A seed is like an egg to get the plant embryo. Outside, the seed has a hardened shell that protects the tender and young plant while, indoors, it provides a package of nutrition which keeps the plant living for a moment. This period differs from plant to plant and also can influence your ability to store seed for future plantings. However, plants operate on a slower time scale than people and most seeds have decades of life inside them.
Flowers
Although flowering plants are a relative newcomer to the plant realm, flowering plants produce seeds which last more than any other known seed. A date palm seed, for instance, was discovered at a fortress on the Dead Sea in Israel. This palm seed was approximately 2,000 years old and germinated, which makes it the oldest viable seed however found. The Chinese lotus blossom held the record previously, creating a plant in the seed 1,300 years old. In the home, zinnias and balsam can last from five to six years in storage, while poppy seeds may last from a few decades, along with amaranthus and chrysanthemum. One of the shortest-lived flower seeds, asters and lupines can only last one or two years in storage, while lilies, salvia and verbena only create enough energy from the seed to last a year.
Vegetables
Legumes, such as beans, have loaded seed packs which can keep the plant embryos inside for up to six years under ideal circumstances. Corn and corn can also be viable for up to six decades, while potato seeds might last up to seven years until they die. Turnip seeds last much more, with a lifespan ranging from five to eight decades. Several of these shortest-lived vegetables comprise okra, which only resides one or two decades and parsnips, which only reside between one and three decades.
Herbs
The mustard seed may last up to eight years if kept dry and away from predators. Other spices and herbs with long-lived seeds comprise chicory and parsley, both of which can last up to five decades. Impatiens and several other edible blossoms’ seeds are only viable for one or two decades.
Environmental effect
The lifespan of a specific seed is only the best that the seed can expect for under ideal conditions. High humidity, higher heat, frost, infection and infestation may all damage or ruin a seed until it’s an opportunity to find somewhere to grow. Clamidospores and teliospores are fungal infections which can attach themselves to the seed casing while Verticilium dahliae may soften the seed through its creation, infiltrating it during the blossom. Reduce exposure to infections and humidity from keeping your seeds in a cool, dry place that’s sealed and away from other animals and the components.