Chumasande MatiwaneCollecting milkweed seeds can sometimes be a messy and time-consuming task with all that fluff flying everywhere. If you harvest the pods at the right time with the right technique, you can easily and cleanly separate seeds from the milkweed floss in just a few minutes.
Harvesting milkweed seeds is all about timing. If too soon, the seeds haven’t matured yet and won’t germinate. If late, they’ll have either blown away or created a messy web of white fluff called milkweed floss.
Here is how to harvest milkweed seeds
Milkweed pods are mature when they start to dry, and this is when you can tell they are ready for harvest.
Collecting the milkweed pods
Timing is crucial when collecting milkweed seeds. If your milkweed pod is brown and has already popped open, releasing silky fluff, it’s ready for harvesting. You can collect the seeds and remove the fluff at that point. To avoid the fluff, look for green seed pods. Gently squeeze the pod; if you hear a soft pop and see that the pod has split with the seeds inside turning brown, then the seeds are mature. In this case, you can collect the pod without the white fluff.
Open milkweed seed pod
After collecting the milkweed, the next step is to open the pod to remove the seeds inside. If you harvest the pods before the white fluff appears, gently pry open the dried pods at the split seam to access the seeds. Carefully take out the cluster of milkweed seeds. When the seeds are fully ripe and dried, they will easily separate from the fluff.
Image Credit: Pexels
Separate seeds from milkweed floss
To easily remove the seeds, hold the floss end of the cluster with one hand and gently pull the seeds away from the floss with the other hand, brushing them into a bowl. The milkweed floss can be recycled into stuffing if you enjoy crafting.
Dry your seeds
After you remove the seeds, you have to dry them out for a few days a week. You can let them dry on cardboard in a well-ventilated area, maybe your porch or shed will work well for this.
Image Credit: Pexels
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