Moxie Gardener

It’s no secret I like to save seeds and prefer to grow varieties of vegetables for taste, rather than high yield or disease resistence.

That being the case, I want to share with you the how-to of saving tomato seeds (as it is different from saving most other seeds), and also the outcome of my seed saving from last year.

Costoluto Fiorentino - almost ripe

Many years ago I was given a Costoluto Genovese by a fellow gardener.  The ribbed tomatoes were giant, dark red, and delicious.  Last spring (2007) I saw one at the farmer’s market and bought it.  I also noticed a Costoluto Fiorentino, so I bought that one too.  Then I went all-out (what a shock) and purchased a variety called Matina—good for slicing and an early bearer, along with a Principe Borghese—a roma-type with low water content.  All four were Italian heirlooms and I intended to save their seeds.

Here’s how you do it (don’t forget to label everything):

1. Put tomato seeds in glass mason or other medium to large jar (it’s ok to include the tomato slime).
2. Fill the jar 2/3 full with water.
3. Let sit at room temperature to ferment a few days to as long as a week.  It’s probably going to smell bad as it ferments, so place it accordingly.  The fermentation process will remove the slimy coating from the seeds, which is crucial to successfully storing them so they germinate next spring.
4. After about a week, the viable seeds will sink to the bottom and the unwanted tomato pulp will float.
5. Carefully fill the jar with water (in the sink) so the moldy stuff on top overflows out of the jar.
6. Strain seeds through a mesh strainer and rinse well.
7. Place strained, rinsed seeds on a dinner plate and spread them out so they dry thoroughly.  This could take a few days to a week.  Again, this is crucial to successfully storing the seeds until next spring.
8. When dry, package the seeds in labeled envelopes.  Avoid storing in plastic bags to reduce the chance of mold.
9. Store the seeds in a cool, dry place.
10. One last note about saving tomato seeds:  make sure the seeds you save come from heirloom varieties.  Seeds from hybridized tomatoes (labeled F1 on the seed packet) do not produce plants like the ones the seeds came from.  A scientist can explain it; I’m not a scientist.

Matina - very tasty and early ripening

Suspected cross of Matina and a Costoluto

Last year I saved seeds from Costoluto Fiorentino, Matina, and Principe Borghese (the Costoluto Genovese somehow fell by the wayside).  When starting the seeds this spring I carefully labeled the pots as to variety.  Two of the Principe Borghese, two Matina, and one Costoluto Fiorentino survived.  However, one Matina is producing tomatoes that look like a cross with a Costoluto (see accompanying photos).

Alleged "Grape" Tomato

Finally, I bought a grape tomato (I thought) at the farmer’s market this year.  It was the only one on the shelf with several other varieties and identfied by a plactic label stuck in the soil.  If you’ll check out the photo I took of them, they’re shaped like cherry tomatoes, and grow in clusters like cherry tomatoes, but the really strange part is that they are twice as big as cherry tomatoes.

This year I’m definitely saving seeds from both the alleged grape tomato with the cherry shape and the suspected cross between Matina and the mystery Costoluto.  I may or may not get plants identical to the ones the seeds came from, but like Forrest Gump’s mother said, “Ya never know what you’re gonna get.”