Garden Seeds, Seeds, and More Seeds – How to, Harvest, Prepare and Package Seeds for a Seed Exchange

     As we roll on into spring, and I mean that literally having eaten far more than my share of holiday treats, we are already planning spring planting. I have spent the last month browsing through the deluge of seed catalogs overflowing the mailbox.  I love seed catalogs, but there are a few which quickly find their way to the bottom of the garbage can.  Particularly those who charge as much for “postage and handling” as they do for their “bargain” priced stock.  Another tip-off, they use only “common names” in their descriptions (no genus or species name).  These catalogs all tend to look alike, using photos from some sort of central “photo bank.”  On the other hand, there are those I order from, and those which are so beautifully done, I keep them for reference.  The better catalogs are full of hints and information on planting, culture, disease prevention and recipes for processing and preparing your home grown fare. My favorite is the Territorial Seed Catalog.  First and foremost, it carries those seeds that grow well in the Pacific Northwest, especially in our difficult maritime climate, and includes detailed instructions for planting and harvesting each category of seed.  The most beautiful catalog award must go to the White Flower Farm Catalog.  The photography is outstanding, and you can learn how to plant borders, sunny beds, dry beds, shade beds, all by looking at these photos.  They give detailed descriptions of the plantings, and what type of microclimate they do best in, together with full botanical descriptions of their items.

Now you know already know I have a love/hate relationship with the tomato, and a determination to beat the late blight.  This year I will try to grow hydroponically, tomatoes from Russia, Australia, Belgium and China, half a dozen varieties of lettuce, and vegetables from England and France.  I’m not an extensive traveler; in fact I hardly ever leave the comforts of home.  What I do is, exchange seeds.  I can’t think of a faster way to gain friends or expand your gardening horizons than to get involved in a seed exchange.   This can be done through gardening magazines or on the web, and by participating, you can open your garden gate to a world of new plants.  Sharing seed is a way to protect the diversity of our open pollinated varieties, commonly called “Heirlooms.”

There are a few things to consider before starting. You can’t just rush out into the garden, gather a few seeds, throw them in an envelope, run your ad, or post your list on a gardening site, and sit back and wait for the seeds to come in.  The first thing you must remember is in order for your seed to breed true you should only save from non hybrid, or open-pollinated flowers or vegetables.  If you save from hybrid plants, be prepared for a few surprises as these do not breed true.   A safe way for a beginner is to share “off-the-shelf” seeds from your own planting.  Most people plant too much anyway.  I never use a whole package of seed.  I don’t have the room, garden in raised beds, and can’t eat 1500 carrots.   For plantings of tomatoes, artichokes, cabbages, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, peppers, I only plant from 3-6 starts of each variety with at least ¾ of a package left over.

When gathering your own seed next summer, remember to save seed in the afternoon when the plants are dry, lessening the risk of mold.  This makes it easy to pop the dry seeds directly into envelopes or containers, ready to label.  I don’t recommend the use of plastic bags as they retain moisture that might be lingering in the seeds.  I use the smaller #6 envelopes.   Label the envelopes with type of seed, color, species, and date harvested.  It helps to store your envelopes in alphabetical order (I use regular file folders to hold my different varieties of seed).

To begin to participate in a seed exchange, make a list of what seeds you have to share, noting their color, and another list of what you are looking for.  This can be posted on the Internet for almost instantaneous replies (see below) or sent to the various garden magazines which carry seed exchanges, keeping in mind it may be a couple of months before your request is printed. 

Be resourceful when setting aside supplies for sending out your seed.  I use the ends of envelopes cut off and sealed with Scotch tape.  Don’t use tea bag envelopes, tinfoil, or plastic wrap smothered with gobs of tape.  These are not reliable seed containers to withstand the rigors of the pet gorillas residing at the USPO, and will drive your recipient nuts as they try to remove 6′of tape from a 1” x 1” seed packet.  Label each mini-envelope clearly with type of seed, color, and average height of the mature plant.

One final warning.  Be prepared.  When the seeds and requests start showing up in your mailbox, you can receive up to 100 replies over a period of 6-8 weeks.  I like to keep a log of who replies, their addresses, the seeds they have sent, and the seeds requested in return, as I may want to write them later as other seeds become available.  Answer everyone, and if out of seed, say so, send something else as a token, and save the name for when more seed becomes available. 

When replying to another gardener’s request, keep the exchange fair.  Don’t send one pack of seed and expect to get ten back unless you send extra return postage, and be generous!  Always include postage if you are not sending seed and expect seeds in return.  One 44 cent stamp just doesn’t cut it.  For each 2 packages of seeds you request over and above what you are sending, include a 44 cent stamp.  For heavier seed, peas, beans, etc., double that. 

You cannot send seeds through the mail in a regular small envelope.  These whiz through the franking machines at the PO at 80 miles an hour, and your seeds will either be ironed flat, crushed to smithereens, or shoot out the end of the envelope to badly injure, or at least, scare the bejeezus out of an already frazzled postal worker.  If you write “Seeds – hand cancel” on your envelope, unless you use a larger envelope, along with adequate postage, you will probably get it back.  Seeds should be padded with pop wrap, or mailed in padded envelopes.  A 5″ x 7″ manila envelope with just a few seeds wrapped in padding will cost at least 99 cents to mail. 

Don’t underestimate the amount of time you will need to set aside to package and label those seeds.  This usually runs about 5 to 10 minutes depending on the size of the request, and includes packaging the seed, writing the labels, dropping those who write a short note, and then addressing the envelopes.  One trick I found useful is to cut the sender’s address off their envelope and tape it on the return envelope, saving the corners of the envelope for next batch of requests.

If this seems like a lot of work, what else is there to do in the dead of winter?  Participating in a Seed Exchange is a very rewarding pastime.  I can’t begin to count the number of wonderful friends around the world I have gained from the simple act of exchanging seeds.  I found an editor to publish my writing, and E-mail contacts that reach around the globe.  Here in my hillside garden on the Oregon Coast I have Bernie’s “Mama’s Beans,” fragrant cottage garden flowers from Ellie Mae, Jerri’s Canterbury Bells, Kathy and Frank’s Hollyhocks, and Marietta’s Confederate Rose.  Then there is Sandy’s Datura, Mosie’s white hyacinth beans, not to mention my international tomato patch.  Each new addition not only adds to the beauty and variety of my garden, but serves as a reminder of the special friends who have shared not only their seed, but their hearts, in their joy and passion for gardening.