For me, there's no way to wade in gently without this turning political. I prefer to keep politics out of my interactions on this website. There are plenty of other places to do it. This is a feel good forum for me and I want to keep it that way.

Having said that, good for them for finding a niche in a tough economy! Fear will sell product. I'd love to see a set up where the buyers donate the surplus to food banks.
Barb

Uh, oh. I get to offer input! ;o)

First of all, they quote WorldNut Daily, which is a big flashing red light, second, they don't vary the seeds by climate zone-long day/short-day, third, their use of fear of government to elicit emotion to persuade is typical of a certain %age of the population I prefer to avoid.

And fourth we are unquestionably in decline but we have far too many resources and brains to fall this far. Sure I've thought of the homestead in the mountains near Canada & could do it for a while, but we ourselves don't need this. Our grandchildren may seriously consider it. We shouldn't. We have a minimum of at least a half-century before our paradigm will be inoperative and such a re-ordering will be required. Maybe a century.

[/channels ghost of Aldo Leopold]

Dan

The sky is falling. Been hearing it for 80 years.
Could be true this time. But I am too old to care.
KennyP

LOL I guess I should have been more specific up front. I can tell they're survivalist nutjobs, but I was hoping for people's feedback on what this website states about pretty much anything not heirloom being GM, Hybrid plants not setting seed, Heirlooms growing anywhere under any conditions, and foil wrapped seed packets that last 20 years.

:D

but will allow you to plant the seeds from the plants you grow unlike sterile hybrids. Most seed companies are now selling only "terminator" seeds which have been genetically modified and will not reproduce themselves.

Fear and ignorance of botany. In fact, some studies show that these varieties are up to five times as nutritious as hybrid varieties.

Hogwash. I'd call it a lie if they didn't seem two spoons short of a picnic. each seed package is sealed in a special foil packet with a very expensive desiccant designed to keep seeds fresh for 20 year

Alternatively, you could just save some seed and not worry about it. More fear and ignorance. Yellow Of Parma Onion

Ah, for the Idaho crazies. Not for the Ozark isolationists.

Fools and their money: soon parted.

Dan

Well at least it was worth a laugh! Its just sad that some people do actually waste their money on scams like this!

SUCH A DEAL!

ONLY: "$149 Until We Run Out! That's less than half of what everyone else will have to pay when the Survival Seed Bank hits the street. I'm making this "extra" discounted offer because our current customers deserve "first dibs" on something this important."

I was way thinkin' "nut jobs" until I got down to the SPECIAL PRICE, and then I almost fell off my chair! Was too stunned to even be laughing at that point! Nut jobs doesn't even begin to describe them! So I did some lookin' up! I (EASILY) found everything they have on their list and could get it ALL for about $65! Maybe I should go into competition with them? I bet they make a lot of money!

Uh! Not worried here! ~~~ "Then, each seed package is sealed in a special foil packet with a very expensive desiccant designed to keep seeds fresh for 20 years at 70 degrees. However, if you freeze your "seed bank" you could increase the shelf life by five times or more beyond that. Uh! If we're going to need the seed by next year because we're starving, uh, why is it we'd want to bury them in the ground for TWENTY years? And, uh, if things are so messed up that there's no food to eat, does anybody REALLY think there's going to be electricity to keep them in the freezer? Very expensive desiccant \= silica gel! And, uh, even if you DO dig a hole and bury them in their "special waterproof (practically indestructible) container," most of them aren't gonna be viable after twenty years anywayÂbut since we'll apparently all be dead by then I guess that doesn't matter too much, When the rodents manage to eat their way into the "practically indestructible" container, they can have a good meal of them! This whole thing is strictly 2 a.m. Infomercial! ~~~ "What will your family eat when grocery store shelves are empty?" Somebody who's never gardened before isn't gonna have a CLUE what to do with their expensive seeds when they get them\-\-\-even if they could somehow manage to come up with an acre of land (is there a house on this land?) and have a source of water! Do they have a shovel? Hmmm! Farming an acre with a shovel! Hmmmm! And if things are that bad, uh, they just might need an arsenal to hold off all the other hungry people since the "grocery store shelves are empty!" (And they didn't even put in any winter squashÂwhich would be one of the more easily stored thingsÂsince there probably won't be any way to can the other stuff!) ~~~ "\*Important: We are in a very real "non\-hybrid" seed shortage. This means we may have to substitute varieties if supplies become exhausted. All Seedbanks will contain the same amount of ONLY Heirloom seeds, enough to plant a full acre Crisis Garden!" Uh, so all these seeds are in such SHORT SUPPLY that I didn't have any problem at all finding them for sale all over the place, but they're actually gonna send you whatever they have laying around when they ship them! But they'll be heirlooms, whatever it is that you get! ~~~ "For the general public, the price will be a fat $297.00 \- no discounts... even to FEMA or military personnel. Take it or leave it." Oh, no! Whatever will FEMA and the Military do when they can't get their seeds for the DISCOUNTED $149??? Uh! What do FEMA and the Military want seeds for??? The CCC was disbanded WAY back during WWII!

