Seed Swap Etiquette

A seed swap is a semi-organized exchange of seeds between gardeners. In the past, it was often done at gardening clubs or among neighbors, but the internet allows gardeners who have never met in person to trade some of their seeds for those grown in other gardens.

Rules for Using the Seed Swap Page

  1. You may not charge money for your seeds.
  2. All photos you post must be appropriate for people of all ages to view (i.e. ‘G’ rated).
  3. You may not use the seed swap area to promote your website or business.
  4. You may not contact people using the seed swap area for anything other than exchanging seeds.
  5. All seed swap ads must be about either the seeds you have to trade or the seeds you are looking for. No ads about other topics are permitted

Internet Safety

I’d like to think that everyone who reads Life on the Balcony is a good person, but you can never be too cautious. Don’t post your address in your seed swap ads, or any other private information. There is also no need to post your email directly into the body of the ad. The software I am using to host the seed swap pages automatically encrypts your email address while allowing interested swapers to contact you about a trade. Use common sense when interacting with other seed swappers.

Collecting Seeds

This may seem obvious, but you must leave flower heads on plants that you want to set seed. Don’t deadhead to prolong bloom. Also, many popular garden plants, grown for flowers or for food, are hybrids and either do not produce seed or their seeds are not viable (viable means able to germinate and grow). In any case, before you can collect seed from any plant it must go through the whole cycle of flowering, being pollinated, developing seed, and ripening.

It’s best to let seeds ripen on the plants until they are almost ready to disperse on their own. Seeds collected too early will not be viable. Once seeds have finished enlarging, they will generally change color (from whitish or green to tan, brown, or black) and begin to dry out. Pods will start splitting open, berries or fruits will shrink and wrinkle, or flower heads will begin to fall apart, dropping the seeds within.

For information about collecting seeds from specific plants, I highly recommend you check Mr. Brown Thumb’s guides to seed collecting. He has done a fabulous job taking photos and videos of his seed collecting adventures.

Seed Viability

Before giving any seeds to a friend or stranger, it’s good gardening etiquette to test seeds to make sure they are viable, that is, to make sure they will actually sprout! To do this, place a couple of the seeds on a damp paper towel inside a Ziploc bag. Use a permanent marker to label the bag with the date. Check the bag a couple of days later to see if they have sprouted. If they sprout, they’re swappable!

Packaging Seeds

You can show some creativity when packaging seeds if you’d like. Craft shops and dollar stores sell tiny, plastic, airtight bags that are perfect for storing seeds. Label these small seed bags with a permanent marker, or slip a small label inside the bag along with the seeds, providing the seed type and brief instructions for sowing. Office supply stores also sell small paper envelopes that can be sealed and are ideal for storing seeds. When using these, write the name of the seed variety and the instructions for growing on the envelope itself. Add a logo or a business card to the seed packets to personalize the design. I’ve also posted a template that you can use to make your own seed packet out of whatever fun paper you have on hand.

How Many Seeds Is a “Fair Trade?”

A fair trade is whatever you and the other trader agree to. Generally, two to three dozen seeds should be enough to ensure germination and growth of a satisfying number of plants. However, the most certain way to ensure everyone is happy is to discuss quantities when negotiating the trade.

Shipping Seeds

According to the U.S. Postal Service, padded envelopes, unpadded envelopes larger than 11 1/2′ x 6 1/2′, metered mail, and mail marked for hand canceling and sorting should avoid automated postal machinery. However, it is prudent to protect seeds with some sort of soft padding: folded paper towel, bubble wrap, etc. If you are sending out several packets of seeds, it is helpful to tape the packets down individually to an envelope-sized piece of cardboard before wrapping with padding so the packets don’t shift on top of one another, making a bulkier envelope that is more easily damaged. Regular letter or legal size envelopes should be kept as flat as possible with minimal padding to avoid being torn in transit.

Generally speaking, large, soft, and/or very fragile seeds require more careful packing and will probably travel safest in a padded mailer. You can save and reuse any padded mailers you receive to help lower expenses. Do your due diligence when swapping internationally, as the import and export rules of different countries can be tricky to navigate. The United States Postal Service requires a customs declaration form be filled out by the sender, identifying the contents and declaring a value: the simplest is to put ‘flower seeds’ and ‘gift – no value’ so no duty fees will be assessed.