I have been experimenting for quite a while with seeds and other types of propagation techniques from stuff I get straight from the grocery store.
Most of the seeds saved from produce (that is not heirloom) will be F1 seeds. This means that they "come from the first generation of a new cross. The plants produced by these seeds will be genetically identical, but their seeds will not 'come true'--either they will be sterile or the less-desirable traits of one or the other parent will express themselves in the second generation." I was going to explain it in my own words but then I thought it best to be straight from the horse's mouth. So there, that was taken verbatim from Michael Pollan's Second Nature.
Anyway, I like to experiment just the same...because, who knows, one may also end up with something better...and as long as I have some extra soil I might as well...
Some things I have had success with (all of these grown in containers)
* Jalapeños (blooms in this pic and pepper on pic below)
* Cubanelle peppers
* Potatoes (I plant the entire potato in a large container and just let it do its thing)
* Sweet potatoes (just put it ON the soil, buried half-way and once it starts sprouting cut the 'slips' and a few months later you got yourself a free dinner)
* Poblano peppers
* Scallions (I plant them in a container and keep it by my kitchen's door & they keep growing and growing...a must if you love to cook with fresh herbs!)
* Citrus--orange and lemon trees grown from seed, but they have not produced fruit yet so not sure of the quality of the stuff.
Not so successful & it does not mean that you won't be either (just think of all the possible variables between one garden and another!)
* Melons
* Zucchini
* Watermelon
* Kiwi
* Squash
* Pineapple (I somehow always manage to make its crown rot)
I am sure there is more since i have been trying this for a long time but I cannot remember what else I have not succeeded with...or perhaps I don't want to remember ☺
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