I buy my seeds by the variety descriptionsÂsome of them are open pollinated and some of them are hybrids. I sure can't tell any difference in germination or growth beyond that caused by year and soil-specific growing conditionsÂor, with germination, sometimes depending on the seed company! I'm looking for the ones I think taste the best. One of the corns they include in their "survival pack" is a field corn! Bet anybody who grows that is gonna be real surprised when they cook it and take a bite! My brother in Illinois rents the back of his property out to a farmer who grows different things on it, and one year when I was back there at sweet corn time and we had some, the sweet corn wasn't sweet! The farmer was growing field corn that year, and they had apparently crossed. My brother's corn was "almost" as good as store bought sweet corn! (That remark excludes Olathe sweet corn which is packed and shipped in chipped ice, and really IS good!)

When it comes to "well sealed" seed lasting 20 years, don't count on it! Some of them would still be viable, and some of them wouldn't. See the link below for an idea of how long you can store many common veggie seeds and still get a reasonable germination. It's not like none of them would grow after that, just that the viability goes down so much it may not be worth the effort to plant them. On the other hand, I, personally, have found that some seeds are viable FAR beyond what the chart says. I have tomato and parsley seed that is WAY past ten years old, and it's always germinated very well for me. With old seeds I recommend "proofing" a few of them in moist paper towel in a baggie before taking the time to plant them outside.

Since I took the time to look this up, I'm gonna copy it hereÂthis is where I came up with my $65 for their seed list from!

I just copied their list (the ones with the numbers, 1-22, before them, and then I copied info from the different seed sites below each.

I already had links to some good heirloom seed sites, and I found some more while I was looking some of these up. If anybody is into heirlooms and would like links to them all, just let me know.

There are LOTS of good REAL seed companies to buy fromÂand you get to pick what YOU want!

Heirloom Varieties:

1. Jacob's Cattle Bean  Originally cultivated by the Passamaquoddy Indians in Maine. The standard for baked beans in the Northeast. Plus, great for chili. 200 seeds per Seed Bank.

