The seed pods turn brown and crack open. If you do not check frequently you will lose the seed. You can put a small bag around the seed pod so you don't lose the seed if they open when you don't notice. The seed seems to be viable even if you are not sure the seed was ripe when the cold killed the plant. Al

Thanks, that was very helpful. Since one of the pods broke open, I removed it from the plant and set it on a paper towel to dry and drop its seeds.

I am still a bit confused about why the seed pod turns soft before it turns brown. Mine hasn't turned brown, just soft mushy. It cracked open, and the seeds look ripe, so I wont worry too much.

DionKar,

I've grown the Ballerina Purples, from my saved seeds, for the last three years. Sometimes the seed pods turn brown before splitting open and sometimes they split open while still entirely green. I don't know why that is, but in both cases the outer part of the pods are always "soft mushy" and the ripe seeds are a light brown color. If you open one of the seed pods before it splits on it's own, the seeds will be white.

Also, when I say they 'sometimes turn brown', I don't mean 100% brown. I guess I should say that the green pods are in the process of turning brown. I've never seen one that was completely brown.

Hope this helps,
Art

Well Art, that was extremely helpful and comforting! The seeds I collected are a nice brown, so I cant wait to plant more next year~