Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Growing => Grow Your Own => Topic started by: 3759allen on December 29, 2017, 20:39
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haven't been on here for a while now since having my first child (taking far more time than i thought). i'm hoping i'll get more time with my little helper next year, so now thinking of my seed order for the year.
what seed supplier do you recommend (ideally on line)?
i used to use a seller on ebay (not going to name and shame) but the germination rate has got pretty poor over the last couple of years. i thought it may be me but even chitted half a pack of runner bean seeds that anyone can grow and got 5% germination. now thinking/ hoping it may be the seed supplier so looking for recommendations.
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Our Federation uses Kings, so far I have been very happy with both choice and quality.
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I buy mostly from Kings and Marshalls nowadays - but do sometimes get tempted by the other sites if they have a free postage offer (very useful for ordering seed potatoes) or multipack offer on.
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thank you kings prices look close to ebay prices. maybe try them this year.
just out of curiosity has anyone else found seeds on ebay have been lacking in quality over the last few years? my first year of growing i got all my seed from ebay and had very little failures, i thought it was me but i would like to think i'm learning and getting better techniques with every year but getting poorer germination.
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For seeds in bulk, it is very difficult to beat Moles Seeds.
https://www.wholesale.molesseeds.co.uk/
A couple of examples:
Autumn King carrots, Kings Seeds - £3.40 for 10,000. Moles Seeds £2.60 for twice as many.
Earlibird Sweetcorn, Kings Seeds - £1.80 for 50. Moles Seeds £3.80 for 250.
Postage is free on lightweight seeds, BUT there is a minimum order of £7.50 and you must need a lot of seed for yourself, or be able to split the packet with others. There is a further 3% off for paying at the time of order.
For smaller quantities, I use a well known internet trader, with whom I've never had a germination problem!
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I use D T Brown and have found them to be very good.
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Tried most of them find Moles the best
pipfit
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Our site still use DT's but I noticed that although their prices stayed similar year on year the quantity reduced. We had one bad year when members discovered the seed was mixed up and some had germination issues. That said I never had a problem however the choice and quantity for me is why I use the fed option and use Kings, we get discount and it is a tad more for the seed but I found more choice and more seed per packet which when worked out is the same as DT price. I have never used ebay, cant track the source of the seed although I am sure there is a number of decent sellers ou there.
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i buy a lot of my seed from moles have done for some years now i know they do come in larger quantity's than most but i think its value for money and i tend to use half the packet this year and the rest next year depending on the seed of cause
buy my seed potatoes beans peas green manure beet some carrot and onion seed i like there seed as well because they tend to do some pelleted seed that's better for me but having said that i also buy seed from Kings and browns never had any probs with the seed
i never buy seed from online or garden centres except when the garden centres are selling seed of at the end of the season usually half price or less :D
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i have had seed from moles before but the quantities are far too big for me and i hate wasting. i think i actually used 4 year old moles beetroot seed last year that still germinated better than the new seeds from the ebay seller. i'll have a look at moles again, maybe just have to give surplus away.
this thread is interesting because i'm sure i saw a thread asking for recommendations and at least 80% of the replies recommended the ebay seller i'm talking about (me included). maybe everyone has noticed similar to me as no body has said they still recommend the popular ebay seller.
i'm going to take this as a positive as it means it hasn't just been me failing, but i can blame the seed. lol
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I have to confess, I pay the premium for Suttons seeds normally, though I've ordered from Dobies this year and had a small issue that they are failing to deal with so far. Another plot holder loves Plants of Distinction and I may well give them a go next year as they have some fantastic tomato varieties available.
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I like Buy quality Vegetable Seeds - The Real Seed Catalogue UK. (http://www.realseeds.co.uk/) the heirloom online seller,haven't had any problems so far.They like you to save your own seed and suggest best ways to collect and save them :D
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Real Seeds (like Carollan) and Premier Seeds Direct (ebay/Amazon) for me. :)
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Another vote for Real Seeds here. Simpsons Seeds are good for chillies and tomatoes.
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I would also recommend Wallis Seeds for value, service, and germination. They are for my main seed order.
http://www.wallis-seeds.co.uk/ (http://www.wallis-seeds.co.uk/)
I have also ordered from Real Seeds, DT Brown and Premier Seeds (ebay) this year. :)
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I mainly use D. T. Brown and Kings and find them both to be really good. For this upcoming season I got 95% of my seed in the D. T. Brown "Brown Friday" sale in November where most of the seed varieties I wanted were £1 per packet (with just a few exceptions). This means that Kings have, unfortunately, lost out for this season.
