Last week I started some of our garden plants indoors. This got me thinking about garden seeds and their importance for food security - both for preparedness and for self-sufficiency. During WWI and WWII in Britain, Canada, and the United States, people were encouraged to plant home gardens. Gardening seemed to fall out of favor for a number of years, but interest is growing once again. The COVID Era shutdowns showed us how quickly our supply chain can become disrupted. Even today I see signs in stores warning customers that supply chain issues are making it difficult to stock certain items. With this in mind, it might be a good time for more people to think about putting in a garden or at the very least investing in some quality garden seeds.
When choosing seeds for your garden, especially if you are choosing garden seeds with survival or preparedness in mind, it is important to choose non-GMO, non-hybrid, open-pollenated, heirloom seeds so that they can produce seed for you to use the following year. Having them packaged in mylar or a sealed can for long-term storage is important as well.
Patriot Seeds - We have purchased from this company several times over the years. They offer a survival seed vault, which gives you 20 varieties of heirloom seeds. The seed vaults are great - we have purchased these and love them - but we also love that they offer individual packages of heirloom seeds. This allows you to choose all of your favorite plants and varieties! All of their seeds are packaged in heavy-duty mylar bags for a shelf life of 5 or more years.
Mountain Valley Seed Company Vegetable Garden Can - This was the first "survival seed can" we purchased. We stuck it in the freezer for several years before opening it to use. Our can has been open for four years and the seeds are still sprouting and growing well. While it only contains 16 plant varieties, each variety was selected for its hardiness and ability to grow in many regions, including those with a short growing season. With a total of over 50,000 seeds, you will have plenty of each variety to plant. We couldn't be more pleased with these seeds. For hardy varieties that fare well, this option can't be beat.
Other Seed Options Not Specifically Packaged for Long Term:
We don't use seeds packaged for long-term storage for everything in our garden. One of my favorite things to do is try out new plant varieties. Whether it is a new winter squash I have not had before, a new variety of tomato, or a completely unfamiliar plant, I like to plant something new in the garden when I can. This year I found a place that has garden huckleberry seeds in stock. I was so excited for these to be one of our new to us varieties to plant.
Other seed companies we have used for quality garden seeds that aren't necessarily packaged for long-term storage are Azure Standard and St. Clare Heirloom Seeds. Both of these carry a variety of heirloom and organic seeds.
Storing Garden Seeds:
Garden seeds should be stored in a cool, dry place away from sunlight and moisture. Perhaps one of the best ways to store seeds is to keep each variety in a paper envelope and store the envelopes in a sealed container (such as a glass mason jar or a plastic container). Be sure that there is no condensation in the container as this can damage your seeds.
Keeping the sealed container in a refrigerator will increase their longevity. You can also store your survival garden seeds in the freezer for even greater longevity. We store our Mountain Valley Seed Company Garden Can in the freezer. Their seeds are packaged in heavy mylar bags and then sealed in a can, giving them good protection in low temperatures. We will be packaging seed from our own garden to keep in the freezer this year. I am looking forward to seeing how well they do!
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