Don't order new seeds till you read this.

 

I used to buy seeds on impulse but i have so many seeds I'm not getting any new ones till I sort these ones out. I used to do this all the time when I had my retail greenhouse.. But haven't for a few years .. Then I came across this article of how to organize seeds. I remembered how meticulous I was at seed saving and since I'm gonna start up the greenhouse again this year I thought Id share some of my tips. It is a real time saver.

Why Organizing Makes Sense: It’ll save you money. It's deceptively easy to overbuy seeds... Your brain will convince you you NEED more pumpkin seeds... and you’ll be sorely disappointed when you later realize you had 3 full packs from last year. Seeds don’t last forever. I mean, they can, but the environment has to be just right. Unless you're hyper-focused on your seed storage climate, they’ll degrade faster than you think. Thankfully, it's not a huge deal as long as you rotate your inventory. It will increase your growing success. Old seeds aren't as dependable as fresh ones. If your germination rates aren't great, there's a chance it due to the age of the seeds.  Are you convinced yet? I hope so. Let’s get into the nitty-gritty. How to Organize Your Seeds Step One: Categorize You can categorize by anyway that works for you but I use these: Season (early spring, late spring, fall, etc) Plant Type (roots greens, brassicas, tomatoes, herbs) Variety (cherry tomatoes, paste tomatoes, slicing tomatoes,  indetermnate and determinate etc) Personally, I organize by plant type. My categories are: Alliums (onion & shallot seeds and garlic) Salad Greens (lettuce, arugula, spinach) Large Leafy Greens (collards, chard, kale) Brassicas (broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts) Bush beans Cucumbers Carrots Other Roots (beets, parsnips, radish) tomatoes Winter Squash Summer Squash Winter Greens (mache, mizuna, sorrel, kale) Trees n shrubs Herbs Flowers Cover Crops (I don’t keep hundreds of different varieties like some homesteaders. I’ve found what I like over the years and have realized that planting 16 types of tomatoes and 7 types of carrots is unnecessary for us. Therefore, I stick to our favorite short-season, workhorse varieties. Remember there are more seeds in a packet than you will use in 3 years , probably,, witht he exception of corn and maybe peas. I have a book that ive been putting garden info into since I started my greenhouse business in 2002. It is my garden bible You could also use Google Sheets or Excel to create a simple spreadsheet to track your inventory and make any notes pertinent to what happened each year. If you’re making your own sheet, create columns for seed name, where you bought it, what variety it is, quantity, and how it performed for you. I’ve tried many different options for storing seeds over the years (plastic boxes, shoe boxes, jars, envelopes), but finally settled on simple small plastic storage boxes that go into bigger boxes .  Picture above   It is a photo box but it works perfectly and the small color coded boxes make type organizing so easy,You can take  smaller boxes out to the garden when you need them instead of luggin large boxes or seed pkts that can blow away or get wet..  Just make sure they are airtight and waterproof.( in case you leave them out there for a bit) i might have done that?😳 Step Three: Check Viability This isn't necessary for all seeds, but if you have an older pack, it doesn’t hurt to do a quick germination check. (This is also a wise practice if you’re comparing seed companies and want to check germination rates— they're not all created equal.) Wet a paper towel , put seeds in,  Put towel, inside plastic bag, put in dim or dark  warmish place( depending on light requirement for germination.  with bag slightly open, keep towel moist. Seedswill germinate quickly .I have typically put mine on top of fridge. Set a reminder to check after 6 days nd everyday till germinatin stops. Step Four: Keep it Up! The hardest part of this whole deal? Keeping up with the system. I mean, it's not difficult, per se ... but you must remember to keep your inventory updated throughout the season as you add/subtract seeds from your stash and most of all: take notes as the growing season progress. The best gift you can give to your future gardening self is to write down what is/isn’t working. Where I Get My Seeds:  Canadian seed Suppliers are my go to but i have certain things I wont compromise on  They have to have a good selection of all categories- from veggies to herbs to flowers to cover crops. they have to be hardy here.   this is crucial. The have to have heirloom, open-pollinated, and GMO-free. This is huge as I want to be able to save seeds year after year. Their germination rates have to be high Pricing has to be affordable   Shipping has to be sent at approriate planting times , if ordering live plants or roots. I use T&T , Stokes,  This year a very Local young lady from Saskatoon who has started her business the last couple years Her name is Ava and here is  a link Ava seeds