This year I want to harvest and save as many seeds as possible from my garden. Where can I find a quality seed sieve that doesn’t cost me an arm and a leg?
For small-scale seed saving, you don’t really need a special seed sieve. Just use your fingers to remove most of the chaff, then pour what’s left into a large pan and let a soft breeze carry away the remaining chaff. For some seeds, your kitchen colander may be helpful as a sieve.
If you decide to invest in seed sieves to process seeds of various sizes, consider the combo sieve sold by Fedco Seeds, shown here. The Soil and Seed Sieve Set — a 12-inch-diameter stainless steel frame with three interchangeable screens of various mesh sizes — can be used for cleaning seeds and screening compost. The set sells for $28.
Another source is , which sells wood-framed screens of different sizes for $46.95 each.
— Vicki Mattern, Contributing Editor
Photo by Nate Skow
Vicki Mattern is a contributing editor for MOTHER EARTH NEWS magazine, book editor and freelance magazine writer. She has edited or co-authored seven books on gardening, and lives and works from her home in northwestern Montana. You can find Vicki on Google+.