Choosing a Seed Supplier - Ep. 178
Just Grow Something | Evidence-Based Home GardeningJanuary 02, 2024x
178
00:30:2727.89 MB

Choosing a Seed Supplier - Ep. 178

It used to be easy to just choose a catalog and order seeds because there were only a handful of choices and, generally speaking, unless you were going to the nursery or garden center to buy seed packets from a kiosk, you were ordering from a physical catalog that you actually got in the mail. But, nowadays, a simple internet search will yield thousands of results from companies all over the world and it’s a little bit more difficult to weed out the bad guys.

So, today we are going to talk about ways to find a legitimate, established, verified seed company whether it’s online, through a catalog, or local to you. And what to do if you encounter a new small business that seems legit and you’d love to support them, but you also want to make sure you don’t get burned. I will also give you a list and links to my favorite suppliers over the years, including my very first catalog purchase. Let’s dig in!

Question of the month: How do you plan your garden each season? Tell me by leaving a voice message, sending an email, responding below (in Spotify), or from the Facebook group!


References and Resources:

True Leaf Market

Gurney's - America's Most Complete Seed and Nursery (gurneys.com)

Bring Your Garden to Life with Rare and Heirloom Seeds (rareseeds.com)

Home - SeedSavers

Southern Exposure Seed Exchange, Saving the Past for the Future Urban Farmer | Seeds, Plants and Garden Supplies (ufseeds.com)

Johnny’s Selected Seeds | Supporting Farms & Gardens Since 1973 (johnnyseeds.com) Harris Seeds: Vegetable Seeds, Flower Seeds, Plants & Growing Supplies Just Grow Something Gardening Friends Facebook Group

Check out how you can become a patron on Patreon

JustGrowSomethingPodcast.com


00:00:00
This is positively farming media.

00:00:04
Happy New Year my gardening friends and welcome to season

00:00:08
four of the Just Grow Something Podcast.

00:00:10
Super excited to be here. Super grateful for you being

00:00:14
here and looking forward to an awesome start to the 2024

00:00:18
gardening season. This is a time for planning,

00:00:22
taking seed and supply inventories, and of course,

00:00:25
purchasing everything we need to get going for the year with the

00:00:29
prices on just about everything Having gone up last year and

00:00:33
continuing into this new year, we obviously want to be sure the

00:00:37
purchases we have to make are worth every single penny we

00:00:40
spend, which is why we're going to talk about choosing a seed

00:00:45
supplier on today's episode. It used to be easy to just

00:00:50
choose a catalog and order seeds because there were only a

00:00:53
handful of choices. And generally speaking, unless

00:00:56
you were going to the nursery or the garden center to buy seed

00:00:58
packets from a kiosk, you were ordering from a physical catalog

00:01:02
that you actually got in the mail.

00:01:04
That lent a bit of legitimacy to things right, like if a company

00:01:10
was going to go through the effort and expense of printing

00:01:13
and mailing catalogs, they must be legit.

00:01:15
But nowadays, a simple Internet search will yield thousands of

00:01:20
results from companies all over the world, and it's a little bit

00:01:24
more difficult to weed out the bad guys, so to speak.

00:01:27
More than once I have ordered something online, not

00:01:31
necessarily gardening related, but just merchandise in general,

00:01:34
only to realize afterward that whatever I ordered was coming

00:01:37
from somewhere overseas and would take weeks to reach me or

00:01:42
may never show up at all. I had that happen when I ordered

00:01:44
canning lids during the pandemic.

00:01:46
They never showed up. So today we are going to talk

00:01:50
about ways to find a legitimate, established verified seed

00:01:55
company, whether it's online, through a catalog or local to

00:01:59
you, and what to do if you encounter a new small business

00:02:04
that seems legit and you'd love to support them, but you also

00:02:08
want to make sure you don't get burned.

00:02:10
I will also give you a list and links to my favorite suppliers

00:02:13
over the years, including my very first catalog purchase.

00:02:18
Let's stay again. Hey, I'm Karen.

00:02:24
I started gardening in a small corner of my suburban backyard

00:02:27
and now 18 years later, I've got a degree in horticulture and

00:02:30
operate a 40 acre market farm. I believe there is power in food

00:02:34
and that everyone should know how to grow at least a little

00:02:37
bit of their own. On this podcast I share evidence

00:02:40
based techniques to help you plant, grow, harvest, and store

00:02:43
all your family's favorites. Consider me your friend in the

00:02:46
garden. So grab your garden journal and

00:02:48
a cup of coffee and get ready to just grow something.

