Saving Seeds To Save Money

I am definitely saving my seeds this year. I have a lot of crops growing now so once they start to sprout and they're ready to harvest, I plan to save the first pick of each plant so I can de-seed them and build up for next year. This will be my first year having any sort of success with growing plants to actually eat, so I'm very excited. I already was able to regrow a green bean plant from a fresh string bean that I got from the local market. It's so rewarding.

 

I had a butternut crop that performed quite well. I took the biggest and healthiest ones and scraped the seeds in order to dry them for planting only to discover that they were smaller than expected and somehow shrivelled. I tend to view second generation seeds as being less effective to produce a viable crop. I guess when it comes to seeds, cheap can be expensive. But this applies to hybrids, otherwise traditional seeds are quite good to save.

 

Much as I would agree that growing from seed is a fun and extremely rewarding way to garden and that depending on what type of plants you are planning to collect seeds from - saving your own seeds could save a small amount of money.

I would just say that - apart from the fact that seed is one of the least costly elements of a garden - if wanting to grow vegetables - collecting and saving home-grown vegetable seed in order to try and save money is generally false economy - for the simple reason that - as the majority of vegetables and fruits grown today are now hybrid varieties rather than old heirloom varieties - the seeds of which are usually sterile or if they do reproduce - rarely ever even remotely resemble the mother plant - but more importantly - normally result in poor quality, low yield, disease susceptible plants with unpleasant tasting fruits and there is therefore - no guarantee that you will have any vegetables - let alone anything edible.

Its usually way, way better - if wanting guaranteed results - to buy fresh vegetable seeds every spring and make savings in other more beneficial ways - for example - making your own fertilizers, compost, plant ties, labels and recycling containers for growing seedlings and young plants or even making your own from paper, cardboard or citrus skins - along with collecting rainwater and multiplying everything you already have in your garden - by either division or growing from cuttings and taking care of your garden tools by keeping them clean and well maintained - will all result in way bigger savings than the small amount you may or may not save from not buying seeds.

 

Something else to consider is that some plant seeds, such as tomatoes and cucumbers, should be started indoors first and then planted in the garden when they reach a certain height. If you're planning on growing these types of seeds, you'll need to figure in the cost for soil and small containers. In the past, I've tried planting different vegetables from seeds I had saved, but never had much luck, but that doesn't mean it can't be done.

What we do have luck with though, is flowers. Last year, my sister saved a large container full of seeds from our marigolds and zinnias. We planted the seeds this year, they all came up and they're just now beginning to bloom. We also have a few wayward sunflowers coming up in the green bean row. Some of the seeds from last years sunflowers ended up in different areas in the garden and started to grow this year. I just left them where they're at, because I really do like sunflowers.

 

I'm not really fond of gardening, but I do see my dad collecting seeds of various kinds for future use, although at times he gives them away to other people. He used to buy plants too so that he will not plant seeds anymore.

 

It's easy these days for marketers to dupe people into believing that they need to buy hybrid seeds each season. Actually it's these lies that make it people unwilling to save seeds anymore because there's this belief that they won't get a high yield among other things.

Buy heirloom seeds. When the plants mature, save their seeds and you'll never need to buy seeds again.

 

I used to grow tomatoes, peppers, herbs and lettuce. I haven't had any luck this year with my garden, probably because we've had so much rain, and my garden is on the balcony, which is uncovered. Last year, I planted lettuce and forgot all about it until I realized what the cats were eating. This is the first time I haven't had success with growing tomatoes from seed, and I'm using the same seed package I used last year, since I only plant the one plant, not a bunch of different pots/plants. I use one large pot, in one particular spot, but this year was different somehow. I put a few more of the seeds in yesterday, just in case I can grow some still. We have an extended growing season here, so it wouldn't be unusual to have more than one crop.

I agree, if I were buying seeds nowadays, I would buy heirloom seeds, and I believe they do produce a better yield. I have enough seeds here to last me a while, since I don't grow a lot. I haven't had any luck with herbs on the balcony, they get too much sun and tend to burn up. The ones I had years ago were stolen, and the patio I grew them on got a lot of shade, so perhaps that's the environment where they do best.

 

My mom used to grow beans and snow peas in the garden. I remember every fall she would let some of the beans and peas go to seed. She'd pick them at the end of the season and dry out the seeds. The next spring she would plant them or share the seeds. Many of our neighbours did the same so they would trade seeds. She would often throw old rotten potatoes in the garden compost and they would start to grow. She'd move it over to the garden and lo and behold we had potato plants growing. I guess it's a lot cheaper to cultivate your garden from your own seeds. It just takes a bit more of your time.

 

I normally save the seeds of the plants that I decide to grow and I don't prefer buying them online because we wouldn't be able to physically see the condition of the seeds. If I am planning to but seeds then I would go to the market and buy it directly from the vendor. Like you said if we save seeds in our home it would save us money.

 

Yes, I agree with you that saving seeds can help to save money too. So far, I haven't try to buy seeds from store yet. I have been getting the seeds from my neighbors or from my own plants. Moreover, I like to plant those vegetables that will continue to grow even if we have cut a part of them, so we do not need to replant them always.

 

Well I'm not really fond of plants, but it did cross my mind to plant the seeds of the watermelon that I was eating, but I figured it won''t really grow, since my dad who is a plant buff did not think of using the seeds to plant it in our backyard. But given the chance though, if the plant was easy to sprout and grow then why not, right?

 

Pardon me if this is straying from the topic. I just want to share my style with seeds particularly the seeds of melon, watermelon and squash. Instead of throwing the seeds of the said fruit and vegetable, we wash and collect the seeds for drying. On the next day, it is ready for frying (with no oil). The fried seeds are so good for snacks and the squash seeds is one of my favorites to munch on while watching tv. No need to buy the processed seeds because it is so easy to prepare. All you need is a non-stick pan for frying with no oil. And for planting, yeah, I also save some seeds so I don’t need to buy if ever I decide to plant melon or squash.