Seed Organization - Part 1

This is something that's been bugging me for awhile that I needed to tackle and I'm so glad that it's finally done. Praise the Lord. My incredible husband took the older two out while I put Norah down to bed and tackled this mess, alone in full concentration. I guess I shouldn't call it a "mess" due to the fact that I'm overwhelmingly grateful for the passion the Lord has given me for agriculture in general. As I sat down and sifted through the seed packets, running them through my hands, I couldn't help but think of others who would literally give almost anything to have these seeds which will grow healthy food for my family. It will nourish our bodies with fresh nutrients, wholesome goodness while hopefully spreading 'the passion' around with every blog post, egg delivery and bit of produce we give to others.

By "mess" I'm referring to the disorganization of it all...the seed packets themselves, the gardening books and catalogs, the poultry books and catalogs, helpful magazine tear-outs, notes and other odds and ends. Of coarse I have a binder for odds and ends...articles on butterflies, how to plant and make a backyard maze Mammoth Sunflowers, how to attract ladybugs, keep bees, etc. However, I needed a system for the seeds themselves and the inventory of it all. I used to just hit the Home Depot and grab about 10 packets of my favorite veggies and call it a day. Now that I am able to dry and obtain seeds from our bounties and the fact that I can't do that with normal seeds from Home Depot (lest they be hybrids, GMO, etc.), plus we have a bigger garden hence more seeds, I finally found a way to keep everything in its place.

I found this neat video on seed organization which I thought was cool. I also appreciate Quinn's blog post on the matter, but I found a method that worked for me and although it pains me that I'm not using an official BINDER (shocking, I know!), I think this works better for me.

Here is a copy of my Seed Inventory Sheets that I'm constantly changing as seeds are planted (and are no longer in inventory) and as new seeds come in or are dried and saved.

{page 1}

{pages 2 & 3}

{page 4}

Here's also a copy of my planting calendar according to this book...

I have it divided into months Jan.-Dec. on what to plant according to weather and heat. It's taped to our pantry so that I don't have to look things up in a book every month. I know what needs to be planted and when on a whim. The kids and I make this our afternoon activity as we head outdoors to water the garden, plant new seeds that need to be planted as well as collect eggs and check on food for the animals. Never a dull moment! (big smile)

I wish I was talented enough to make this some kind of link that readers could click on and print out for their own use, but I haven't figured out how to do that. Anyone know how to do this? I've seen it on other sites. Stay tuned for Part II, Lord-willing tomorrow. I have some photos on what kind of organization I chose for the seed packets. Fun stuff so stay tuned!

"You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail." Isaiah 58:11