Research data, such as those here Seeding Rate-May 2018, showed that saving seed at planting does not return high yields or economic profit.
To achieve high yields, we recommend planting 5 or 6 seeds per foot of row, assuming a germination of 80% and above. This is particularly necessary for large seeded cultivars like Emery and Wynne, and under irrigation.
If germination is lower than 80%, which may be the case this spring for some seed lots of Wynne and Sullivan, 6 to 7 seeds are safe to plant but nothing above that. At least, we have not recently tested or heard of a benefit to increase the seeding rate above 7.
