Seed Saving And Sharing

(The radish seeds, contained within these pods, are almost ready to harvest. They merely need to dry a bit.)

I reserve a part of the harvest for the wildlife.

The Mafia Squirrels will steal some cherry tomatoes. The birds will eat some raspberries. The slugs will devour some green beans.

That is the reality of gardening and is a part of the honor of sharing this wonderful planet with other lifeforms.

I also, however, reserve a part of the harvest for seeds.

I allow some plants, like radishes and spinach and others, to flower and then go to seed. This is a long process and I can’t use that garden space for anything else while it is happening.

But it is necessary to ensure there will be a harvest next year.

We saw during the early days of COVID that buying seeds is not always a reliable option. It was almost impossible to find lettuce seeds in my part of the world in 2020, for example.

If times get tough, seeds will be difficult to obtain again.

Plus saved seeds are usually more suited to our particular growing conditions. The plants that survived to give us those seeds thrived in our gardens.

Often, when we save seeds, we end up with WAY more seeds than we could ever possibly use.

I could convert the entire neighborhood to 100% spinach lawns with the seeds I’ve saved.

(grins)

I share my excess seeds with other gardeners in the area. It is an easy and free way to make their lives a little bit happier.