I save my leftover seed from year to year and, with proper storage, haven't noticed very much loss of quality. A packet of most seeds is way too much for my garden. Onion seeds seem to deteriorate more than most, but tomato, pepper, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, beans and peas all seem to do fine.

Okra, cucumbers, melons, squash and lettuce seeds also store well. Corn, parsnips and leeks (really, the whole onion family)are fussy ones, though.

I keep mine in lidded jars with those little silicon packets that come in shoes and purses. Pop the packets in the microwave every year or so to dry them out. They absorb excess moisture. That moisture is what really cuts down seed life.

I find Burpee to be too expensive! I really prefer to purchase my seeds from Pinetree, Tomato Growers Supply, and Baker Creek, to name a few. Most of Pinetree's seeds are from $1-2 per packet, and they have a great selection. Baker Creek concentrates on heirlooms and has some nice varieties for reasonable prices.

I picked up marigold and nasturtium seed for 10 cents a pack at the dollar store this year and they are growing fine.

There's nothing special about Burpee's seed, and I prefer to buy from the smaller companies. ;)

Pinetree, Shumway, and Johnny's meet most of my needs, but I'll buy seed anywhere except Wal-Mart. Not because I'm an anti-Wal-Mart snob -- I shop there all the time -- but because the seed packets are too small and I've had germination issues with seed purchased there before.

I think that seed from Wal-Mart, similar stores, and grocery stores is often mishandled by employees who don't know any better and its quality suffers.

I usually trust seed for at least 2 years and have used 3yo seed at times with good success. On the squash forum I have a thread about resurrecting some seed that is nearly 10 years old.

IMO, the important thing about a seed source is that they have the stuff you want and that they have good customer service. I can personally recommend both Pinetree and Park Seed on the customer service end. In over nearly 20 years of dealing with them has seen only 2-3 errors or issues and the problem seed/plants were always promptly replaced.

I've never had any kind of problem from Johnny's so I've never interacted with their customer service people and I'm new to Shumway after moving south so there hasn't been time.

I buy all my seeds on ebay from a few reliable and inexpensive suppliers. Great results so far. I usually pay $1 per pack.

Ania

I save all of my own tomato, bean, pepper, lettuce and pea seeds. Then I swap them at seed meets for the varieties I don't save. The only seeds I buy are melons/zucchini/cucomber/squash because it can be hard to find someone who saves true open polinated seeds. If your from Canada - I have had AWESOME success with anything from Salt Spring Seeds (Salt Spring Island, BC) and Greta's Organic Gardens (Gloucester, ON). They are mostly heirlooms, all open polinated, so they do run $3 or $4 per package.

Kathryn

The only problem I've found with buying seeds is some of the packets have so very few seeds in them. My garden is small so it's not a serious concern but I feel cheated when I pay for 10 seeds. I like companies that specify how many seeds are in their packages.

I like Jung, Johnny's, Totally Tomatoes, and Pinetree Seeds. Pinetree was swamped this spring and it took over a month to receive some I ordered but I suspect that's a one-time problem. I haven't ordered from Gardener's Supply Company but intend to do so. I like their online listings, especially of tomatoes. It makes it easy to compare different varieties without having to click through a different page for each one.

Sandy

Instead of Gardener's Supply, make that Tomato Growers Supply. Sorry about that.

I actually find Burpee to not be particularly compelling anymore. Probably coincidence, but for years I have replied to posts like this one saying I have never noticed much difference in germination or plant performance regardless of seed source, but this year I ordered a few packets from Burpee and every single one had lower than normal germination rates.

They are also very expensive to order from directly. Buying their seeds on seed racks at stores they are usually cheaper.