[plopleuk]

just spent around £13 at DT brown online and used the discount code found here http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/down/ give me 10% discount 

[sion01]

I'm almost up to £50 with just potatoes but next year if I keep the small ones that will be a one off.Still got the seeds ,shallots and onions to think about.So could double

[Auntiemogs]

I have probably spent too much on seeds for this year but I have to say most of it was before I discovered this site. I have a much better idea now of my limitations and what will/won't work, so thank you guys. 
I suppose I can also justify it to myself because I don't get out much. 

[sarajane]

I've probably spent about £50 this year, including spuds, onions garlic and enough flower seeds for the garden and plot.  That is far more than I spend normally but needed to do a re-stock of seeds and didn't get time to get the wilkos 75% off in the autumn.

However, still think thats a good deal as if I include the allotment rent of £36 a year its just over £1.50 a week for all my veg supplies (and fruit which I have built up over the years).

And if a look at what my friends pay for gym membership each year and I also get the fresh air  -  and a hobby I adore - BARGAIN 

[TheSpartacat]

LOL sounds familiar I get all the catalogues too but hardly ever buy, I had an email off Suttons a few days ago advertising there first early spuds for JUST £8.49 for 3kg I nearly choked I pay £3 for 3kg suffice to say I won't be taking them up on there fantastic offer.

Ah, yup... sounds like we're looking at the same company. I had some fun going through the catalogue doing a reverse version of the "Price per seed at Moles"
I think the winner was an F1 cucumber that was 4 seeds for £4.99.
Yes... four! 
Knowing the high mortality rate of cucumber plants, that'll amount to 1 plant with a bit of luck.

Could be worse though. While perusing ebay, i noticed there were some sellers on there offering "5 apple seeds for £1 - variety unknown" and people have bought them

[BabbyAnn]

I used to go overboard when I first got my allotment plot - I think it's part of the course.  The first time I opened a paper catalogue I was amazed by all the varieties and they all sounded wonderful, but online catalogues are even worse with the glossy photos and so tempting.  For someone who doesn't like eating raw tomatoes, I seemed to get an awful lot of seeds because the blurb just made them sound exquisite but at the end of the day, I decided I still didn't like raw tomatoes. 

These days I'm a bit more picky and shop carefully as I've got a better idea of what grows well on my plot and what I like plus my seed boxes are still pretty full, and I now take full advantage of catalogue bargains such as free p&p and sales instead though it doesn't stop me from always trying something different (this year oca).  I'd say with including potatoes (5x different variety packs of 20 tubers each) that I've probably spent about £30 this year.

[stompy]

I think Moles are by far the best value if you need seeds in bulk.

Just put together a basket with Alan Romans and it came to £16.30
 
French Climbing Bean 'Cobra'-1 Packet 15g (ave 45 seeds)
SKU: vbe004      £0.90
 
Runner Bean 'White Lady'-1 packet (50g approx 48 seeds)
SKU: pb0407      £0.90
 
Cape Gooseberry 'Golden Berry Pineapple'-1 packet (ave 20 seeds)
SKU:       £0.60
 
Carrot Healthmaster F1-1 packet (500 seeds)
SKU: vg207      £0.60
 
Cauliflower 'All The Year Round'-1 packet (50 seeds)
SKU: nvg106      £0.50
 
Celery 'Galaxy Lathom Self Blanching'-1 Packet (500 Seeds)
SKU: Ve018      £0.80
 
Courgette 'Soleil' F1-1 packet (8 seeds)
SKU: vco006      £0.80
 
Courgette 'Defender' F1-1 packet (10 seeds)
SKU: vco007vco008      £0.80
 
Cucumber 'Marketmore'-1 packet (ave 10 seeds)
SKU: ve125      £0.50
 
Lettuce 'Little Gem'-1 Packet (250 seeds)
SKU: ve030      £0.50

Lettuce 'All Year Round'-1 Packet (250 seeds)
SKU: ve634      £0.50

Melon 'Ogen'-1 Packet ( ave 10 seeds)
SKU:       £0.70
 
Parsnip 'Tender and True'-1 packet (ave 150 seeds)
SKU:       £0.60
 
Pea 'Hurst GreenShaft'-1 Packet (50g approx 240 seeds)
SKU: pb0210      £0.90
 
Pepper (Hot) Jalapeno-packet -10seeds
SKU: veg456b      £1.00
 
Winter Squash Butternut 'Avalon' F1-1 packet (8 seeds)
SKU:       £0.80
 
Winter Squash 'Potimarron'-1 packet (10 seeds)
SKU:       £0.80
 
Swede 'Marian'-1 Packet (500 seeds)
SKU: vsw001      £0.80
 
Tomato 'Sungold' F1 (Cordon Indeterminate)-1 packet (6 seeds)
SKU: nv607      £1.60

