Strawberries are a delicious fruit and, unfortunately, expensive to purchase throughout most of the year. Luckily, these plants grow easily under the right circumstances, but what about store-bought strawberries? Will grocery store strawberry seeds grow?
You can plant seeds from store-bought strawberries. However, many grocery store strawberries are hybrids, meaning they combine two plants. Hybrids don’t grow well, and some don’t grow at all. You’ll have success growing strawberries from store-bought seeds if you know what to look for.
In the rest of this article, I will discuss growing strawberries from store-bought ones. First, pulse, I will answer common questions about growing grocery store strawberry plants. So, if you want to learn more about starting store-bought strawberries, read on.
How To Grow Store Bought Strawberry Seeds
Growing store-bought strawberries from seeds is relatively simple if you can find the right strawberry. However, unlike other types of produce found in grocery stores, most shops have very few varieties of strawberries. Less stock means you will have fewer options for selecting a type of strawberry to grow.
So how do you get started growing store-bought strawberries?
Select the Best Store Bought Strawberry
First, you need to find a good strawberry for planting. A few factors need considering before planting grocery store strawberry seeds. First, you want to grow plants with higher chances of survival and are less likely to produce small or bitter fruit.
How to choose a store-bought strawberry for its seeds:
- Look for a strawberry that isn’t a hybrid. Again, hybrid fruits are the combination of two plants. However, this process ensures it’s challenging to replicate the fruit via its seeds. Generally, when you plant hybrids, the fruit will take after one parent rather than being a combination, or the seeds won’t grow at all. Plus, hybrid fruit is often bitter and small.
- Try to find organic strawberries. Most grocery store strawberries are covered in pesticides, affecting the plants you grow from them. If you grow seeds covered in pesticides, they will not be considered organic. You can find organic strawberries at farmers’ markets and some health-minded grocery stores.
- Select strawberries that are ripe. You want your strawberries to be ripe before removing their seeds for planting. A ripe strawberry will be darker in color, and its flesh more easily gives under pressure. However, you don’t want your strawberry to become overripe and rot, as this will render the seeds useless.
You will have to do your best when selecting store-bought strawberries for growing. These fruits are often shelved with a limited supply and usually by the same vendor. Most grocery store strawberries are a combination of wild European and North American strawberries.
Regardless, growing strawberries from store-bought fruit can be fun and a great way to limit your food waste if you’re successful. Also, the chance of your grocery store strawberry seeds sprouting is high; the fruit they produce will be the wild card.
Harvest the Strawberry Seeds
Once you have picked out your strawberries, it’s time to collect the seeds. This process can feel tedious since the seeds are numerous and extremely small. It will take time to gather your strawberry seeds. However, each strawberry will yield around 200 seeds, so you won’t need to de-seed too many pieces of fruit.
What you will need:
- Strawberry.
- Toothpick.
- Paper towel.
How to collect store-bought strawberry seeds:
- Ensure that the strawberry is ripe. Signs the strawberry’s seeds are ready for removal include dark red skin and slightly squishy fruit. You don’t want to wait too long to harvest the seeds, or else the fruit will mold, and you will have to throw the seeds out.
- Use the toothpick to remove the seeds from the fruit gently. Slip the toothpick point under the seeds and dislodge them. The seeds should move easily without you having to dig around in the strawberry’s skin.
- Place the seeds on a paper towel. Ensure the seeds aren’t on each other and have plenty of space to dry out.
As you can see, strawberry seed removal is pretty straightforward. You can collect as many seeds as you like. Additionally, the seedless strawberry can be eaten or composted, thus limiting your waste.
Prep Your Strawberry Seeds for Planting or Storage
After the seeds have been extracted, it’s essential that they have time to dry out. You can dry out your strawberry seeds by leaving them on a paper towel and laying it near a window or someplace dry. Typically the seeds will dry within 1-3 weeks.
Additionally, most dried seeds will last up to 2 years in storage, though some can last longer. There are ways you can test old seeds. Also, once the seeds have completely dried, they can begin germination.
So how do you prep store-bought strawberry seeds for storage?
The best method for preparing store-bought strawberries:
- Check that your seeds have dried completely. If you don’t let your seeds dry out before planting, they are more likely to rot and less likely to grow.
- Place the seeds in a glass jar or paper sack to be stored. A jar is great for keeping the seeds air-tight, while a paper sack is good at keeping moisture out and the seeds protected. You can also add silica gel to keep the seeds safe.
- Label your jar. Labeling will ensure you remember seeds and how long you’ve had them. Old seeds are far less likely to grow.
Storing seeds for later is simple and an excellent way to minimize grocery store waste. Store-bought seeds aren’t great for large farm-scale crops but make great additions to small gardens. Plus, you can’t beat free seeds.
Germinate the Strawberry Seeds
Next, you will want to germinate your new seeds. First, you will need to decide how many seeds you want to grow, as 200 is likely too many. Then you will want to begin the strawberry germination process.
The simplest way to germinate strawberry seeds is with the zip lock and wet paper towel method. The process is quick and easy to get started.
You will need:
- Strawberry seeds.
- A paper towel.
- A ziplock bag.
- A spray bottle full of water.
How to germinate strawberry seeds using a paper towel and ziplock bag:
- Lay a paper towel out and arrange the strawberry seeds on one half of the towel.
- Fold the paper towel in half to cover the seeds.
- Mist the paper towel until it’s fully saturated.
- Place the damp paper towel into the ziplock bag.
- Set or hang the bag in a warm window until the seeds sprout.
Strawberry seeds can take anywhere from 1-6 weeks to grow. So you will need to be patient. As soon as you notice the seeds developing small root systems, it’s time to place them in dirt and prepare them for being transplanted into the garden.
Plant the Sprouted Strawberry Seeds
Next, the seeds need to be planted to continue their growth. You don’t want to plant the sprouts too early, but if they have little roots, they are likely ready to move to the soil. Finally, the strawberries need to be planted 1/4 inch (6 mm) into the soil. Again, a small pot or planting container is best when working with new sprouts.
What you will need:
- Strawberry sprouts.
- Quality soil.
- Water.
- A light source.
How to plant strawberry sprouts:
- Fill your containers with a good quality potting mix.
- Moisten the soil before adding the strawberry sprouts.
- Place the sprouts 1/4 inch (6 mm) into the soil for best growth.
- Gently mound the soil around the strawberry sprout.
- Place the plants somewhere that is warm and receives plenty of light.
You can use a window or grow light to provide adequate lighting. Additionally, you will want to ensure the plants stay warm, which is why warming mats are also ideal. It will take time for the plants to grow enough to be moved to the garden, so patients and regular watering will be critical.
Plant the Ready Strawberry Plants Outdoors
Finally, the strawberry plants will need transplanting. You will know the seeds are ready when they have grown tall and have a few offshoots of leaves. Additionally, all cold weather should be gone before your strawberry starts outdoors.
You should plant the new strawberries about ¼ (6mm) deep and ensure the new soil is well watered. The worst time for transplanting is during the summer since the sun can be harsh. It’s essential to watch your strawberries for signs of stress.
Are Store Bought Strawberry Seeds Worth Growing?
Store-bought strawberries are worth growing, especially if you already regularly purchase strawberries. Each fruit yields about 200 seeds that you can plant, which are pretty much free. Additionally, growing the seeds is a great way to cut down on grocery store waste.
Conclusion
You can plant seeds from store-bought strawberries. The seeds can be easily extracted and planted. However, how much success you have growing the seeds will vary based on each fruit, as many strawberries are hybrids. Still, free seeds are a great way to experiment and practice growing things in your garden.
