Q: Interested in knowing how to save my petunia seeds so that I can have the same colors each year. I found one that I like.
A: Petunia seeds are located in a seedpod at the base of the flower. If you were to remove the flower, you would see the pointed seedpod located inside of the sepal (which is sticky). The pod contains numerous seeds that look like tiny, dark balls. To collect them, let a few of the blossoms die back naturally (don't deadhead them). When they're dry, pinch off the blossoms just behind the base and put them in an airtight container or paper bag for storage. The seeds can be started indoors 10 to 12 weeks before your last expected frost.
If your petunia is a hybrid (as many petunias now are), the offspring will usually revert to the characteristics exhibited by its parents or grandparents, so it's unlikely you will preserve the exact colors you're looking for. That is, or course, if the seed you save is even viable (a fair percentage of hybrid seeds are sterile.
Ellen
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Petunia seeds look like little tiny black balls. They are at the base of the flower. The little pod starts out green then it drys to a tan color. You want to make sure you get the little tiny seeds before the seed pod breaks open. An envelope is a good place to store them, hope this helps.
i have a yard full of haolf dead petunias and am pulling them out of their beds. half are still flowering but the first frost is here and before i toss them i would love to know what to save as i am a novice gardener who has spent a small fortune and would love to be able to save something. i do not know what the pod is or what a tuber is so please speak in simple terms. thanks for any info.
I've cut off the dry pods and saved them. It would be best to put them in a paper lunch bag until they are thoroughly dry. The problem with a lot of petunias is they are hybrids so they can revert back to the original "parent" plants. You will definitely get petunias from your seeds but they may not look like the ones you took the seeds from.
In answer to your question, let some of the flowers die out, don't pick off the blooms. Let them develop the seed pods then let them dry on the plant if possible. Before the seed pods burst open, pick them and put them in a paper bag. Make sure you mark it so you know what is in there.
In the spring you should have some petunia seeds. They may not look like your favorite but it's worth a try.
If you want the same kind and they are a hybrid, you will have to find out which plants created the hybrid which is a what the botanists do. You could look into it at by searching on creating hybrids in the search engines. Good luck, Susan
I am also a seed saver but i cant find petunia seeds for the life of me. if any one can tell me what they look like and where on the plant to find them. thanks
I saved wave Petunia seeds last year, and planted them this year. The petunias that came up were different from the plant I took them off of. I saved a deep red seed ( almost purple) And I got a deep red plant, some pink plants and some who are white and red combined. I have no idea what you would do to get the same color that you had last year. They still have the wave effect though.
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