Every winter, I sit down and go through my seed packets and bags. It keeps me occupied when the weather is still winter. I feel like I am accomplishing something, even if my garden is frozen solid.
I write down everything and organize it by what is new this year and what goes back 2 years. This is a way to keep on top of what you have and to see what you need. It also encourages purging older seeds that are still viable but have far lower germination rates.
It also encourages me to get my seed packets filed in order, and not sitting in random piles. I am still using this ammo can setup.
And once you know what you have on hand, you can start planning your planting/seeding dates. But now is also the time to purchase the seeds needed and attend seed swaps. Any seeds listed with a (2) means that the spare package could go with me to a seed swap.
And what are the best seeds? The best brands?
Well, I would say you need to look at that with the big picture – where you live, your microclimate, and what you want out of your seeds. Are you into only heirloom? Organic? Flexible with F1 hybrids? Do you want to save seeds as a goal? Take a read here on an article I wrote a while back.
But onto my personal seeds, while I have a lot on hand, I know there are still more seeds I will pick up. Not a lot, but still a few. Or I will buy plant starts.
What I Counted:
2026:
Tomato Prineope Borghese
Nantes Carrot Seed Tape
Kentucky Wonder Pole Bean
Royal Burgundy Bush Bean
Scarlet Nantes Carrot
French Breakfast Radish
Gourmet Blend Beets
Little Gem Mini-Romaine Lettuce
White Lisbon Bunching Onions
Clancy Potato
Red Wonder Strawberry
Yellow Wonder Strawberry
White Soul Strawberry
Sugar Snap Peas
Lincoln Peas
Thom Thumb Peas
Charmette Petit Pois (Peas)
Hedou Tiny Bok Choy
Five Color Swiss Chard
Zloty Lan Chamomile
Flat Dutch Cabbage
Mammoth Grey Sunflower
Alaska Red Nastirium
Golden Bantam Corn
Texas Early Onion
Seeds 2024/2025:
Decorative Gourds
Lettuce Mesclun
Lettuce Little Gem
Lettuce Merlot
Cucumber Pickling
Cucumber General Lee Slicing
Cucumber Supremo Slicing
Watermelon Sugar Baby
Watermelon Mountain Sweet Yellow
Lamb’s Ear
Common Dandelion
Common Evening Primrose
Elecampane
Echinacea Purple
Calendula Pacific Beauty
Mammoth Grey Sunflower
Hedou Tiny Bok Choy
Cabbage Kaitlin F1
Cabbage Muroc F1
Cabbage Storage No. 4 F1
Cabbage Eilderkraut
Cauliflower Cheddar F1
Cauliflower Amazing
Pepper Ajicharapite
Pepper Cayenne
Fennel
Avena Oats
Alfalfa Medicago Sativa
Red Clover
Scarlett Runner Beans
Hidatsa Red Indian Bean
Rockwell Beans
Orca Beans
Emmer Wheat
Nash’s Soft White Wheat
Red Wonder Strawberry
Yellow Wonder Strawberry
White Soul Strawberry
Alexandria Strawberry
Onion Walla Walla
Artichoke Green Globe
Asparagus Mary Washington (2)
Asparagus Argenteuil
Celery Utah
Wig Out Waltham Butternut Squash
Maxibel Bush Haricot Vert Beans
Montpelier Bean Bush
Herbs:
Bergamot
Borage (2)
Catnip
Anise
Lavender (2)
Lavender Munstead
Homebound
Lemon Balm
Peppermint
Marshmallow (2)
Chives
Basil Cinnamon
Hyssop (2)
Tarragon
Basil Italian
Valerian
Cilantro
Basil Blue Spice
Chervil
Fenugreek
Chamomile German
Yarrow Common White
Motherwort
Cumin Black
Toothache Plant
Holy Basil
Oregano
Angelica
Feverfew
White Sage
Lovage
Clary Sage
Stinging Nettle
~Sarah