00:03:00
Let's do a little housekeeping before we jump into finding a

00:03:03
legit seed supplier. Huge shout out to a Shamaluev

00:03:07
music for the music for the new intro and outro for season four

00:03:11
and in fact for most of the background music and transitions

00:03:15
you have heard through the tail end of season 3 and now into

00:03:19
this season, very talented guy out of Ukraine.

00:03:23
And yes, this is season four and I hope to just continue to

00:03:29
improve this podcast as we go along.

00:03:31
And in that vein I am introducing a new segment called

00:03:36
the Question of the Month. Now, this is not me answering

00:03:40
your questions. This is you answering one of

00:03:43
mine. I will ask the question in each

00:03:45
of the episodes for the month of January and reveal the results

00:03:49
to you in the first episode of February.

00:03:52
This question is for you to answer either through the link

00:03:57
in the show notes to leave me a voice message by using the Q&A

00:04:00
segment in the show notes if you're listening to Spotify, or

00:04:03
by sending me an e-mail from the website or directly to grow at

00:04:08
just growsomethingpodcast.com. The question will also be sent

00:04:12
in the weekly e-mail if you're on my e-mail list, so you can

00:04:16
just hit reply to respond that way.

00:04:19
And I will also be posting the question in the Just Grow

00:04:22
Something Gardening Friends Facebook group, so you can leave

00:04:25
your answer there too. Plenty of ways for you to get me

00:04:28
your response. This segment is designed to have

00:04:33
you help your fellow gardeners and just give some different

00:04:37
perspectives on topics that we all wonder about from time to

00:04:41
time. Think of it as a conversation

00:04:44
that we would have if we were a gardening club, sitting around

00:04:48
having coffee, swapping info about a particular topic.

00:04:51
We'll just see how it goes, OK. If I have plenty of answers each

00:04:55
month and we'll just keep the questions going all season.

00:04:58
If you guys decide you don't want to, you know, participate

00:05:00
and you don't give a hoot about answering the question, well

00:05:03
then we'll drop it. And I'll just keep blathering on

00:05:05
into the void about gardening while you listen.

00:05:08
I just want to engage a little bit more with you in some way

00:05:12
and let us engage with each other.

00:05:14
And this sounds like it might be a good way to do that.

00:05:18
So the question of the month for January is how do you plan your

00:05:26
garden each season? Now this could be you just

00:05:29
telling me what online planner you use and how you pick the

00:05:34
varieties that you're going to plant.

00:05:35
Do you use graph paper to lay things out?

00:05:38
Do you just decide at the last minute what you're going to grow

00:05:42
based on the plants that you see at the garden center?

00:05:44
No shame in that. Share with us what works for

00:05:48
you, or maybe what hasn't worked for you.

00:05:51
I love to hear about how people plan out their gardening season.

00:05:55
I think we can all learn from each other as we go.

00:05:59
You have until January 31st to get me your answer, either from

00:06:04
one of the links in the show notes or via e-mail or through

00:06:07
the Facebook group. I cannot wait to hear your

00:06:10
answer. I also want to talk really

00:06:14
quickly to my gardening friends in the Southern hemisphere,

00:06:17
specifically those of you in Australia and New Zealand.

00:06:20
There are a lot of you downloading episodes right now

00:06:23
and I know you are in the thick of your summer gardening season

00:06:27
because I live in the Northern hemisphere.

00:06:30
I planned these episodes in a way that sort of naturally

00:06:34
follows how my seasons go, starting with the planning and

00:06:38
the plant selection and then moving into planting and wedding

00:06:42
and feeding and all that kind of stuff, and then with some crop

00:06:45
specific episodes thrown in there until we move into

00:06:48
harvesting and preserving. I know that's opposite for you

00:06:52
and you're searching for topics right now that are very specific

00:06:56
that also may be in past episodes and maybe kind of not

00:07:00
following how my seasons naturally go.

00:07:04
The easiest way to find those specifics, and this is for

00:07:09
anybody really, is to just go to the website

00:07:12
justgrowsomethingpodcast.com and use the search function with one

00:07:17
or two keywords. Not only will it bring up any

00:07:20
episode that I've done on that topic, but it will also bring up

00:07:23
any articles or videos I've done as well.

