read "pumpkin" are turned off. Still, I stick with the name to avoid confusion.

I too have found pepper seeds to be short lived. I've had complete failure to germinate in three years, in some cases.

George

I had complete failure trying to grow old cabbage seeds this year. I planted about 5 rows of them from several year old seed a friend gave me. Not a one came up. I didn't get a lot from my broccoli or brussel sprout seed that wasn't old either, however. So I may be planting them too deeply, too.

I also keep my seed in the frig. Most things last a good number of years (peas, beans, peppers, cole crops), a few dont. There really isnt any way to tell, you just have to try them. I'm currently growing watermelon and corn seed that are 10 years old. Bunching and cipollini onions 3-4 years old did nothing, yet another variety of red onion the same age and given the same care did germinate.

I never throw old seed away unless I've tested it.

I never throw seeds away unless I don't plan on using them. For a test use a shallow dish and lay a paper towel place a few seeds on the towel and fold over then dampen and keep it damp. Just watch to see if any sprout. If you are careful you can plant the sprouting seeds. With A/C our seeds last longer than being exposed to the weather. Now some seeds if they are too old will sprout then die because they don't have enough of the "germ" left to feed on before getting enough root to draw from the soil.

I can't top many of these but I acquired some "scotch bonnet" peppers from a friend once. Habaneros I found out later. Anyway, having never seen any, I wanted to get the seed and plant my own. I carried the peppers out in a plastic type sandwich bag and ended up leaving them in my truck. I forgot about them. After a while the bag was tossed into the floor. The peppers were dry and the bag eventually was torn open and the seeds presumably lost forever in the muck that lives in the floorboards. 3 years later I was cleaning the truck up a bit and found appr. 2 dozen little seeds mixed among the debris. I planted them and every one of them germinated. I went on to have a bumper habanero crop. Seeds are really amazing things.

I was given an old wheat can years ago that had written on - 1972. I planted some of the wheat, and it sprouted, it wasnt a 100% sprout rate, but it was more than 50%.

A few months ago I planted some Italian Sweet tomato seeds from 2005 that I got in a trade back in the good ole Garden Web days and they germinated very well !! One of the plants is in the garden now looking very good ! ... I have never grown it before so I am interested in seeing how it tastes !