Diseases

Mother Earth News, Sep/Oct 1987
Care and Handling
By Nancy Bubel

Some diseases like bacterial spot are seed-borne. If you've had trouble with such blights in your garden, you might want to heat-treat your seeds to kill the bacteria. A 20 to 30 minute soak in water maintained at 122°F is effective. Use a double boiler (a pot set in a water-filled electric frying pan works well), and keep stirring the seeds throughout the treatment period. Then drain and dry them well. I wouldn't recommend heat treatments, though, unless you've had a recurring problem with disease. Seeds are alive - every one contains a living embryonic plant - and exposure to moisture and heat will shorten their life span.