00:07:26
So hopefully that will help you find what you need when you

00:07:30
actually need it. And you can always reach out to

00:07:33
me with specific questions at any time and I will be very

00:07:36
happy to help however I can. And again, of course this goes

00:07:40
for everybody all the time. You can always find more info on

00:07:44
the website, and while you're on the website, you can help

00:07:48
support this podcast in a variety of ways.

00:07:51
Reading the blog posts that I write over there gives a few

00:07:54
pennies through the ads or the displayed.

00:07:57
Clicking through links the to make purchases from any of the

00:08:00
companies that I'm affiliated with gives a few pennies.

00:08:03
I'll be actually making it easier to find the sponsors and

00:08:06
affiliates of this show on the website in the coming weeks.

00:08:09
In fact, there's a lot of redesigning going on right now,

00:08:12
including new merch coming, so stand by for that.

00:08:16
Listening to the ads on these episodes help support the show

00:08:20
for sure. And finally, there's Patreon.

00:08:23
Becoming a supporter over on Patreon starts at buying me a

00:08:27
coffee at just $2.00 a month. US and the higher support tiers

00:08:32
get you a little something in return in the way of exclusive

00:08:36
content and other things. Depending on what level you're

00:08:38
supporting at, I would like to welcome our newest patron, Jerry

00:08:44
to the Seed Patron level. Welcome Jerry to the community,

00:08:48
and thank you so much for your support.

00:08:51
Jerry has immediate access to all the previous exclusive posts

00:08:56
and videos posted for patrons at that level and above, and you

00:09:00
can join Jerry and all my other lovely patrons at

00:09:04
patreon.com/just Grow something or use the link in the show

00:09:09
notes. If you appreciate all the

00:09:11
information provided here and on the website, and you want to

00:09:14
give a little back, those are all the ways you can do that,

00:09:17
and I am sincerely grateful. OK, let's get into it.

00:09:26
How do you find a reputable seed supplier?

00:09:29
The number of horror stories that I heard, specifically

00:09:33
starting in 2020 of people ordering seeds online only to

00:09:38
either receive junky seeds that didn't germinate, seeds that

00:09:43
grew something completely different than what they

00:09:45
ordered, or that never showed up at all was astonishing.

00:09:49
Now I know a lot of that had to do with desperation.

00:09:53
During the the beginning of the pandemic, seed suppliers were

00:09:57
absolutely overwhelmed with the sudden demand for seeds and

00:10:01
supplies that they ran out what seemed like practically

00:10:05
overnight. Folks had no chance but to turn

00:10:09
elsewhere to find their seeds, and unfortunately this was both

00:10:13
experienced gardeners and brand new gardeners alike.

00:10:17
Shady suppliers popped up online and people lost a lot of money

00:10:21
ordering from companies that were less than legit or were out

00:10:25
and out fraudsters. So how do we prevent that from

00:10:30
happening to us? The first thing is you can try

00:10:34
to stick with just printed catalogs.

00:10:37
A company that takes the time to print and mail a physical

00:10:41
catalog is likely to be legitimate just based on the

00:10:45
sheer upfront cost alone. But obviously there are

00:10:50
companies who have been around much longer than others, and

00:10:54
just because they're legit doesn't necessarily mean they're

00:10:56
going to fit your needs. So here are some things to

00:10:59
consider when choosing a printed catalogue to order from.

00:11:08
First thing to consider would be the company's reputation.

00:11:11
So research the reputation of that seed catalog company.

00:11:16
Look for reviews from other gardeners, which may mean going

00:11:19
online or talking to other local gardeners that you might be

00:11:23
associating with. A company that has a positive

00:11:27
reputation is more likely to provide quality seeds and

00:11:31
reliable services. Now of course, this comes with a

00:11:34
bit of a caveat. How often do you actually go out

00:11:39
and post a positive review on somebody versus going out and

00:11:44
posting something negative if you've had a negative experience

00:11:48
with them And therein Liesler rub.

00:11:51
So a lot of the time, you know, you may not be finding positive

00:11:55
reviews, but you might find a bunch of negative reviews.

