If the seed companies follow their usual schedules for mailing out seed catalogs, I should receive the first seed catalog in my mailbox in about nine weeks. I know this little tidbit of information not because I remember exactly when I get all the seed catalogs. I know this because I write an entry in my garden journal when I get that first catalog.
“Received first seed catalog” was the entry last October 9th.
Do you know what it means if you record in your garden journal when you got your first seed catalog?
It means you might be a special kind of gardening geek, a seedy one.
You might also be a seedy gardening geek if…
You grow most of the plants for your vegetable garden from seed. Bonus points if you started seeds indoors before the last frost date. Double bonus points for growing perennials from seed.
You keep all your old seed packets because you might want to refer back to the information on one of them. Bonus points if just the other day you went through a bunch of old seed packets to find a particular one from 2001.
You track all the seeds you bought on a spreadsheet, sorted by type of seed and then sorted by which ones you will sow indoors and which ones you will sow outdoors. Bonus points if you’ve kept copies of these spreadsheets from previous years.
You kept a copy of a seed catalog because you thought it might be fun to look back through someday. Bonus points if it was from 1976, the U.S. Bicentennial year, and you kept it because you thought it would be as good a souvenir from that year as anything else.
Your high school classmates thought that one day you might end up writing descriptions for the Burpee seed catalog. Bonus points if that prediction was included in your high school yearbook for everyone to read years later.
You actually own special seed sowing spoons that make it easier to pick up tiny little seeds. Bonus points if you aren’t afraid of the tiny little seeds.
You see seeds everywhere in the garden and want to collect them all. Bonus points if you do collect seeds from your garden.
You open any “junk” drawer in your house and find one or two or bunches of seed packets. Bonus points if you can look around where you are right now reading this post and see at least one seed packet.
You know about stratification and scarification. Bonus points if you have stratified or scarified seed.
You always look at the seed racks at any store that has them, even though you have all the seeds you need. Bonus points if you usually buy some of those seeds from the store even though you know you already have more seeds than you have time or space to sow.
You remember when Frank’s Nursery and Crafts used to sell seeds early in the season for 50% off and you regularly saved $25 by shopping there. Oops, that’s more a sign of being a gardening geek 50 and over!
You always buy more seeds than you actually sow. Bonus points if you thought to give some of your extra seeds to someone else to try!
And one last one…
You know that seeds can also be sown in late summer and fall for some vegetables and flowers and therefore sign up for the seed giveaway sponsored by Botanical Interests. Hurry, giveaway ends on Friday, July 31st at 5:00 PM EDT!
You might also be a gardening geek in other ways, such as …
Hi, my name is Tara, and I'm a seed geek. Chorus, Hi Tara
I figured I would strike out at beening a seed geek. I was able to answer "I do that" to a few of these so I am sure I could fit in while I am collecting a few seeds and sprinkling them around the garden or looking through the stack of seeds that I didn't get planted.
To keep the seed packets is a sensible thing to do.. for reference later.
~ bangchik
When it comes to seeds I have the geeknees 110%!!
I guess it's another "over 50" sign that I still have my seed spreadsheets from before I owned a computer. Yes! Paper spreadsheets! But I did use a hand held calculator to figure out price per seed.
Ok, you've got me! I'm a gardening geek too! Bonus points for you because you have a great gardening blog!!!
Wow, I'm more of geek than I thought! I scored some major bonus points in this one. And, although I'm not in the Over-50 Club, I do remember Frank's Nursery & Crafts–I loved that store! I used to buy plants there all the time!
Oh, yes, I am a gardening geek. Not only are there drawers, shelves and cabinets with seed packets, there are bags, baskets, boxes and assorted plastic containers with collected seeds! If only I'd labeled them all …
I rarely do seeds, but I'm still a gardening geek, that is for sure!
I'm not too seedy, but I do intend to collect seeds from the garden. In fact, I've already collected some.
I have been a gardening geek in the past…now, I'm just a sometimes pack rat. 🙂
Hi Carol
Long time lurker, first time poster. I'm such a Gardening Geek I created a seed packet template so I can keep seed in packets I decorate myself. If you would like to make seed packets too, you can download the template here.
These all look like great ideas to me, even though I'm not doing to many of them. I aspire to geekdom.
Oh, I guess I'm geek there too. I have some of the symptoms. Doctor, doctor, can you give me a pill?~~Dee
Carol: You are a full fledged Garden Geek just like the rest of us gardeners. Being a Geek is one of the symptoms of Gardenitice and all gardeners have that. It looks like You, Liza and I and all those commenting to this post have joined the Geek Club.
Enjoy your Gardens they are wonderfull things,
John and Liza
Carol, I would never consider myself a seedy garden geek, but I was able to answer a few of these questions with a resounding yes, so maybe I'm on my way! My very first tomato plant started from seed is blooming right now–I'm so excited!
I still have seeds I bought this spring and from Spring Fling that I never got planted, but I'm still going to hop over to Botanical Interests so I can enter your seed giveaway right now:)
Oh Dear – I seemed to have scored a lot of bonus points – and I don't have to wait until the first catalog arrives, I manage to buy loads of seeds all through the year on the internet.
K
My husband just brought a load of dirt, and I was so excited, and a load of manue from the local horse farm can make me the happiest garden geek in the whole country.
I am definitely a garden geek of the seedy variety!
love the conclusion of the blog! and yes.. I am Definitely a Garden Geek!!!