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Blue Sesame
Sesamum indicum
Large blue-grey sesame seeds with the classic sesame taste will bring color and delight to your homemade desserts, breads, salads, or spice mixes. Blue is dominant, with some lighter and darker seeds mixed in. I have been planting the bluest seeds for a couple seasons and the mix seems to be getting bluer each year. Beautiful light yellow to light purple flowers attract pollinators and resemble foxgloves. Originally from the former Soviet Union, this seed was donated to the US National Plant Germplasm Database by the Biology Department of Toyama University, Japan in 1960.
Most species of Sesamum are native to Africa, though Sesamum indicum, this cultivated species that we eat, is native to India. Known as benne, it was brought to 17th-century colonial America by enslaved Africans who first popularized the food on this continent.
Days to maturity: 90-110
Seeds per pack: 80
Germination rate: 81% on 01/24/2024
Planting / harvesting notes
Sow seeds indoors 3-4 weeks before the last frost date, 1/4" or less below the soil. Keep soil moist until germination. After the last frost, transplant outdoors 10-12" apart. Will grow about 3-feet tall. Harvest stalks when the first seed pods start to turn yellow. Put in a paper bag or hang over a bucket to finish maturing and drying. Whack in a bucket to remove seeds.
Seed keeping notes
Use a sieve to remove larger plant parts. Use breath, wind, or fans to winnow off lighter chaff and lighter immature seeds.
