Now how can I rationalise buying seeds?

[gwynleg]

I have sorted through my seeds early this year (wet and horrible day off yesterday). I still have loads of seeds of all sorts - only really need parsnips, carrots and sweetcorn. This is disappointing, I love buying seeds.
I would imagine peeps out there will have good renationalisation for buying more and I would love to hear them please!

[gwynleg]

[goodlife]

Well...there is always different varieties to what I already have..so must have some of those...they might be better..

If the price is right or I have some offers/discounts to use up, I might spend a bit for seeds that I know gets used up.
Some varieties are not available every year or not easy to get hold of..those I like to 'stock up' for future so I don't run out.

Being honest..I've stopped looking for excuses now..run out of them long time ago..
I take great pleasure of treating myself what ever seeds I may fancy and when ever I may fancy..if it is toss between new pair of knickers or 'a packet of seed'..well..packet of seed win and I rather go without knickers ......

[chriscross1966]

I made the decision to have a bit of a clear-out... so apart form some heritage stuff which I didn't manage to self-save from this year I've pretty much replaced everythign from the 50p sale... I need garlic, potatoes and I've got some more bean varieties on order.... I'll bundle up the rest adn either put it in a seed-swap parcel, swap it at the upcoming seed swap in January, and anything that's left I'll sort into two piles... one to give to a friend of mine that runs an after-school garden club for some kids that go to school with her daughter, and the rest I'll put on Freecycle... My pile of self-saved went up again today with the discovery of some decently dried out "BIrd Egg" rose beans and a climbing Pinto bean (sort of mini rose bean) has managed to get to the dry stage.... which is good cos there are an awful lot of pods on that plant.... they're the size of a skinny pea pod, adn the beans are quite small... half the size of a Cherokee Trail of TEars for instance..... Will do a wet bean harvest tomorrow.... I've got enough Giganda and Bridgewater, probalby got enough Polish CLimber for seeds.... need more San ANtonio, but the BLue Lakes and Flajoly can come out, and I'll have a look at the Cobras I've left to grow on.... I'm not going to save any of them for seed as I have some already from Wyevale...

[Digeroo]

 I save money by growing my own veg, I spend some of that saving on seeds. 

[Toshofthe Wuffingas]

There must be something in the air. I spent the last couple of days sorting out my stock of seeds, the first time in years. Now there is one box for curcubits, one for peas and beans, one for tomatoes, one for herbs etc. I also listed the pkts with dates so I can compare my list with my needs. I find I have 15 varieties of tomatoes!!! Some varieties have 3 or 4 different years savings. Some are pretty old and may not be viable but I can find that out next spring.

[Lottiman]

We and and a load of other parents helped put in ten raised beds at at our local primary school this year, me as usuall had sowed far to many seeds of a lot of things and they pretty much all germinated some was oldish seed so wasn't,t sure about viability I ended up with I think it was fifty four tomato plants I have room for eight  . So I thought I could get a whole load of stuff going next time out of the heaps of seed I have and give most of it to the school,then I have an excuse to go and buy some more seed we all know buying seed is irresistible  Resistance is futile especially those new variety's 

[galina]

It is deeply psychological - a packet of seed is a promise of something wonderful in the future.  By buying and having a good seedbox we are making ourselves and our family 'future-proof'.

Because we are gardeners who know that not everything will germinate and grow wonderful we need more than one of each type of fruit and veg in order to be 'future-proof'.  There is security in growing more than one variety.  So we need an early, a mid and a late type of everything.  Our seed needs have tripled!

There is also the allure of colour.  Just look at our bean and tomato and squash pictures on A4A!  30  years ago I just had to have a yellow bean from a supermarket seed display in Calais, because I had never seen one in the seed catalogue in Britain.  Fair enough - I still save seeds and grow this variety to this day!  But I have since bought or swapped seeds of every shade of colour and size imaginable!   The realisation that tomatoes come in red, pink, brown, white, orange, lime green, yellow and now black too!  And what about the stripey ones!  Why not try out each and every one?

The catalogues are definitely responsible for their fair share of this problem:  How can anybody resist all the beautiful touched-up photos and the anticipation created with their superlative descriptions of 'easy to grow', 'excellent flavour' and 'huge harvests' coupled with 'drought and pest and disease resistance of every kind'!  They appear to give us everything we ever wanted - whichever of their seeds we buy.  It stands to reason that not everything in the catalogue is suitable for our situation, but they skim over that bit!  Resistance is futile!!!

