Cleaning seeds from fruits.

Does anyone have any good tips on separating fruit from seeds? It seems to take a long time pushing them through a seive. Also what are peoples opinions on when to separate fruit and seed, after drying or while fresh?

Hey Crypto,


I think it all depends on what species you're trying to separate. What SP are we talking about ?

As a general rule you don't need to do anything for Astropytum just break open the fruit and take them out by hand, no worries at all.

I find Melocactus and other sp more challenging. Much more. For these I use a few different ways with varying sucess.

The only experience I've had with harvesting seeds was from Hylocereus, and all that involved was eating a dragonfruit, scraping the remaining seeds from the inside of the skin and rinsing them in warm water with a little detergent added. That said, given that the average dragonfruit yields a ridiculous number of seeds with extremely high germination rates, technique doesn't really matter too much...

Quote :

I find Melocactus and other sp more challenging

I have found a very easy way for melocacti, press the fruit from the wide end and push the insides of the fruit to the thin end. The point is to take out the seed[plus sticky thing] . You don't want the seed to dry in the fruit.

SO take the fruits and empty them still wet on a paper. When they dry, they're separated very easily, the contrary to leaving them in the fruit.

Hope this is of some assistance

That is helpful mutant thanks.
I like the method you suggest Lachy I had my wife cleaning Prickly pear by eating the pulp and spitting the seeds but she got bored of them after a half dozen of so. I don't really like the taste much myself.
HN: your right I should have been more specific. I was cleaning Harrisia fruits at the time they are very pulpy. I have been told that mixing them in water with a bar mix works quite well, anyone ever tried this?
I would like to produce enough seeds locally to sell some. Customs and Aquis are getting tougher and tougher. My last shipment had all CITES stuff removed and destroyed. Many big suppliers won't do CITES paper so it is a problem. Unfortunately the time involved in pollinating, collecting, cleaning seed ect. means they can get a bit expensive. Any more efficient techniques would keep costs down.

I use a thin cloth, something like a gauze.
I do twice of washing for a large fruit eg hylocereus.

1. Skin off a fresh fruit
2. Wrap the fruit by the cloth and squeeze liquid out in water. Seeds and pulp will remain in the wrapped cloth.
3. Open the cloth and dry completely the cloth, seeds and pulp together
4. Wrap back seeds and pulp, and crumple the cloth. Seeds and pulp will be separated by this job.
5. Collect seeds
6. Wrap seeds by the cloth and wash in running water
7. Open the cloth and dry the cloth and seeds together

Normal seeds, eg Astrophytum is required jobs No. 5 to No.7.

Hanazono