Seeds in a Can

I bought this can of garden seeds in 1996. I have no idea if they have been stored at the right temperature, but probably not.

So out of curiosity, I opened them in July 2010, and thought I would test them out. I had zero expectation that any of them would sprout, but I went ahead and planted some of them on July 21, 2010.

Surprise! The cucumber seeds sprouted. I got a few cucumbers off of that plant.

I don't think anything else ever sprouted. If I have written before that there were canteloupes and tomatoes that sprouted from the 1996 seeds, I was wrong. I figured out later that those seeds came out of vegetable scraps I had thrown into my compost bins.

I don't think buying seeds in a can is a very good idea, but I guess if you store them suitably maybe some of them will survive.