Why would you, except for lettuce seeds which need a cooling period to germinate?

I am just wondering if they would keep better? It's very frequently 90F..or more in the house during the summer, as we only use AC sparingly.

i keep my seeds in the frig. i remove them when i need the room for something else. then i put them back. they do fine that way. i think it helps to keep the seeds dry. but i have no proof that there is any benefit. i haven't bought basil seed or arugula seed in many years, just use whats in the frig.

I keep all of my seeds in my frig,as soon as I get new ones or save my own they go in,I label and keep in separate plastic containers.

Here in the Midwest, it gets hot, especially in a old trailer without AC. I've never put seeds in refrigerators or freezers to keep them. I regularly use seed that is older than 'brand-new'.

It's not so much the heat, but light, that deteriorates the life of the seed. Some seeds just don't have a long life.

What I use is the blue/green Mason jars with lids. I have several of them (80-100), and I don't want to preserve with them. The color of the glass helps with the light. I put them on a book shelf in a room that I don't use alot. It does have a window, so the room is light.

Maybe if I was in AZ/NM, I'd need to frig them, but not here. We are regularly in the 90s each summer for a days, but not year round. I don't let the seeds freeze, unless they need it to germinate.

Marla

I saved seeds from my cukes this year and want to plant them next spring. After harvesting them cleaning and drying, I waited afew weeks and then tried to sprout some. Nothing happend at all. I now have them stored out in the shed in air tight containers for the last month. The temps outside are 30-50 degrees fer. do you think they'll be ok after they go through this cold spell?
thanks

shouldn't hurt. Mine freeze without any problems, as long as they are totally dry.

I keep short lived seeds in the fridge; Onion, carrot, parsnip, leek. The others just stay in a box in a cool, dry place in the house.
The freezer I only use to kill off bugs on freshly harvested seed, mainly aphids on lettuce seed.

On a farm I once worked at I came upon a mason jar in the freezer filled with bean seed that was 15 years old. It germinated excellent and 17 years later I'm still growing the same seed stock (hutterite soup bean).

I love keeping my seeds in the old blue jars. Don't like to use them for canning, so it gives me a purpose for them.

captaindirt, is it possible that your cukes are hybrids that might not produce viable seeds?

I always put my dry seeds in small paper envelops; T hen I stored them in a plastic shoebox in the fridge. Everyone germinated the following spring.