Tomato 'Tigerella' (Cordon Indeterminate)-1 Packet (ave 25 seeds )
SKU: vtom02      £0.60
 
Tomato 'Marmande' (semi bush)-1 Packet (ave 40 seeds)
SKU:       £0.60
 
Turnip Snowball-1 Packet (350 Seeds)
SKU: Veg0021      £0.50

 Not as many seeds as moles (quantity per pack) but i would never get through 5000 beetroot seeds  

The only problem i found with Alan Romans is the lack of varieties, but saying that they did have most of what i wanted to plant so i will be placing my order with them when i get paid  :happy:

[Nobbie]

Probably about £20 tops, I buy most of the standard stuff at Wilkos when they reduce by 75% at the end of the season, except parsnip which are bought fresh. For a wider range of varieties I buy at a big garden centre when they are selling off old seed. I simply can't bring myself to pay £3 for a handfull of seeds and don't need the big quantities from Moles.

[bazh]

Stompy I agree moles looks good value if your buying between friends in bulk, have a look at premier seeds direct on ebay they come highly recommended by a few people on here and on my site, I've bought marketmore cucumber seeds off them @ 99p for 80 seeds now I'll never get through 80 seeds in a year as I only really want to grow 2 maybe 3 plants at most a year but with cucumber seeds being viable for 5 years it works out at decent value and you only pay a standard 59 postage whether you order 1 or 100 packets of seeds.

By the way nice choice of pea

[Growster...]

Whatever happened to pelleted seed then...?

Surely they could have been better developed to give gardeners - say 25 seeds - and even charged a few pennies premium, but as someone says 5,000 beetroot is nearly a full row down here...;0)

[seedman]

Whatever happened to pelleted seed then...?

Surely they could have been better developed to give gardeners - say 25 seeds - and even charged a few pennies premium, but as someone says 5,000 beetroot is nearly a full row down here...;0)

A full row up here that would be a full plot 

[fuzzy1983]

I brought a bumper pack off ebay. 120 thompson morgon seeds for £35. worked out at 30p
a packet. I only need around £10 more to fill in the holes and then go from there.

I have a big project so if I was to give you the amount of area Im covering I would say 1 quarter of a football field. Yes a large area. Sympathy comments welcome.

[p00rstudent]

Mine came to about £68 this year, i also order from moles as i have found them to be far more reliable and better value than a lot of other places. I usually end up with more seeds than i need but any i don't use i give to my friend. Plus when it comes to the tomato's and peppers i tend to sow all of them and grow them on (often ending up with just shy of a 100 or so plants each) take the ones i need for myself (usually around 30 odd), give some to friends, and then what ever i have left over i sell to people at work at cost. So if the seed packet cost £3.40 and i get say 100 of them to the potting on stage, i take 30, my friends take another 20 thats 50 left, I divide the cost of the seed packet by the number of plants, thus 340p/50 = 6.8p (so call it 7p) i then add on about 10p for the cost of the pot, so 17p a plant. (though if they give the pot back intact i give them their 10p back),. Thus the seeds pay for them selves.

it only works for things like tom, and peppers though. So it might seem like a lot to start with but by the end of the year the cost has actually come down a bit.

last year i started recording what i spent on the plot against what the cost of veg/fruit would have cost if i had to buy it from the super market.
last year the total cost was about £190, (about £90 on seeds/set/spuds, £70 on rent, £30 on odds and ends) i gave up recording the vegetables after i reached around £210 mark in July.

[stompy]

last year i started recording what i spent on the plot against what the cost of veg/fruit would have cost if i had to buy it from the super market.

This has been discussed many times and it works out monetary  and time wise to be slightly more costly than the supermarket, but there's the fresh air exercice fresh veg  with no chemicals (etc etc).

All i know is that it costs us as a family of 4 around £50 a week for fresh stuff, so if i can reduce that cost through one of my hobies that i enjoy so much then thats all to the good.

We will never be self sufficient but we keep trying  :happy:

[mumofstig]

This has been discussed many times and it works out monetary  and time wise to be slightly more costly than the supermarket

I think that is only true if you charge for your labour 

I certainily get more value from harvested crops as against spending on seeds, compost & fertiliser.