O218 - JACOBÂS CATTLE BEAN DRY BEAN 80-100 days - A very old New England favorite that can be used for baking or soup. A beautiful kidney shaped white bean that's speckled with maroon markings. A heavy yielding bush variety!
OUT OF STOCK
HeirloomSeeds
~~~OR~~~
Bean, Jacob's Cattle Gold
A stablized cross between Jacob's Cattle and Paint. Exceptional cooking qualities, great flavor. Vigorous 24" plants loaded with 5" pods each containing 6-8 seeds. Bush habit, 80 days. ±650 seeds/lb
Packet 50 seeds $2.75
250 seeds $5.25
1lb $7.50
5lbs $33.75
10lbs $60.75
SeedSaversExchange
----------------------

2. Black Valentine Bean, Stringless - Straight slender dark-green, nearly round pads, stringless at all stages. 16-18 in. plants, hardy, good for early plantings, good shipper, very old heirloom, pre-1850, introduced by seedsman Peter Henderson in 1897. 48 to 70 days. 300 seeds per Seed Bank.

204 - BLACK VALENTINE 67 days - Old heirloom variety first introduced in the 1850's. The dark green, stringless beans are 6 inches long and have exquisite flavor. Our best selling bush bean. Try some!
PKT. - 2 oz. - $1.99 (approximately 150 seeds)
HeirloomSeeds
----------------------

3)Bountiful Bean - In 1897 Abel Steele of Ferguson, Ontario won a $25.00 prize for naming this new variety from Peter Henderson & Company, previously known as "Green Bush Bean #1." Heavy crops of excellent quality, brittle, stringless 6-7" pods. Productive bush plants grow 16" tall, 47-50 days. 200 seeds per Seed Bank.

BOUNTIFUL 46 days - An early bush bean that produces a very large crop! The beans are stringless, broad, straight, and 6 to 7 inches long. The plants grow 16 to 18 inches tall and have light green foliage. Good home garden variety for canning or freezing, that was first introduced in 1897.
PKT. - 2 oz. - $1.99 (approximately 150 seeds)
HeirloomSeeds
---------------------

4)Cylindra Beet - Uniquely shaped beet that resembles a carrot and produces uniform round slices for eating and processing. Dark-red flesh is free from rings, sweet and easy to peel. Productive in small areas because the roots can grow down instead of out. 46-80 days. 330 seeds per Seed Bank.

36 - CYLINDRA 55 days - This Danish home garden variety of beet is wonderful for slicing! The long, carrot shaped beets are 6 to 8 inches in length and 1½ to 2 inches diameter. These delicious, dark red roots with small tops are a good choice for your own garden!
PKT. - 1/4 oz. - $1.25
HierloomSeeds
~~~OR~~~
Cylindra (Butter Slicer or Formanova)
45 to 80 days  This Danish variety. As the name suggests, produces a beet that is elongated (six to eight inches) making it ideal for slicing. As a slicer, it produces many more uniform slices than globe shaped varieties. Sweet, tender, and smooth skinned with small, edible, reddish green tops.
Qty: 4 gram Sampler - $1.95 (50-80 seeds per gram)
Qty: 7 gram Packet - $2.95
VictorySeeds
----------------------

5)Early Jersey Wakefield Cabbage - First grown in the U.S. by Francis Brill of Jersey City, New Jersey in 1840. The earliest market variety we offer. Conical, solid, tightly folded heads are 10-15" tall by 5-7" in diameter and weigh 3-4 pounds. Be careful not to plant too close together. 60-75 days from transplant. 300 seeds per Seed Bank.

EARLY JERSEY WAKEFIELD 65 days - First introduced in 1840. The small pointed heads weigh 2-3 pounds each and have superb flavor. Our best selling cabbage. Excellent choice for a fall crop!
PKT. - 200 seeds - $1.25
HierloomSeeds
~~~OR~~~
Early Jersey Wakefield
75 days  Introduced into the U.S. by Francis Brill, then living in New Jersey. Originally grown by Mr. Brill and a few neighbors, 'Early Jersey Wakefield' began as a natural cross between 'Wakefield' cabbage from England and other varieties being grown in the area.
According to Mr. Brill, Peter Henderson was the first to introduce this variety to the general public in the 1850s.
An early variety, it is generally grown for a summer harvest but does over winter well. The plant is short stemmed and yields conical, seven inch in diameter green heads with a fine tender flavor.
Qty: 0.5 gram Sampler - $1.55
Qty: 2 gram Packet - $2.85
VictorySeeds
-------------------------

6. Stowell's Evergreen Corn - The original strain of this variety was bred by Nathaniel Newman Stowell, born May 16, 1793 in New Ipswich, Massachusetts. After years of refining the strain, Nathaniel sold two ears of seed for $4.00 to a friend who agreed to use it only for his private use. His "friend" then turned around and sold the seed for $20,000 and it was introduced to the seed trade in 1848. His variety is still the leading white variety for home gardens and market growers. Ears grow 8-9" long and have 14-20 rows of kernels, 1-2 ears per stalk, holds well. 80-100 days. 250 seeds per Seed Bank.
   
   STOWELL'S EVERGREEN 100 days - The standard, white variety sweet corn, first introduced in 1848. Ears are 8 inches long and filled with tender, sweet tasting kernels. Great eaten on the cob. A favorite for picnics and cookouts!
   PKT. - 1 oz. - $2.50 (approximately 100 seeds)
   HeirloomSeeds
   ~~~OR~~~
   Corn, Stowell's Evergreen OG
   The original strain of this variety was bred by Nathaniel Newman Stowell, who was born May 16, 1793 in New Ipswich, Massachusetts. After years of refining this strain, Nathaniel sold two ears of seed for $4.00 to a friend who agreed to use it only for his private use. His "friend" then turned around and sold the seed for $20,000 and it was introduced to the seed trade in 1848. After 150 years, his variety is still the leading white variety for home gardens and market growers. Ears grow 8-9" long and have 14-20 rows of kernels, 1-2 ears per stalk, holds well. 80-100 days. CERTIFIED ORGANIC
   Packet 100 seeds $2.75
   500 seeds $5.25
   1,000 seeds $8.75
   5,000 seeds $35.50
   SeedSaversExchange
   -------------------------

