Pelleted Seeds Not Viable When Saved

Learning by experience. I don't usually buy pelleted seeds but I got some when my favorite carrot seeds weren't available locally one year so I tried something new.

I got some pelleted carrot seeds, not my usual variety but they did great. They are a couple of years old now and I tried them again and this time they didn’t germinate.

I looked around online to find out why. Johnny’s Selected Seeds, that is where I got them, pre-primes their seeds by wetting them enough to swell, drying them and then coating the seed in some kind of clay based material. It does improve germination if you use the seed right away but not good if you intend to save them.

Thought I'd let some of you who didn't already know learn from my mistake.

Generally true, but I planted 3 year old pelleted carrot seeds from Johnny's this spring and had great germination and yields. I really didn't expect anything (having previously read that the shelf life was very short), and had backup fresher seeds ready to go if needed.

Carrot seed life is fairly short anyway, but the pelleting process definitely shortens it.

I store mine in our basement, where temps average 60° in summer, and closer to 50-55° in winter.

Summerthyme

I have had very poor success getting pelleted seeds to germinate period, so quit buying them.