Mine grow great from saved seed, but I do make a point to wait until they are fully ripe (with stem nice and crispy) before harvesting.

thank you!
I never know when to harvest them.
How do I know when they are fully ripe?
Is it possible to wait too long?

Glad you asked this question ellenrr. I didn't have any BF blooms to harvest seeds from but I think the seeds I got in trade weren't fully ripe because my blanket flower germination rate is the lowest of anything I WS besides rudbeckia. I've got a single sprout in one jug, three in another and maybe 5 in yet one other. I had plans for lots more blanket flower this year but it doesn't look as though I'll have as many plants to work with as I expected. I'm also guessing it was traded seeds to blame altho' have to admit I WS commercial seeds of Gaillardia 'Burgundy' that aren't doing any better than the seeds from trades. One trader sent me an entire sandwich baggie of species gaillardia seeds and the germination rate on those so far is abyssmal.

Gaillardia can take a long many weeks for seeds to develop after the flower fades. Typically, look for the flower stem to turn tan then a greyish-brown, you'll also see that the flower has dropped its petals and the center lost its green tint, it too will turn tan then greyish brown. When it both the stem and the pod have browned you can check with your fingers. See if you can easily push the seeds off the array--if you have to nudge or push hard--pry away the seeds, then the seeds are nto ripe, not ready to collect. Ma Nature shows you when they're ready. Ripe seeds are able to freely release from the array. Ripe seeds remind of little shuttle-cocks.

T

thanks Trudi.
Gardenweed, sorry you are also having this problem.
I also had abyssmal germination with Rudbeckia. Last year I sowed Rud seeds I got in trade and they did OK - about 50%.

This year I sowed the seeds I got in trade, and I got one in the container!

That Burgandy gaillardia is gorgeous Gardenweed, I hope you will get some good seeds and success with that. If my Burgandy gaillardia come back, I'll harvest seeds for you, hopefully will harvest correctly.

remind me at the end of the season, cuz even if I remember to harvest seeds, I'll forget who they are for!

Trudi - thanks for the great description for harvesting the BF seeds. ellenrr--thanks also for the offer of harvested seeds. If I remember I asked for them, I'll remind you end of season! (;-p) All the traded seeds I got looked the way trudi described them--like little shuttlecocks--which is what made me think they must be ripe. Maybe it's just been too cold still and more will germinate as the weather gradually warms. I'm guessing the few that germinated so far probably did so once we had a warm day or two which is about all we've had so far this year. Even the dogwoods are late blooming. It has been consistently cold--not just cool--with a rare day here and there when it warms up a bit. Corduroy, polar fleece and layers are still top of the wardrobe list.

Every year I harvest tons of gaillardia seed to give away but don't even bother planting them any more - they do a great job of planting themselves. I always have lots of seedlings coming up around the yard, but then, I always leave some flowers on the plants in the fall - birds love to eat the seeds and help to scatter them around.

Becky

I am with ramazz I always have a ton of seedlings. Though I always collect late and I always have a few heads that fall before I get to them.

Trudi gave a good explaination of ripe seeds. If my seed heads are loose and some have already fallen then they are ripe. Believe me even if you only collect once in a year at the end of the year you will still have to many seeds to trade and give away and let some drop. My gailardia any type blooms first year from seed.