7. Reid's Yellow Dent Corn - Old-timer, well adapted to Southern heat and soils, vigorous 6 Â 7 ft. plant, 9-10 in. double well filled ears,high protein. Developed by James L. Reid in northern Illinois. This late large reddish corn was crossed with an earlier yellow dent to create the modern ReidÂs Yellow Dent. 85-110 days. 300 seeds per Seed Bank.
   
   Reid Yellow Dent
   115 days  At one time, the most popular variety in the corn belt.[2] It is a medium maturing variety, has big ears of large yellow kernels with good shuck coverage. *****Mainly used for flour, meal, and feed.*****
   Robert Reid and his son James developed the variety after moving from Ohio to Tazwell County, Illinois in 1846. He brought with him a large, late red corn known as 'Gordon Hopkins'. The following year a poor stand of this variety was obtained and the missing hills were replanted to an early yellow dent corn grown extensively in Tazwell County. A natural cross between the varieties resulted, from which James Reid developed the 'Reid Yellow Dent'. Fifty years of careful and systematic selection have firmly established in this variety certain characteristics. No other corn breeds as true to type as does 'Reid Yellow Dent'.[1] [Approximately 90 seeds per ounce]
   Qty: 2 ounce Packet - $3.95
   VictorySeeds
   ~~~OR~~~
   Reid's Yellow Dent
   5 in. ear. The most popular open pollinated corn grown in the US. It was developed by Robert Reid of Illinois in 1847. Small dark red ears. Adapted for warm weather.
   packet $1.50
   1 lb. $2.90
   5 lb. $13.80
   25 lb. $61.65
   50 lb. $116.00
   D. Landreth Seed
   ------------------------

8. White Wonder Cucumber - Introduced in 1893 by W. Atlee Burpee of Philadelphia who obtained the seeds from a customer in western New York. Fruits are 7" long by 2½" in diameter. Ivory-white at slicing stage and ivory-yellow when past maturity. Excellent eating quality, ideal for pickles or slicing, highly productive even in hot weather. 58 days. 90 seeds per Seed Bank.
   
   #505 - WHITE WONDER (Cucumis sativus) 60 days - This old time variety that dates back to 1893, matures to a lovely ivory white color, making them easier to find at harvest time! The round ended, 7 inch fruit has crisp, delicious, white flesh.
   PKT. - 60 seeds - $1.25
   HeirloomSeeds
   -----------------

9. Yellow Of Parma Onion - A top-quality, late-maturing onion with handsome, golden, upright globe-shaped bulbs. Average size is 1 pound. One of the best for storage. Imported from Italy. 110 days from transplant. 1000 seeds per Seed Bank.
   
   YELLOW OF PARMA 110 days - This rare, Italian favorite has been used for frying with peppers for generations. The large, 1 pound, globe shaped fruits are late maturing, so start indoors for maximum harvests. A good choice for a yellow variety.
   PKT. - 50 seeds - $1.25
   HeirloomSeeds
   ~~~OR~~~
   A top-quality, late-maturing onion with handsome, golden, upright globe-shaped bulbs. Average size is 1 pound. One of the best for storage. Imported from Italy. 110 days from transplant. ±7,700 seeds/oz
   Packet 100 seeds $2.75
   1/4oz $4.75
   1/2oz $7.25
   1oz $10.75
   SeedSaversExchange
   ----------------------

