Hey flower lovers! I’ve been growing plants and saving seeds for years, and EVERYONE always asks me if you can save seeds from cut flowers. As a general rule, the short answer is no for cut flowers from the store, but there’s a lot more to it than that!
Why Store-Bought Cut Flowers Usually Won’t Work
The truth is that most cut flowers from stores, florists, and farmers’ markets are picked way too early in their lifecycle to be used to make seeds. They’re basically interrupted mid-way through their baby-making process! Here’s why .
- Flowers are cut before pollination happens
- Without pollination, seeds can’t develop
- Cutting stems stops nutrient flow needed for seed production
- Commercial growers harvest young blooms for longest vase life
But Wait! What About Garden-Cut Flowers?
If you’re cutting flowers from your own garden you’ve got more options! While regular cutting for bouquets won’t give you seeds, you can definitely plan ahead for seed saving. Here’s what I do
- Tag your best plants early (I use bright flagging tape)
- Let selected blooms mature fully on the plant
- Wait until flowers are completely spent
- Collect when seed heads are dry and brown
Best Flowers for Seed Saving
These beauties are my top picks for beginner seed savers:
- Marigolds
- Zinnias
- Cosmos
- Sunflowers
- Calendula
- Bachelor’s Buttons
- Poppies
- Larkspur
How to Know When Seeds are Ready
Look for these signs that your seeds are good to go:
- Flower petals have wilted and fallen off
- Seed heads turn brown and dry
- Seeds easily release when gently shaken
- Center of flower becomes dark and dried out
My Step-by-Step Seed Collection Process
-
Choose Your Plants
- Pick the healthiest, prettiest plants
- Mark them with bright tape
- Don’t deadhead these specific blooms
-
Wait for Full Maturity
- Let flowers completely die back
- Be patient! This takes 2-3 weeks after blooming
- Check seeds are firm and dark colored
-
Harvest Time
- Cut stems on a dry day
- Place heads in paper bags
- Keep different varieties separate
-
Processing Seeds
- Dry further if needed
- Gently break apart seed heads
- Screen or sift to clean seeds
- Remove chaff by winnowing
Storage Tips & Tricks
Listen up! This part’s super important for keeping your seeds viable:
- Store in paper envelopes (I learned plastic can trap moisture – yuck!)
- Keep in cool, dry place
- Label everything (trust me, you’ll forget what’s what!)
- Use within 1-2 years for best results
- Consider freezing for longer storage
Common Mistakes to Avoid
We’ve all been there! Here are some oopsies to watch out for:
- Collecting too early (patience is key!)
- Missing the collection window (seeds scatter)
- Not labeling properly (been there, done that!)
- Storing seeds while damp
- Saving from hybrid varieties (they won’t grow true)
Pro Tips from My Garden to Yours
After years of trial and error, here’s what I’ve learned:
- Save seeds from open-pollinated varieties only
- Focus on one variety per species to prevent crossing
- Keep records of what works best
- Share extras with garden friends
- Start small and expand gradually
When to Just Buy New Seeds
Sometimes it’s better to purchase fresh seeds, especially for:
- Hybrid varieties (F1)
- Plants with complex breeding needs
- Varieties you’re not sure about
- When you need guaranteed results
It’s not usually possible to get seeds from store-bought cut flowers, but it is possible and very rewarding to get seeds from flowers in your garden! Start with easy varieties, be patient, and learn as you go. It’s like having a piece of garden magic in your pocket when you grow flowers from seeds you saved yourself.
Remember, gardening’s all about learning and having fun. Don’t worry if things don’t go as planned the first time; that’s part of the process! Have fun saving seeds, friends!
Got questions about saving seeds from specific flowers? Drop ’em in the comments below – I’d love to help!
The Best Time to Save Seeds from Annual Flowers
The key to successfully saving seeds from annual flowers is to let the blooms completely mature and dry out while they are still on the plant. The longer they’re allowed to develop and dry on the mother plant, the better.
Seeds will not continue to develop when fresh flowers are removed and dried off the plant. This means that flowers that have been cut off (like those used in bouquets) or that are half-dead or fading (like those that are pruned when you deadhead regularly) aren’t the best for saving seeds.
RELATED: Learn more about deadheading flowers to extend the blooming season and grow larger, healthier plants! Our guide explores the many benefits of deadheading, best flowers that benefit from it, and exactly when and how to do so.
A fading marigold flower, ready to harvest for seed. In addition to the petals drying out, notice how brown the once-green base has also become. Inside that brown base are dozens of long skinny black marigold seeds.
A nice big pinch full of marigold seeds.
RELATED: Before your flowers go to seed, save some of your most beautiful blooms to preserve for dried flower crafts! Learn how to press flowers 4 ways in our beginner’s guide.
How to Collect and Save Annual Flower Seeds
- Pick the flowers that look the healthiest, fullest, and strongest to save seed from. Good genes are passed on!.
