Like many of you, I have lots of packets of seeds. More than I can plant in one season for sure. I will confess, I feel like I need them all! Worse yet I used to miss planting some because I somehow misplaced them.
As an attempt to maintain my seed sanity, I have come up with a simple way to organize my seeds. This little system allows me to see ALL the seed choices I have for a particular season.
My seeding organizing drawer for cool-season hardy annuals. I organize by the season they can be planted or started.
Want to do it?
You will need two containers. The size of the container depends on how much of a seed packet problem you have. Most folks can make do with two smallish containers, but for folks like me, you may need whole refrigerator drawers!
Label one container Spring/Summer for warm-season tender annuals and the other Fall/Early Spring for the cool-season hardy annuals. Sort your seeds by the season that they are to be started or planted. If you aren’t sure which type they are, enter into a search engine the name of the seed and ask if it is a cool or warm season plant.
You can drill down even further in each container by categorizing flowers from vegetables, and those that can be direct seeded from those that need to be started indoors. This is also an excellent place to stow your seed starting notebook.
This system makes it possible to purchase seeds anytime and drop them into their respective container to wait for their time. I don’t know about you, but if I learn of a plant today that shouldn’t be planted until the next season, I need to either buy the seed immediately or I totally forget about it. This no-thought system for after the purchase helps me to follow through on actually getting it planted.
My method is to purchase and when the seed arrives, just drop it in the appropriate box or drawer in my case! Then when that season comes along, I grab that drawer and right there are all the seeds I have available.
We are gearing up to start our first seeds of the new year; cool-season hardy annual flowers and vegetables. These are the cool weather loving plants that go in the garden up to 6-8 weeks before the last spring frost date.
It is seed starting time!!! My favorite time of year!
I can almost promise you when I pull out the Fall / Early Spring drawer of seeds, I will find a packet or two of treasures I purchase last year that I have complete forgotten about. Bonus!
This system is so simple, but helps so much! To learn more about storing seeds read Storing Seeds Longer.
It’s seed starting time folks!
Lisa Z
The Field and Garden Podcast is produced by Lisa Mason Ziegler, award-winning author of Vegetables Love Flowers and Cool Flowers, owner of The Gardener’s Workshop, Flower Farming School Online, and the publisher of Farmer-Florist School Online and Florist School Online. Watch Lisa’s Story and connect with Lisa on social media!
