I found weevils in my seed collection

by Anne
(South Africa)

Dear Carol

when unpacking some seed I had stored in newspaper I found some weevils or tiny bugs in the seed packets and there were tiny round holes in the seeds

what should I do ?

Anne L.

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Apr 08, 2017
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Another method of seed storage ?
by: Caroline

Dear Anne

Thank you for your very useful question. I personally do not store my seeds in ash and paper envelopes, in the true permaculture way. The ash should really keep out insects, but I don't have a very big garden and just popping the seeds in the fridge is more convenient for me, and I haven't had problems with infestation. However I cannot guarantee the viability of these seeds. I'm collecting for the first time and I read that seeds should not be dried out too much. I store them in tiny plastic bags I bought from a shop selling plastic imports from China. I keep them in a small container, as I don't have a big vegetable garden (about 10 square meters). I put a slip of paper in each bag recording the date of harvest and the kind of seed and any qualities which caused me to choose the seed, such as that they were the largest and so forth. I seal the little ziplock bag and then seal the plastic container they are in and place them in the fridge, not the freezer box.

Perhaps you could try this method and see if it prevents weevils getting at your crop for next year ?

kindest regards
Caroline

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