00:11:58
I mean, I know I don't generally go out of my way to go and

00:12:01
review a company unless I have had a very, very positive

00:12:05
experience that was somewhat above and beyond what I would

00:12:08
normally expect. Or if the company has reached

00:12:12
out and asked me to leave a review, then I might go and do

00:12:15
it then. But I'm more likely to leave

00:12:17
something, you know, in the way of a negative review if I've had

00:12:21
a very negative experience with somebody.

00:12:23
So when you go looking for reviews, take that with a grain

00:12:26
of salt. Look at those responses to any

00:12:31
of the negative reviews because I have been known if I see a

00:12:35
negative review on a company that I have used to go out and

00:12:39
refute that negative review or give my side of things just to

00:12:42
sort of take the edge off if I disagree with what that review

00:12:46
said. So looking and finding positive

00:12:49
reviews is a good thing. Just keep in mind that often

00:12:52
times, especially if they're a newer company, they may not have

00:12:55
much in the way of positive reviews and those negative

00:12:58
reviews may outnumber them upon occasion.

00:13:03
The second thing to maybe look at would be how much of the seed

00:13:08
information is available and what kind of descriptions

00:13:11
they're giving. So take a look at the catalog

00:13:13
and see if they are leaving detailed and fairly accurate

00:13:18
information about each seed variety.

00:13:20
Legitimate companies are going to provide fairly comprehensive

00:13:25
descriptions, including planting instructions and days to

00:13:29
maturity and the specific growing conditions that those

00:13:34
plants need. You should avoid catalogs that

00:13:37
have any kind of vague or overly promotional language.

00:13:42
I have seen very salesy language also in the descriptions of new

00:13:49
varieties or even heirloom ones, in established catalogs too, or

00:13:54
just very exaggerated descriptions.

00:13:57
So this is kind of a buyer beware situation.

00:14:01
If a variety is being described as too good to be true, well, it

00:14:06
probably is. So, you know, just temper your

00:14:10
decisions with a little bit of healthy pessimism.

00:14:14
Another thing to look at too would be if they have a seed

00:14:19
quality guarantee, do they offer some sort of a guarantee?

00:14:24
Reputable companies are going to stand by the quality of their

00:14:28
seeds, and often times they are going to provide a guarantee or

00:14:31
a replacement policy of some sort.

00:14:35
In case of issues, this means they're pretty confident in what

00:14:38
they sell, which means that you should be pretty confident in

00:14:41
buying it. And of course anybody can say

00:14:43
whatever the heck they want to and give a guarantee on

00:14:46
anything, but something like that.

00:14:48
Coming from a printed catalog tends to lend a little bit more

00:14:53
legitimacy than just a random listing on the Internet

00:14:56
somewhere that could say anything to be honest with.

00:14:58
You also look at the variety of seeds that are being offered.

00:15:03
An established seed company should offer a fairly diverse

00:15:07
range of seeds, so different plant varieties and generally

00:15:12
speaking, usually some heirloom options unless they're just not

00:15:15
into the into the open pollinated stuff.

00:15:18
If you have a printed catalog that only offers a handful of

00:15:21
varieties, keep in mind it may be a startup company or it may

00:15:26
be a small local business. Now, this isn't necessarily a

00:15:30
bad thing. And sometimes these smaller

00:15:32
companies absolutely have high quality seeds and they are just

00:15:36
extremely focused in their efforts.

00:15:39
There's nothing wrong with that. And if they check all the other

00:15:41
boxes that we're talking about, then they're likely a good

00:15:44
option for ordering whatever their specific line is that they

00:15:47
carry. And then also look to see

00:15:50
whether or not their ordering and shipping policies are

00:15:53
transparent. Look through the catalogue and

00:15:55
find if there is clear information on their ordering

00:15:59
processes, their shipping costs and their delivery times.

00:16:03
Legitimate companies provide transparent policies to ensure a

00:16:08
smooth and reliable ordering process both on both sides, from

00:16:12
your side and from their fulfillment side.

00:16:15
Avoid catalogs that have very unclear terms or somewhere there

00:16:19
are hidden fees in there. This would be an absolute red

00:16:23
flag. And then finally consider the

00:16:26
company's history and how long they've been in business.

00:16:28
A lot of the time they're going to put that right in the first

00:16:31
few pages of the catalog established in 1885 or 19,

00:16:35
whatever. And you're probably going to

00:16:37
remember receiving this same catalog a few years in the row

00:16:41
if you've been gardening for any amount of time, even if you've

00:16:45
never ordered anything from them.

