Testing Seeds
I have an addiction to saving seeds. There is just something about the potential of future abundance that fascinates me. What that means is that I usually end up with some seeds in my pocket - and sometimes, they end up in the washer. If you have the same affliction as I do, I am sure it has happened to you before.
Usually, if I put the seeds through a wash cycle, I plant them somewhere and hope for the best.
Another thing which happens to me at times is that I pick some fruit or vegetable to save the seeds from and sometimes, I just don't get around to doing a good job of harvesting, drying, and storing the seeds.
If I just use them in my garden to broadcast, I don't worry too much about it. But if I want to share them with someone, I want to make sure that they will germinate.
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a post about the squash/gourd pictured above.
I entered it in a gardening competition hosted by 
In the comments, I had a conversation with one of the other participants and he expressed interest in some seeds. I am in the US and he is in Canada. I checked on the legality of sending seeds across the border and found that a small amount is okay.
These are the seeds. But I hadn't taken great care of them and really don't want to share seeds which are not going to germinate. So, I decided to do a germination test.
First, I soaked four seeds overnight in water. Then, I placed them between a couple of sheets of moist paper and kept them in a plastic container. And here is the result.
Four out of four germinated!! Yay! So now, I can send those seeds on their way!