I want to offer flowers and herb bags. The ‘transparent’ glassine bags are nice, but I wondered whether the quality of the seeds would deteriorate. There is no moisture, no soil. Can they germinate? Or is an ordinary, closed bag (‘dark’) always better for storing seeds? Look forward to your reply! Thank you.
Answer
Best,
It is a myth that seeds should be kept in the dark. In professional seed banks, such as those of the National Botanic Garden of Belgium or the world-famous Millenium Seed Bank in the United Kingdom, many seeds are simply stored in transparent glass tubes.
More important is the low humidity. In seed banks this is artificially kept very low, because seeds can absorb moisture from the ambient air when the humidity is high.
The reason why seeds are usually sold in a hermetically sealed aluminum bag in shops is therefore not the light but the humidity. The seeds are dried in the seed nursery and after closing you can safely transport the bag through the seed trade, home and store it there, just in the cupboard until you start sowing, without the humidity in the bag increasing. Once the bag has been torn open, the humidity can affect the seeds, so it is best to store opened seed bags in a very dry place.
Answered by
Koen Es
Botany
New Avenue 38 1860 Meise
http://www.plantentuinmeise.be
.