Saving one's own seeds is a good rationalisation too - because you don't need to buy every year and you are saving so much dosh by saving your own seeds - hey presto!  you have money to spend on more seeds and you have a good justification to buy some more.

Where does it end?  I think it is a real shame to have dead/wasted seeds in the seedbox.  It happens, but really should have been better managed with seed presents to others, planning and some moderation (difficult!)  So why do I mitigate against wasted seed by freezing some?  I do end up with more seeds this way?  OK, there is a good excuse for freezing parsnip seeds and a small sample of all sorts of heritage seeds, just in case a grow-out and seed saving cycle fails (which happens).  If the seed is rare and one needs to do one's bit by growing them to seed for another cycle and sharing with others to prevent a variety from getting extinct, then this also somehow serves as rationalisation of holding even more of those seeds in the first place!

Unfortunately there are all too many reasons to rationalise buying seeds - actually i want to rephrase this:         F o r t u n a t e l y  there are all too many reasons to rationalise buying (or acquiring) seeds 

[antipodes]

It's just an addiction :)
Well, this year I had a lot of trouble with germination so next year I think I will buy quite a bit of new seed - I have only saved runners, as last year I had beasties in the dwarf bean seeds and the beans worked quite badly this year, so I will stick to bought seed (pity, but there you have it).
Also need some new squash seeds, cabbage etc so I will be in the sales and into Lidl when the cheap seeds come in !!!!

(The thought of goodlife running around the plot knickerless but with a HUGE box of seeds is getting me through the afternoon!!)

[GrannieAnnie]

Are there any hobbies less expensive and less harmful to the Earth than Seed Buying?
Not hardly.
Enjoy!

[Deb P]

Never feel guilty, always think I could have a lot worse addictions and there is usually a nice outcome so that justifies it to me!

[Borlotti]

Seed packets are so pretty, why not paper the walls with them.  I think a wallpaper of flower seed packets and one of veg seed packets could be produced and would sell very well. Veg in the kitchen and maybe flowers in the dining room/conservatory.  Think I should go on Dragons Den and patent it, might just pop out to buy some seed packets for my new idea, maybe plant the seeds first.  Actually seed packet curtains would be lovely, not the seed packets but the designs, maybe shower curtains, kitchen curtains, tablecloths, then maybe bed linen.  I am a genius, why does no-one recognise my talents.

[grannyjanny]

My OH buys books & DVD's. He doesn't read them & we occasionally watch a DVD so I'm always ready when he has a moan about my seeds .

[electric landlady]

Rationalise....seed-buying...nope, I just can't use those two words in the same sentence.

I too had a clear-out on Saturday and in a very organised and rational manner threw out all my out of date seeds. Of course many of those seeds would still have been viable, so not that rational at all, in fact just an excuse to go and buy some replacements.

So don't rationalise...just go with your instincts I say! 

and if in doubt: 

[davee52uk]

This is what I have decided to do - NERD ALERT !!

Firstly I have measured and drawn up a scale plan of my allotment in Libre Office Calc.
Then I have put in where vegetables will be growing next year. Then I will check off these against remaining and saved seed to produce a request list.

After this I go to the webpage for Kings Seeds that we buy for all the allotments and I will find the product codes and prices. Finally I give this to the person who orders all the seeds.

For sowing I have two boxes - one for the current month to be sown and another for saving or yet to be sown.

Eventually I will write a computer program to do most of the above and also keep the yearly reports of how crops did.

I told you it was nerdy; it's no surprise I work in I.T !

[Toshofthe Wuffingas]

I have Linux Ubuntu and haven't yet seen any handy open source garden planner or design software.

[Digeroo]

I must be loosing my touch I have several catalogues which are failing to raise any interest.  Got a lot of seeds drying on the windowsill.  I put all my bean seeds in the freezer before sowing to kill bugs and minimise black fly.

Got lots for 50p at wyevale.

Will get some brassicas direct from Tozer you get so many more in the packet and Earlybird sweetcorn from Moles there is a place I drive near which stocks them.