This article gives info on longevity of seeds

http://www.fedcoseeds.com/seeds/seed_saving.htm

We have always saved some of the seeds we plant each spring and put them in the freezer in a zip-lock bag. A few weeks ago I read that that isn't a good idea and they wouldn't germinate. So, we pulled some old corn seeds out (I'm not sure if they were one or two years old) and planted them. It looks like we have near 100% germination from them. Yeah!

I have never put seeds in the freezer. The only seed I have ever put in the fridge are ginseng seeds. I keep mine in a coffee can in zip loc bags in the cabinet. Some seeds will germinate even after 10 years. I got seedlings from 9 year old seed this spring.

Some seed like corn is only viable for a couple of seasons no matter what you do.

I have kept some seed out of the freezer for a year or more, simply because I forgot to put them in there, lol. But I've never had any luck with those seeds germinating. They weren't in airtight containers though, so that may be the problem.

I vacuum sealed min and they are stored in a empty k itty litter bucket(that has nice tight lid)

I have seeds that are going on 6 years old. always been stored in a freezer in zip lock bags, I'm sure they have holes after two moves and stareing space with pelts that get tossed in .

Most seeds are 3 to 4 years old before getting used.


I was told doing it this way I could expect 5% failure rates per year of storage up to 5 years and after that the % of failure goes up quickly.

We are using the last of the 6 year old seeds this year.


Now I bought some of those survival seeds in #10 cans and keep those in a very cold refrigerator instead of a freezer.

Navajo, that's good to know that you still get fairly good germination after that long! Do you find that certain seeds keep better longer?