Back when I started gardening, I use to just rip off the very tops of my seed packets and then store all of them in the same gallon sized plastic bag. It worked for the most part but I probably had 15-20 seed packets in the bag at any given time, so it really wasn’t all that hard to find what I was looking for. Eventually buying more seed packets became something like an addiction. I just kept getting more and more and things weren’t so easy to find. Plus, sometimes the seeds found their way out of the envelopes and into the general population. My wife doesn’t have much to do with the garden (she likes the end product), but I’m pretty sure she told me that I needed a better way to organize my seeds.
I’m guessing I probably googled “seed organizing” or “seed library” (or looked on Pinterest) and looked and looked for something that might work for me. Organization is not something that comes easy to me. I can organize things well, but keeping things organized just isn’t something I’m wired to do. If I have any hope of keeping on top of it, it has to be easy and something that I can contain within itself.
The Notebook
I spent a little more on the notebook (about $40) than I was planning on, but I’ve used something similar at work in the past and it was really durable. For a project like this, I wanted something that would hold up for an extended period of time. After using this for a couple seasons, it’s still in great shape. I’m really happy that it has a zipper because sometimes the seeds baggies fall out of the card holders and other times I get super lazy and tired and I can just throw stuff back in it, zip it up, and not worry about it. It also has a built in pencil pouch and accordion file. All of the little extra features have come in handy. In the end, I think it was worth paying a little extra money.
Other Supplies
We have a bazillion plastic sheet protectors and extra notebook dividers (hazard of being in education) in home office. I didn’t spend any money on them supplies since I already had them on hand. You can get them just about anywhere. The dollar store (or is it the $1.25 store now?) is always a good place to look for them to save a few bucks.
I ordered some 2.5 x 3 inch plastic bags from Amazon (affiliate link). Even though I’m pretty sure that I won’t use 500 of them any time soon, the price for 100 or 500 is the same so why not be extravagant? To store and organize the baggies, I ordered trading card holders/sleeves from Amazon as well (link). You used to be able to buy them at Target or WalMart but I’m not sure if they sell them in-store anymore. Besides it was more convenient to order the notebook, baggies, and baseball card holders at the same time.
Last summer (well after I organized the notebook and I had used it for a bit), I ended up ordering address labels from, you guessed it, Amazon (link). I initially used regular old Avery mailing labels but they are meant to stick to paper. They ended up coming off pretty easily going in and out of the card holders. Sharpies work, but you have to make sure they dry before you handle them. Being right handed also helps. My fellow lefties will totally get it. I also tried using my p-touch label maker and it worked, but I honestly hate trying to get the labels separated from the backing paper. It’s much easier to fire up your word processor and print labels. So far they are holding up!
The Good Stuff
I more or less have the notebook in 3 sections. At the front are plastic sheet protectors where I put things like building plans, planting guides, etc.
Just a couple of examples of the planting guides and building plans I keep in plastic sheet protectors at the front of my notebook.
I divide my seed library into a fruit/veggies & flowers section. I generally try to keep each section alphabetized, but I’m very much a dingdong when it comes to keeping things organized. I’ve found that going through it a couple times a year and reorganizing everything works best for me. Any new seeds that I acquire just end up in the back of the section they belong in until I have time to alphabetize them again.
If you look at the picture, I like to keep my labeling system rather simple. It’s basically the type of seed (tomato, squash, etc) and the variety. Some folks cut or stash the original envelope and put it in the holder behind the baggies. Other folks try to label it the baggies with as much information as possible. Obviously, this is a personal preference and you have to do what works for you. For me, Mr. Dingdong Organizer, keeping it is as simple as possible is my best option.
Last few things….
Larger seeds like beans just don’t stay in the pockets of the card protectors very well. I’ve had to keep those baggies in the built in pencil pouch to corral them. It isn’t a big deal, but it is something to consider if you would like to use this method to organize your seed library.
I use the built in accordion file to keep things like extra baggies (not all 500 of them, just a few) or to just throw in new packets still in their envelopes until I can put them in baggies. Someone good at organizing or a bit more type A might get to them right away, but that isn’t happening for me. Just having my seeds in one place, organized or to be organized, is a major win. You gotta do what works best for you!
I’ve included a few affiliate links from Amazon for the supplies and if you planning on purchasing them from Amazon, use my links. Maybe I can earn enough to buy a cup of coffee some day!
This is the notebook that I purchased for my seed library. I would go with whatever you are comfortable with for a notebook, but I really like this because of the zipper and the 3 inch rings.
Did I need 500 bags? Nope, but it was the same price as 100. So far, they seem to be sturdy.
Again, pretty basic card holders. A year+ in and they seem to be holding up.
The standard printer label products don’t stick very well to the little baggies. I tried using a Sharpie, but I’m left handed and I’m prone to smear things before they fully dry. These guys really do stick well.