Sunday Magazine – August 11, 2019

50 S MAGAZINE ★ 11 AUGUST 2019

Alan Titchmarsh

Unusual alpines, cottage-garden

plants and perennials are regularly

shared by enthusiasts using

seed-swap schemes organised

by specialist plant societies.

Members are entitled to a certain

number of packets and if they also

donate home-saved seeds they

can draw out a large share.

What’s more, the seeds are

all free. For lovers of antique

vegetable varieties, The Heritage

Seed Library at Garden Organic

(gardenorganic.org.uk) organises

seed guardians – enthusiasts

who undertake to adopt a

particular variety of veg and

donate back to the scheme. Library

members are entitled to a few

packets of seed in return for their

membership fee and guardians

are allowed more. It’s a great idea.

O

ur grandfathers did it

for reasons of thrift,

earlier generations

did it because there

was no alternative

and collectors consider it very

worthwhile today – but most

gardeners never think about

saving seeds. Why bother when

there’s a garden centre down the

road selling packets of anything

you might want?

Actually, there are several good

reasons. First of all, there’s cost.

The price of seeds can hurt when

you’re stocking a patio full of

containers, filling gaps around

the garden and planning next

year’s vegetables.

Then there’s exclusivity. Seed

saving is a great way to circulate

rare or hard-to-come-by plants.

Why waste a packet on shop-bought

seeds when you can save your own?

And sow

to bed...

Violas (left) and Aquilegia (above and

far right) are good sources of free seeds

Wild-flower seeds

should be sown as soon as

GETTY IMAGES possible after being collected