00:16:47
My very first seed and fruit tree purchases came from

00:16:51
Gurney's, mainly because I had seen the catalog before.

00:16:55
It was the only one that popped into my mailbox and they always

00:16:58
had coupons on the front that made everything pretty much half

00:17:02
off when you ordered a certain amount.

00:17:04
In fact, the apple trees that I ordered from them are still

00:17:08
standing in the front of our old five acre homestead and they are

00:17:12
still producing beautifully 17 years after I planted them.

00:17:16
So established companies with a history of successful order

00:17:21
fulfillment are usually a reliable company to order from.

00:17:25
Now keep in mind that you know, while beautiful, full color,

00:17:30
slick paged catalogs can be very enticing.

00:17:34
It's the content and the quality of the seed and their

00:17:39
reliability that really matter. I get a ton of seed catalogs in

00:17:44
the mail. Some of them are flashy, others

00:17:47
not as much, and one particular catalogue that contains nothing

00:17:51
but black and white line drawings in an almost Victorian

00:17:56
styling. I've never ordered anything from

00:18:00
them because I actually find the styling very distracting and

00:18:03
very hard to read, but they're obviously selling enough seeds

00:18:07
through that catalogue to keep mailing me a new one every year,

00:18:12
even though I have never ordered from them.

00:18:14
So don't think that the flashy catalogues are necessarily the

00:18:19
best seed suppliers. I've ordered seeds from flashy

00:18:22
catalogs that most certainly did not live up to their

00:18:26
description, and I have ordered from plain black and white

00:18:29
catalogs and have gone back to them over and over again because

00:18:32
they were great. So don't judge a seed catalog by

00:18:36
its cover. Now, what about ordering seeds

00:18:45
online? Well, this can be a little bit

00:18:47
tricky, especially if you were dealing with a hub like Amazon

00:18:51
or even Walmart. Now that brings together

00:18:54
suppliers from all over in one place to shop.

00:18:58
Most of the scams I heard of, and the one I fell victim to,

00:19:02
involve sellers on one of these hubs.

00:19:05
Mine was Amazon and obviously nothing against Amazon.

00:19:08
I am an affiliate seller for Amazon.

00:19:11
I just didn't dig deeply enough into the cellar and I got

00:19:16
burned. So always be sure to verify

00:19:19
information from multiple sources for a well-rounded

00:19:22
understanding of who you're dealing with online.

00:19:26
Now there are ways to order directly from the same catalogs

00:19:30
you get in the mail by going to their website.

00:19:34
That is what I do for most of my seed ordering.

00:19:36
I get the catalog in the mail, then I head to the website for

00:19:40
actual ordering. If there is a very specific

00:19:44
variety that I'm looking for and I am unable to find it through

00:19:47
one of my usual sources, then I will turn to the Internet at

00:19:50
large. So some things to look for when

00:19:53
ordering from an online seed supplier.

00:19:57
First thing first reputation and reviews.

00:20:00
Check the reputation of the seed supplier by looking for customer

00:20:03
reviews and testimonials. Legitimate suppliers.

00:20:08
Generally have a track record of satisfied customers.

00:20:12
Now, we've all seen the fake reviews on Amazon and other

00:20:15
platforms that can make it seem like a company or product is

00:20:18
legit when they're actually planted reviews, but go way back

00:20:23
in their history to check for real reviews.

00:20:27
Sort the reviews by oldest or sort by the lowest review.

00:20:32
Consider checking other online platforms, gardening forums,

00:20:36
social media. Check those for feedback.

00:20:39
Look for as much unbiased information as you can, and if

00:20:43
you can't find any, well then maybe move on.

00:20:47
The next thing to look for would be if they list the germination

00:20:51
rates. Legitimate seed suppliers are

00:20:53
going to provide that information on germination

00:20:56
rates. In fact, in the US they're

00:20:58
required to. When I used to save and sell

00:21:01
seeds, it was information I was required to include on the

00:21:04
packaging. Look for details in the listing

00:21:07
or on the supplier's website that specify the expected

00:21:11
germination rate as a percentage.

00:21:14
This ensures that you receive viable seeds.

00:21:16
Again, yes, you can be lied to, but if this information is

00:21:20
omitted altogether, the company likely isn't legit or they just

00:21:24
don't know what they're doing. The next thing to look for is

00:21:28
clear product information. A trustworthy seed supplier

00:21:31
provides clear and detailed information about the seeds they

00:21:35
offer. This is regardless of whether

00:21:37
they're selling online or in a print publication.

