Seeds : Garden Share Collective

Seeds are the most important thing to have when growing vegetables as it is the very beginning of how our food is grown. Over the years our seed collection has grown and grown to a large CD sized container and several jars of seeds sitting on a shelf. I have kept seeds from our own harvests to re-sow and I buy new seeds from local seed producers in our area.

This post is part of the Garden Share Collective a group of bloggers encouraging more people to grow their own food. Each month we talk about a different subject and this month it is all about seeds.

Why I choose local seeds

Living in subtropical Queensland for most of my life I have played with seeds from all around Australia, trying to germinate unusual veggies to only fail. One of the things I swear by these days when buying seeds is to source a local supplier. Someone who actually grows the seeds in your area. I have found that buying seeds from Victoria and Tasmania don’t seem to do so well in our climate. They some often don’t germinate or once they start growing the plants become stressed with our heat. It often pays to speak to seed companies directly to find out where there seeds are grown especially in the case of herbs, beans, cucabits (pumpkins, zucchini and squashes) and tomatoes.

How to organize & store your seeds

There are a couple of options if you want to organise and store your seeds. Firstly they need to be well sealed, especially during winter months too often I hear of peoples seeds go missing from hungry mice. Store them in an airtight container or jar.  They must be stored somewhere cool and out of direct sunlight so the seeds hold there viability. I use a CD storage container for my seeds, I made up some labels for each vegetable and have it in alphabetical order. Under each vegetable I have different seed packets for varieties I am either trying or want to try. This system works best for me especially when we were on the farm and I was planting seeds every 2 weeks.

At the start of this month I planted out our veggie beds with corn, peppers, eggplants, tomatoes, zucchini’s, pumpkins, cucumbers, carrots, lettuce, asian greens, beetroots and beans. Some of the things shot up quickly however a few have struggled to come up. We had loads of rain just after I planted the seeds and have a feeling some may of washed away. Not to worry full moon is approaching which means this is the best time for me to get some seeds in again and I am sure they will take off with gusto. The warmer days are encouraging the new growth and I am looking forward to having more produce again in my garden.

So what has been happening in your garden? Join us on Instagram and share you photos of seeds tag us #gardensharecollective.