Select seeds from a tomato with your favorite flavor and from the healthiest plants. Slice it in half across the middle (its “equator”).

Scoop out the seeds and their gelatinous “goo” with a spoon; place in a clean container.

Add several tablespoons of water to cover seeds.

Cover the container with a piece of plastic wrap; poke a small hole in the plastic with a knife or toothpick to allow for air transpiration.

Place the container in a warm location to ferment. This takes about two or three days.

Stir the seed and water mixture once a day and replace the plastic-wrap. (The top of the liquid will look “scummy” when the fermentation process has separated the goo from the seeds.

Remove and discard the scummy surface material.

Pour the tomato seeds through a fine kitchen sieve; rinse the seeds with water and stir, making sure all surfaces are thoroughly rinsed; remove as much water as possible from the seeds.

Line a saucer with a piece of waxed paper or use a large drip coffee filter.

Place the seeds on the saucer or filter and spread them into a single layer.

Let the seeds dry; stir during drying to make sure seeds are evenly dry.

Tomato seeds can take up to a week or more to dry thoroughly. Dried seeds move quickly and easily across a plate, they do not stick to each other. Store the seeds in paper packets or envelopes; label with name of tomato variety, brief description and date.

Select seeds from a tomato with your favorite flavor and from the healthiest plants. Slice it in half across the middle (its “equator”).

Scoop out the seeds and their gelatinous “goo” with a spoon.

Transfer tomato pulp and seeds to a paper towel, spacing them about an inch or so apart so that each little pile has several seeds in it.

Set in a cool place to dry, out of direct sunlight. This will take a week or two, depending upon the temperature in your location.

Once seeds are thoroughly dry, transfer the paper towel to an envelope; label with name of tomato variety, brief description and date.

To plant tomato seeds saved with this method, use scissors to cut between the dried seeds. Plant the square of seed-studded paper towels right into a small pot. The paper towel will break down and the seeds will sprout up.