So, you’ve purchased cannabis seeds online from Pacific Seed Bank and now you’re wondering how long those seeds will actually last before they need to be germinated and planted. This is a common concern for many first-time marijuana growers, whether the seeds be from your Pacific Seed Bank order or have been given to you by a friend or acquaintance.
Maybe you received cannabis seeds as a gift and were waiting until you had a bit more time to figure out your plans for planting and growing cannabis plants. Feminized cannabis plants have the ability to produce a huge number of seeds (hundreds, in fact), depending on the strain. Certain cannabis strains, with larger flowers, are able to hold even more seeds. The question at hand is just how long these pot seeds will last at home after they have been harvested from the plant and dried.
How long will my marijuana seeds last?
When it comes to how long your cannabis seeds can last, the critically important factor is how they are conserved. If you ordered your weed seeds from a seed bank (like Pacific Seed Bank, for example) and they have arrived in their own packaging, you actually are able to just leave the seeds, as they are, within that sealed packaging in a dark, dry place in your home. If you do this, you can anticipate that your seeds will last up to a year.
But, if you intend to make your own cannabis seeds by crossing cannabis plants, the storage of your seeds becomes a bit more complex. That’s because instead of simply storing these seeds, you’ll need to harvest and dry them first.
Cannabis seed quality
The quality of the cannabis seeds that you choose to buy is paramount–if the seeds are not premium in quality, your cannabis harvest will not be premium quality, either. That’s also why the way that you decide to store your marijuana seeds can have a significant impact on the outcome of your final product.
Getting cannabis seeds to dry
If you’re starting from scratch on your cannabis seed journey, your first step will be to pollinate a female cannabis plant’s flowers, then harvest the seeds once your plant has reached maturity. Once you retrieve the seeds, they’ll need to be dried out. You’ll know they are ready for this stage in the process when they turn a dark brown color (or you may see dark-colored stripes, instead).
Lots of people dry the flowers whole rather than first removing the seeds–this can be a much simpler method for harvesting the seeds of your plant.
Storing cannabis seeds
After your seeds have dried and you’ve collected them together, plan to take some time to store them properly–if you do, you might be able to go as long as five years before planting those marijuana seeds, assuming that you do so flawlessly. In fact, some people have actually reported that they have planted and harvested cannabis from seeds that were as old as a decade! Keep in mind that a cannabis seed that is stored badly may not germinate, and, of course, if it does not germinate, it is very likely useless.
Keep out the light
Your cannabis seeds should be stored in a container that prevents any light from seeping in and touching the marijuana seeds. If for some reason, your cannabis seeds are exposed to bright light (or any light, for that matter) for too long of a period of time, they may become too weak to germinate. And, if they do germinate alright, they may still struggle to grow as time goes on.
No temperature fluctuations
Not only do you need to protect your weed seeds from light, but also from changes in temperature. Cannabis seeds need stability in temperature, and for long-term storage, they will last best at a temperature of around 43 to 46 degrees Fahrenheit (or 6 to 8 degrees Celsius). If you are storing a large number of seeds at once, it may be beneficial to buy a cooler to be used exclusively for cannabis storage so that you can avoid the temperature fluctuations that can happen when, say, a fridge door is opened and closed frequently.
Keep humidity low
If you want to avoid accidentally pre-germinating your marijuana seeds, make sure that their relative humidity remains low in whatever vessel you are storing them in. If you happen to live somewhere that tends to be quite humid, you may need to further explore methods to use to keep the humidity of your seeds lower, ideally between 20 and 30 percent relative humidity.
If kept properly, your marijuana seeds can stay fresh for a very long time–just be sure to be mindful of the light, temperature, and humidity that they are exposed to. And, if you’d like to take out the guesswork, keep in mind that feminized cannabis seeds from Pacific Seed Bank will keep just fine in their package for up to a year.
Mike cotton says:
I like to store my seeds in the refrigerator. Of course, before I can store my seeds I must first acquire the seeds, and that is proving to be a problem. I ordered my seeds from Pacific in February and I have STILL not received my seeds. Their customer service is non-existant. My email inquiries are responded to by robots delivering canned messages. Calling them is just as useless. All in all, Pacific is a waste of time and money. Do yourself a big favor and buy your seeds elsewhere.
matt meidinger says:
I have seed that have been in a film canister, inside a wooden box, in the basement since 1985. I soaked 12 seeds last year. Had 5 females to flower,2 males,3 with way too much skunk so they had to go, and 2 didn’t germinate. So why is there only a 60 day guarantee? With shipping and a staggered start grow I used 3 of my 9 seeds to get 2 plants in the 60 days. I am now closer to 120 days. 3 more seeds didn’t pop and have 3 left. With luck I will get 5 out of 9 viable seeds.
moab00 says:
it could be lost genetics. I hope you saved some seeds.
Jeffrey Winokur says:
Great info!
Phil Luzwick says:
Is it ok to store seeds in a refrigerator
JR says:
Yes and as a pint of reference a friend gave me some seeds that had been stored in a freezer for 25 to 30 years. He thought they would not germinate so he dropped 100 seeds into water thinking maybe a few would germinate. Bad idea over 75 germinated and he gave me a bunch that I planted. Gave quite a few plants to friends. So how long do they last may be subjective to the environment.
Steven says:
Seed banks often store at liquid Nitrogen temps. I suggest that you start an experiment of air tight freezer storage. See how that works for you. I find it easy to exceed 10 years and be viable.