THE BIG THREE SEED STORAGE FACTORS:

1. Moisture
Keep it dry! The moisture content must be below 30% before it goes into the corn-crib to finish drying to 10% or less. This is the moisture meter I use. If the seed undergoes a hard freeze before final drying, the germ can be damaged resulting in lower germination rates. This is not delicate seed, however. Painted Mountain is robust and can survive all kind of abuses if kept dry. Beware of storage conditions that can trap moisture condensation such as bringing cold seed abruptly into a warm environment. If you have been out all day on that late season hunt when the high temperature was 3 degrees above zero F, you don’t bring your elk rifle into the warm kitchen. You might as well have dropped it in the river. Use common sense.

2. Temperature

The best storage environment is probably similar to those conditions that preserve ammo seemingly forever. Think of that 1957 Lake City M2 Ball that shoots hot as ever. Think cool, dark, dry, even temperature and away from any possible contaminants.

That said, we have left seed in a corn crib for several years of temperature cycles 35 below zero F to 100+ degrees F with little reduction in germination rate.
Plant Early. Remember that Re-hydrated Painted Mountain sprouts at temperatures in the low 50 degrees F, about 10 degrees lower than other corn.