00:21:40
This should include the botanical name, the variety, the

00:21:43
expected size of the plant, days to maturity, any specific

00:21:46
growing requirements. So once again, avoid suppliers

00:21:50
that have any kind of vague or very incomplete product

00:21:55
descriptions. Just like in the printed

00:21:57
catalogs, that is a red flag. Now, something that's unique to

00:22:02
online purchasing would be looking for secure payment

00:22:06
options. Legitimate online businesses

00:22:09
offer secure payment options. Obviously this is automatic with

00:22:15
online hubs like Amazon or Walmart, but if you're shopping

00:22:19
directly from a supplier's website, look for secure payment

00:22:22
gateways and ensure that your personal and financial

00:22:25
information is handled safely. Avoid suppliers that only accept

00:22:30
weird payment methods, or that lack secure transaction

00:22:34
processes, or there isn't that little lock icon in the web

00:22:38
browser when you start the checkout process.

00:22:40
If any of those things pop up, ditch the purchase and go

00:22:44
somewhere else. And another thing to do would be

00:22:47
to look for their contact information and customer support

00:22:51
info. Look for things like a physical

00:22:53
address and find their customer support details.

00:22:57
Legitimate companies are transparent about how to reach

00:23:02
them for questions or concerns. If they lack clear contact

00:23:07
information, it should raise some concerns about their

00:23:11
legitimacy. This is harder to do on a hub.

00:23:15
That's why I got duped. I now look at the listing on

00:23:18
Amazon to be sure that the item is being shipped from Amazon and

00:23:23
not the originating company if I don't recognize the company.

00:23:26
So if you don't know, there's an area on the Amazon listing that

00:23:31
will say who the item is being sold by and who is shipping it.

00:23:36
If it's being held in one of Amazon's warehouses, then it

00:23:39
will say it ships from Amazon. That way I know even if it's

00:23:45
being sold from a company overseas, my item is going to

00:23:48
reach me in a reasonable amount of time.

00:23:51
This doesn't guarantee the quality of the seeds, but at

00:23:55
least it means you'll actually receive the item and then you

00:23:59
can dispute it or return it if it's junk.

00:24:01
If it's shipping directly from the company listing it on Amazon

00:24:05
and you're not familiar with the company, you are taking a higher

00:24:09
risk. Now I will say that I have

00:24:12
purchased from some of my regular suppliers on Amazon when

00:24:18
I can get a better deal or faster shipping.

00:24:20
So often times these seed suppliers will ship to Amazon to

00:24:23
be held in their warehouse and then sometimes they will

00:24:27
actually just sell out from their own location sooner than

00:24:30
Amazon does. So I can get it faster if I

00:24:33
order it through Amazon, or Amazon bought in bulk and is

00:24:37
offering the item at a lower price.

00:24:40
I've also gone the other direction, finding something on

00:24:42
Amazon and then going directly to the supplier on their own

00:24:45
website just to verify they're legit and then I end up ordering

00:24:49
it there instead. Either way, always look at who

00:24:53
the seller is when purchasing on Amazon or another hub like

00:24:57
Walmart. So whether you're ordering from

00:25:00
a hub or you're going directly from a supplier website,

00:25:04
remember to cross reference information from multiple

00:25:07
sources to make an informed decision so you don't get

00:25:11
burned. Now of course there are cases in

00:25:14
which you can purchase seeds from local suppliers.

00:25:18
I've talked before about a shop near me, Planters Seed and

00:25:21
Supply, and I mentioned Buffalo Seed Company in an episode about

00:25:25
land race varieties. These are both local suppliers

00:25:29
to me. One is a reseller and one is

00:25:31
actually saving the seeds themselves and then selling

00:25:34
them. Now it's a bit easier to see

00:25:37
that Planters is a legitimate company, right?

00:25:40
I walk in, I see the seeds behind the counter.

00:25:42
I see plenty of people in there shopping.

00:25:44
That's all I need to know. With Buffalo Seed, it might be a

00:25:47
little bit harder. They are a small business and

00:25:50
when they first started, their website was sparse and it was

00:25:52
kind of difficult to navigate. The only reason I knew they were

00:25:56
legit when I came across them was because I had met the owners

00:26:00
when I was donating some produce to another organization.

