How Long Can Vegetable Seeds Be Kept
Storing vegetable seeds to re-use the following year can save you money and time. However you do need to keep the seeds in a cool dark dry place if they are to remain viable. The following seed viability table show the most popular seeds and the average length of time that you can expect to be able to store the seed for. The third column show the maximum length of time recorded for that vegetable seed.
| Vegetable Seed | Average Number of Years | Maximum Number of Years |
|---|---|---|
| Angelica | 9 | 10 |
| Bean | 3 | 8 |
| Basil | 8 | 10 |
| Beetroot | 6 | 10 |
| Borage | 5 | 10 |
| Broccoli | 5 | 10 |
| Cabbage | 3 | 4 |
| Caraway | 7 | 9 |
| Cardoon | 4 | 10 |
| Carrot | 5 | 10 |
| Cauliflower | 8 | 10 |
| Celery | 2 | 6 |
| Chicory | 6 | 8 |
| Coriander | 2 | 4 |
| Corn | 10 | 10+ |
| Cucumber | 6 | 10 |
| Eggplant | 10 | 10+ |
| Endive | 4 | 7 |
| Fennel | 6 | 10 |
| Gourds | 5 | 10 |
| Kohlrabi | 1 | 3 |
| Leek | 3 | 9 |
| Lettuce | 5 | 10 |
| Mustard | 4 | 9 |
| Okra | 5 | 10 |
| Onion | 2 | 7 |
| Parsley | 3 | 9 |
| Pea | 3 | 8 |
| Pepper | 4 | 10 |
| Pumpkin | 4 | 9 |
| Radish | 5 | 10 |
| Rhubarb | 3 | 8 |
| Sage | 3 | 7 |
| Spinach | 5 | 7 |
| Squash | 6 | 10 |
| Thyme | 3 | 7 |
| Tomato | 4 | 10 |
| Turnip | 5 | 10 |
| Asparagus | 3 | |
| Brussels sprouts | 4 | |
The table above has been drawn up from a combination of personal experience, talking to other gardeners and researching in books and on the internet, I would be grateful for any comments, feedback etc. or any additions.
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