I have tried seeds from said eBay seller in the past but no longer use them due to several packets of seeds not turning out to be the correct variety as ordered. For example I purchased some Gartenperle cherry tomato seeds in 2016 and the packet receieved was marked as such. These tomatoes are a relatively compact bush variety that I grow in flower buckets placed on top of our patio wall. They tend to do really well most seasons. Anyhow they actually turned out to be some huge beef stake variety of tomato of the indeterminate type. Furthermore because I'd put them outside they didn't do too well in the end :mad:
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well you live and learn never heard of that seed company before till you mentioned it Spadework so I'm going to have a look at there site :D
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I noticed growlikegrandad has done a price per seed comparison today, interesting reading I thought, although as he says price is not the only important factor when it comes to seed suppliers:
Edit to remove link
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Cheap seeds are OK sometimes. If it is fillers like salad mixes and the like, or seeds which are long lasting and tolerant of iffy storage conditions, it is fine. If they are crops you really wanted to get started at a certain time, it can be very frustrating when they just fail.
A lot of shops and garden centres don't have great conditions for keeping seeds in. There is one locally to me that is really just glorified polytunnels stuck together. It is freezing when it is cold out and boiling when the sun hits it. I often wonder what condition the seeds are in when I see people browsing the racks :unsure:
Mine are almost all mail order. I have some DT Brown, some Suttons, some Real Seed. I have used all of them before and they supply good quality products. It is also good if you know they will replace any stuff that does fail without quibbling :)
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another vote for plants/seeds of distinction
sandy
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I've used many seed suppliers over the years and whilst much more often than not there are no issues, occasionally there is a mislabelling or a germination problem. Virtually always the seeds are replaced with no quibbles. The only supplier I've found not to have done is a well known ebay based one.... I no longer use them
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Did a comparison this year between Dobies, DT Brown, Simply Seeds, Real Seeds and More Veg. Bought different things from each of them , but the majority were from Simply Seeds. More Veg were very cheap for small amounts of seed i.e. 20 Black Beauty Aubergines for 50P, 20 Spring Hero cabbage for 50p. DT Brown offer 75 Spring Hero for £2.59, but who can eat 75 spring cabbages?
I like to buy from Real Seeds because I admire their ethos of encouraging seed saving, and their enthusiasm for their products - you feel you're dealing with other Gardners (not like the big seed companies).
Not tried some of the other companies mentioned in other posts, but will certainly have a look next year.
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Agree with the posts above but just to throw in an extra comment.
I was visiting a garden one day and saw some Country Value seeds. I needed some marigolds so thought at 99p it was worth a shot. Germination was good.
Last year I forgot to buy sweetcorn seeds! I spotted the Country Value seeds in Bunnings (ex Homebase). Variety Incredible.
Germination was 100%, which I thought was impressive. Worth a try if you see them, I think.
Elaine
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@Elaine G: In a pinch I picked up some Country Value Scarlet Globe Radishes last year from Homebase and they too germinated very well.
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I would also recommend Wallis Seeds for value, service, and germination. They are for my main seed order.
http://www.wallis-seeds.co.uk/ (http://www.wallis-seeds.co.uk/)
I have also ordered from Real Seeds, DT Brown and Premier Seeds (ebay) this year. :)
has anyone tried to communicate with this company? i've sent two e mails asking advice about parsnip seed varieties and no reply. i think if they don't reply to make a sale they won't reply if there's a problem.
their price and selection seem good, and i suppose if their seeds are good quality i shouldn't need to contact them.
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I would also recommend Wallis Seeds for value, service, and germination. They are for my main seed order.
http://www.wallis-seeds.co.uk/ (http://www.wallis-seeds.co.uk/)
I have also ordered from Real Seeds, DT Brown and Premier Seeds (ebay) this year. :)
has anyone tried to communicate with this company? i've sent two e mails asking advice about parsnip seed varieties and no reply. i think if they don't reply to make a sale they won't reply if there's a problem.
their price and selection seem good, and i suppose if their seeds are good quality i shouldn't need to contact them.
i take this last comment back. got a reply with an answer to my query. i'll give them the benefit of the doubt and assume some how the first e mail got lost.
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as I understand veg seed is VAT free on non pictorial packets don't know about the pictorial seed packets because the price on the packet is the price you pay ?
but there is VAT on flower seed perhaps that's what makes flower seed more expensive :unsure: