How to Save Gaillardia Seeds

Harvesting gaillardia seeds is an easy project for beginning seed savers.

Gaillardia "Gaillardia pulchella" is an easygoing heat- and frost-resistant plant. A colorful bloomer, gaillardia is available in double and single forms and a variety of shades, including orange, violet, yellow and red, each bright flower contrasting with a maroon or deep-purple center. The flowers appear in early summer and continue to decorate the landscape until autumn. Also known as blanket flower, gaillardia isn't difficult to grow from seeds harvested from a healthy gaillardia plant after the blooms begin to wilt in autumn.

Things You'll Need

• Netting or small paper sack
• Garden shears
• Tray
• Newspapers
• Bowl or paper plate
• Paper envelope

Instructions

1. Let a few gaillardia blooms wilt on the stems when the blooming declines in late summer or early autumn. Blooms from the healthiest, hardiest plants produce the best seeds.

2. Watch the progress of the flowers carefully as the blooms wilt. As the flower wilts, a seed pod replaces the bloom. While the seed pod should remain on the plant as long as possible, pods left too long may burst and scatter the gaillardia seeds onto the ground. To prevent this from happening, wrap a piece of netting or a small paper sack around the blooms. The netting or sack will catch the seeds if the pods break.

3. Harvest the gaillardia seeds when the pod dries and turns from bright green to brown. Snip each pod with garden shears or pinch the pod from the stem with your fingernails.

4. Line a tray with newspaper, then spread the gaillardia seed pods on the paper. Place the tray in a warm, well-ventilated place so the seeds inside the pod can continue to dry for at least two to three weeks.

5. Hold the pods over a bowl or paper plate, then crush the dry seed pods between your fingers to release the gaillardia seeds. Dry seeds are brittle and dark in color. Return the bowl or paper plate to a dry spot for a few more days if the seeds aren't completely dry. Don't rush this step, as moist seeds will mold and rot in storage.

6. Pour the dry gaillardia seeds into a paper envelope, as paper provides ventilation. Write the color of the flowers and the date harvested on the envelope. Store the envelope in a cool, dark place until planting time.

Tips & Warnings

• Small silica gel packets, such as packets found with vitamins or new shoes, are filled with a dessicant that helps to keep seeds dry. Place the envelope of seeds and a silica gel packet in a glass jar, then place the lid securely on the jar.

References

• Cornell University Growing Guides: Gaillardia
• You Grow Girl: Harvesting Seeds
• Washington State University Extension; Saving Seeds; Tonie Fitzgerald; January 2005