There comes a time in every carnivorous plant enthusiast’s journey where he/she will receive extra seeds from other enthusiats or from his own plants. It is always a good idea to pack and store the seeds for future use if you do not immediately want to sow them, give them away or trade with other enthusiats.
All carnivorous plant seeds can be stored in the refrigerator to help preserve the viability of the seeds so that they can be kept for a longer period. Refrigeration of seeds have been done by societies and seed banks around the world. However, please note that refrigeration does not mean freezing the seeds in the freezer, where the end result are frozen seeds. Frozen seeds equals dead seeds. Place them in the same compartment where you would store your drinks and fruits.
To store the seeds, you will first need to pack the seeds in a homemade paper envelope and seal the paper envelope in a zip lock bag before refrigerating them. The envelope removes moisture so that fungus/mold do not attack the seeds and kill it. It also makes sure that the seeds are not totally dried up. The zip lock bag makes sure moisture from the refrigerator do not enter the seed envelopes. Below are examples of how you can make your own paper envelope for the seeds:
This envelope has been suggested by arvin555 and powersensor. The illustration is done by powersensor.
Below is what I learnt from Adam Strathairn (aka strath76) who runs the Victorian Carnivorous Plant Society Seed Bank. This is the way I pack the seeds for the PetPitcher Seed Bank. I find it is not so thick although the packing is smaller with powersensor’s way. On point No.5 and No.6, you can fold the paper further in so that one side can be pushed into the other side locking the pack together. For PetPitcher Seed Bank I place a double sided tape to seal the pack and stick it on the seed pack envelope. That way no chance of it opening.