00:26:03
I just happened to recognize their names on the website.

00:26:06
I also recognize their names from being involved in our local

00:26:09
gardening groups, online and in real life.

00:26:11
So that was how I validated their company.

00:26:14
But if I hadn't recognized their names, or I hadn't met them

00:26:18
personally, how would I know? I love supporting small local

00:26:22
business. I am one, well, two actually, so

00:26:26
it's important to me. I also understand people need to

00:26:29
be careful with their money. So if you've gone through all

00:26:32
the checklists we already talked about, and you still aren't

00:26:36
quite sure about a company, but you're feeling compelled to try

00:26:39
them out, then do it. But just start small.

00:26:44
Place an order for seeds that you could easily find somewhere

00:26:48
else if a the order never shows up, or B they don't germinate or

00:26:52
they're the wrong seed. That way you've given them some

00:26:55
business, you've tested them out to see if they're legit, but

00:26:59
you've also not put all your eggs in one proverbial seed

00:27:03
basket, right? I will say that my plan is to

00:27:10
get my open pollinated seeds from Buffalo Seed Company this

00:27:13
year before ordering elsewhere. And if you garden in the

00:27:17
Midwest, I actually highly recommend them for open

00:27:19
pollinated seeds that were grown with organic fertilizers and in

00:27:22
most cases with only rainfall and not irrigation.

00:27:26
It makes them uniquely adapted to our Midwest weather and

00:27:30
therefore more likely to do better in my gardens.

00:27:33
If you have a seed company near you that does this, make them

00:27:37
your go to 1st if you can because you will likely have

00:27:40
better results. But that's a sidebar.

00:27:42
So who else do I order my seeds from?

00:27:45
Like I said, my very first orders the first few years came

00:27:49
from Gurney's their male catalogue.

00:27:53
They were a no brainer choice for my budget and they got me

00:27:56
going in the right direction as I expanded my repertoire.

00:28:00
I've ordered from Baker Creek Seed Savers Exchange, Southern

00:28:04
Exposure Seed Exchange Burpees, just picking up seeds from the

00:28:08
Garden Center, and then as my needs increase and I had to buy

00:28:12
in much larger quantities, I've moved to using Johnny's Seed a

00:28:16
lot. But I also use Harris Seed and I

00:28:19
love True Leaf Market. They're a sponsor of this

00:28:21
podcast and I'm an affiliate for them, so bonus points there.

00:28:25
And I use Urban Farmer Seeds as well, so my go to's on the

00:28:30
regular are definitely True Leaf and Johnny's and then specific

00:28:34
varieties that neither of them carry I get from Harris and a

00:28:39
couple of others, so I will leave links to all of these in

00:28:43
the show notes so it gives you some resources.

00:28:46
Hopefully that takes a little mystery out of shopping for

00:28:49
seeds and how to find a reputable supplier.

00:28:52
Remember, check for feedback and reviews, make sure they have

00:28:55
secure purchasing options and some sort of guarantee, and know

00:28:59
where the items are shipping from when you're shopping

00:29:02
online. Hopefully you can find all the

00:29:04
seeds your gardening heart desires this season without

00:29:08
getting burned Until next time, my gardening friends.

00:29:11
Keep on cultivating that dream garden and we'll talk again

00:29:13
soon. Thanks for listening to another

00:29:16
episode of the Just Grow Something podcast.

00:29:18
For more information about today's topic and to find all

00:29:21
the ways you can get in touch with me or support the show, go

00:29:24
to justgrowsomethingpodcast.com. Until next time, my gardening

00:29:27
friends. Keep learning and keep growing

00:29:31
and reliable on both sides, both from ordering and for from from,

00:29:35
from. Try that again.

00:29:40
That specifically state the X blah blah blah blah Dang clear

00:29:48
and detailed information about what the seeds.

00:29:51
That's not what I'm trying to say.

00:29:52
Oh my goodness the seeds they offer.

00:29:56
This is irregardless. Irregardless, that is not a

00:29:59
word. First started their website was

00:30:03
it was kind of sparse and it was very difficult to sparse.

00:30:06
Sparse is not a word and some sort of guarantee and know where

00:30:11
the items are shipping from, from, from, from.

00:30:15
I am having all kinds of bloopers today.

00:30:17
Holy cow Blooper Reel is going to rock.