Our Favorite Seed Companies

Yes, It’s January, but now is the time to start getting ready for spring! If you buy your seeds now, you can plan your gardens and have it all ready for planting.

We plan by drawing them out on paper or sometimes we just plant everything in the same place as the previous year. It's not good to plant the same things in the same place for to many years in a row.  This is because everything you grow takes nutrients out of the soil, and some things take different nutrients than others.  So if you rotate what you grow, and add in fertilizer in the fall, then you are sure to have great crops every year.  When we plant, we make sure to mark everything so if we save seeds we know what we are saving.

We have bought from lots of places, and some are better than others. So we thought we would share our favorite places to buy seeds.

Here they are, in no particular order:

Seed Mail Seed Co:

Stefane from @mint2grow owns this seed company Seed Mail Seed Co.  She started this company in 2017.  You can go here Stefane's Story and read all about her.  We bought our first seeds from her in February of 2019.  When we first started getting seeds from her, we could go to her website whenever we wanted something and order it.  Now she has grown so much that the only time you can order seeds is once a month when she does a restock.  You can follow her on Instagram @seedmailseedco or subscribe to her email list on her website.

Here are a few reasons why we support Stefane:

* Her seeds come in cute teal/mint colored packaging and did I mention... They are $.99!  Yes, you read that right... all her seeds are $.99 a package.  She also puts a special touch into each package.  We have gotten stickers, book marks, a pen, magnets.  It's so fun to open because you don't know what kind of surprise we will get.

* She is a small business.

* When I wanted some specific seeds, she got them for me. Here is the story:

I wanted to grow Jupiter's Beard for my mom.  Her best friend loved it and had it growing at her house.  Unfortunately she lost her fight with breast cancer (cancer sucks!).  A little before she died, she gave some of the Jupiter's Beard to my mom, but then my parents sold their house and moved.  For years I have searched for seeds to grow for my mom in remembrance of her best friend, but was unsuccessful in finding it.  Stefane @mint2grow has a seed company @seedmailseedco.  We have ordered lots of seeds from her and she asked me if there was anything I would like her to get.  I asked her about the Jupiter's Beard.  It didn't take her long before I heard back and she was getting them in.  I was SO EXCITED!!!  I just love Stefane!  She is such a kind, caring, and helpful person! I am SO GLAD I know her!

*Her seeds have great germination!

These are just a few reasons why we buy from her!

Mauro Seeds:

Mauro Seed Company is the only seed company with a cause (as stated on their website).  For every pack of seeds that is purchased they give a pack to someone in need.  You can read about their mission here Mauro Seed Mission.

We bought our first seeds in February 2019.  We love to support small businesses and feel even more like supporting them when they help others out.

They have great seeds, not a lot, but I like it that way.  When I look at huge seed companies I get overwhelmed looking at so many seeds and varieties and end up not buying much because I just can't keep looking through them all.

I love their packaging.  Their simple yet pretty designs on each package is eye catching.

They include a Gardening 101 booklet to help you get started.

We have their sticker on our seed storage box.

As of today, they are all sold out of all but like 2 packets of seeds.  You can buy a sweatshirt or t-shirts.

Seeds Now:

We have purchased some seeds from Seeds Now for almost two years now.  When you buy seeds, it usually comes with a free starter kit.  One of the free kits was for Sugar Ann Peas.

As of right now their store says it's closed.  I'm not sure when it will re-open, but hopefully soon.

They send their seeds in small plastic zipper pouches.  They have a clear picture of what that item should look like.  They are a bigger company so be prepared to look through lots of seeds.  You can search if you are specifically looking for a certain seed.

They have kind friendly staff.

Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds:

 Baker Creek is another larger company, but they have free shipping on all North American orders.  Right now due to COVID it is taking them longer to get orders processed and shipped.  You can read about that here Delayed Shipping.

I love their packaging.

The seeds have great germination.

They have seeds that we can't find anywhere else.

ZellaJakeFarmGarden:  

This small company Zella Jake Farm Garden is on Etsy.  They have lots of seeds to choose from.  They are located in Florida and at least for me, they have free shipping.

Their seeds come in small plastic zipper bags and have the weight or how many seeds are in each package.  It tells you the germination rate and the date they were saved.

They have some seeds that we can't find anywhere else.

Their prices are good.

True-Leaf Market:

This company True-Leaf Market is located in Salt Lake City, Utah.  They ship to anywhere and as of right now offer free shipping on orders over $45.  If you are local you can place a will-call order online and they will email you when it's ready for pick-up.

We haven't yet bought seeds from them, but are planning on it.  We will update you on them when we get our first order.

Super Duper Seed Swap:

We also enjoy participating in seed swaps.  It's a great way to meet fellow gardeners/farmers and possibly get seeds you've wanted or maybe you've never heard of.  Our favorite is Super Duper Seed Swap.  Forest Clinton is the one that does this one.  That I know of, there isn't a swap going on anytime soon.  You can follow her on Instagram @superduperseedswap and be one of the first to know when she does one.

I just looked at the website and you can buy seeds!!  I am so excited!  It definitely makes our list of places to buy seeds.

You can also buy Forest's Egg Yolk soaps and Dried Luffa Sponges!

Well...

For now, this is all we have.  We know that some of these places you can't order seed from, but hopefully you can soon.

I hope this list has given you some choices for buying seeds and supporting some small businesses.

If you are looking for some specific seeds, and we have enough, we are willing to trade or you could buy some from us.  Email us at hechfamfarm98@gmail.com or onesillyhappyfamily@gmail.com

Update:

The Buffalo Seed Company

We recently bought seeds from The Buffalo Seed Co. and so far are pleased with them.

The seeds arrived quickly after ordering them.

They shipped our seeds in a recycled box. Gotta love that they are reusing and reducing waste!

Their seeds packets were simple, but pretty!

They had a good variety and weren’t expensive!

They even sent a pack of seeds that I didn’t order as a thank you gift!