- Let the chosen flower head dry out and fade on the plant. In an ideal world, the green base of the flower (pedicel) and each stem should also turn brown and dry. But don’t leave it there forever! Pick the seeds before the flower head falls apart and the seeds fall out. Some annual flowers, like zinnia, keep their heads together for a long time. When big nasturtium seeds fall to the ground, they are easy to pick up.
- Use clean pruning snips to remove the spent flower head. Follow the stem down until you reach a point where it meets other stems or leaves, and cut there instead of just cutting off the head. With this method, you remove the dead flower heads, which leads to more flowers and a cleaner look than just topping the heads. If you’re not ready to work with the cut flower heads yet (or if they aren’t dry enough), put them in a brown paper bag and put them away for a week or two.
- You can take extra-crumbly, big, or visible seeds from the plant, like calendula seeds, and put them in your hand before you take off the flower. If not, put the dry, cut flower heads on a clean surface like a table or tray. This way, you can easily pull them apart to save the seeds instead of losing them!
- As you carefully separate the dry flower heads, look through them for seeds that have grown. Set those aside to save. Each type of flower has seeds that are different sizes and shapes, along with hulls, chaff, and other dry flower parts. When the seeds are fully grown, they will be thicker, firmer, and darker than the fluffy stuff around them. In addition, they will be in the middle of the flower head, possibly attached at the base.
- Because flower petals are made to help seeds fly away in the wind when they dry, the number of petals on a flower often shows how many seeds are in the dry head! For example, a simple cosmos flower might only have a few seeds, but a big, fluffy double zinnia might have dozens or even hundreds! This isn’t always the case of course. Consider sunflowers and their huge seed-to-petal ratio!.
Calendula seeds are large and C-shaped, concentrated around the outside of the dry flower head. Simply crumble them off into your hand.
Zinnia seeds look like tiny arrowheads. If you pull on the dry petals, the seeds will usually still be attached at the base. Heads that are sparse and have a big “beehive” in the middle will make less seed than heads that are full and fluffy, like the ones below.
If you want to save seeds, these extra-puffy zinnia heads will have dozens of seeds instead of the few seeds in the flower in the picture above.
You know when poppy seeds are ready to harvest when the pods dry out, and then their little “top hat” lifts up to expose a ring of open holes around the top of the pod. Green poppy pods are totally enclosed, and will slowly start to expose those holes as they dry. Once fully dry, simply tip the poppy pod into a bowl or jar and lightly twirl it around as seeds coming sprinkling out from the holes. Poppies are one of the easiest (and most fun) annual flowers to harvest seed from!
How to Collect & Save Flower Seeds
FAQ
Can you propagate store-bought cut flowers?
When someone gives you a beautiful bouquet of cut flowers, you might wonder if you can grow new plants from them. It’s not possible to plant cut flowers from a bouquet directly into the ground, but you can use cuttings to make more flowers.
Are seeds from cut flowers viable?
Most cut flower garden seeds can be used for up to two years, but the rate at which they sprout decreases over time.
Can you save seeds from cut zinnias?
No, you cannot reliably save viable zinnia seeds from cut flowers. Zinnias for cut flowers are typically harvested before the seed has fully matured, when the blooms are at their peak.
Can you collect seeds from a flower?
You can collect seeds from any flowers, whether they are annual flowers or perennials, and grow them in your garden. I love gathering annual flower seeds, as these plants will not return to the garden the following year unless they are replanted again.
Can you harvest seed from cut flowers?
Many people ask if they can harvest seed from cut flowers, such as with cut sunflowers. This is not likely unless your cut flowers were cut at a later stage from the garden. Most cut flowers harvested for the vase are cut at a time before they start dropping any pollen, and before they are pollinated.
Are cut flowers good for seed-saving?
As old flower heads wither and die, they’re paving the way for new life by developing seeds inside. The same goes for many vegetable, legume, and grain plant seeds. The longer they’re allowed to develop and dry on the mother plant, the better. This means that cut flowers (those used in bouquets) aren’t ideal for seed-saving.
Should you collect seeds from your garden?
Harvesting seeds from your garden can be a wonderful and rewarding experience. Collecting your own seeds allows you to try your hand at growing new hybrids and flowering plants that have been adapted to your garden. The savings is a bonus, as the expense of buying new seeds every year can add up pretty quickly.
Do cut flowers have seeds?
Most cut flowers harvested for the vase are cut at a time before they start dropping any pollen, and before they are pollinated. Therefore in cut flowers, seeds do not have an opportunity to develop once the flower stem is separated from the root system.
Why do we collect and save annual flower seeds?
Rather than allowing seeds to fall and scatter haphazardly (which we do plenty of too!), collecting and saving annual flower seeds makes it easy to re-plant them in more deliberate locations next season. Most annual flowers are prolific seed-bearers.