10. Giant Nobel Spinach - Large, smooth leaves. Vigorous plant. Plant spreads up to 25 inches. Reliable producer. 45-50 days. 400 seeds per Seed Bank.
    Giant Nobel Spinach
    50 days  The plants are very large and spreading in habit. Plant in late spring (it is slow to bolt) for heavy yields of giant, thick, dark green leaves. Excellent variety for canning.
    Bred by inbreeding a monoecious plant found in the 'Gaudry' variety and released by Zwaan and Van der Molen, Voorburg, Netherlands in 1926. An "All-American Selection®" winner in 1933.
    4 gram Sampler - $1.55
    14 gram Packet - $3.05
    VictorySeeds
    ~~~OR~~~
    Giant Nobel Spinach (48 days)
    Introduced in the 1920s this has remained a popular spinach for some time now. Which is saying something. The 1985 Seed Savers inventory listed 72 varieties. That same inventory in 2009 listed only 21 varieties! This is why seed saving is so important. We are losing our food heritage literally! The more varieties, the greater number of genes that can carry resistance to disease and things yet unseen. Please learn to save seed.
    Giant Nobel spinach is extremely large and has a spreading in habit. Mmmm could that be where it's name came from??? OK, for a spinach it is big! That means easy picking and cleaning. You know, getting that pesky sand off those leaves? It is a breeze with such big leaves.
    Giant Nobel is a slow bolt spinach. Plant it in late spring for heavy yields of giant, thick, dark green leaves.
    Excellent variety for canning or freezing. The big thick leaves hold up well.
    Seed Package Contains 8 grams or approx. 750 seeds
    Price $1.99
    SustainableSeed
    ~~~OR~~~
    SIMILAR
    #910 - GIANT THICK LEAFED 55 days - This old variety has dark green leaves on spreading plants. A very prolific spinach that has huge, thick, smooth leaves. A slow bolting spinach that's good either fresh in salads, or canned!
    PKT. - 400 seeds - $1.25
    HeirloomSeeds
    ----------------------

[They donÂt know how to spell Scarlet Nantes!)]

11. Scarlet Nantez Carrot  Cylindrical roots are 7" long by 1"" wide. Bright reddish-orange flesh, fine grained, nearly coreless, great flavor, sweet and brittle. Good as baby carrots. Good for storage, freezing and for juice. Variety chosen for its extremely high anti-oxidant constituents. Widely adapted, highly selected, uniform strain. 65-70 days. 1,050 seeds per Seed Bank.
    
    NANTES SCARLET 70 days - These finely flavored and very crisp carrots are an excellent choice for your garden! The bright orange/red color and 7 x 1 inch size make it a good choice for freezing, canning or for juice! A sweet and brittle delight!
    PKT. - 1200 seeds - $1.25
    O408 - PKT. - 1200 seeds - $2.00 - CERTIFIED ORGANIC
    HeirloomSeeds
    ---------------------------

12. Red Salad Bowl Lettuce - Large decorative upright plants with wide leaves that are crisp and delicious. One of our best performers. Beautiful deep-lobed bronze leaves, 6" tall and 14-16" wide plants. Very slow to bolt. Introduced to U.S. gardeners in 1955. Looseleaf, 50 days. 1,750 seeds per Seed Bank.
    
    Red Salad Bowl
    Delicious bronze leaves. Heat tolerant. For growing instructions, click here
    packet $1.75
    1/4 lb. $12.20
    1 lb. $30.50
    5 lb. $144.90
    D. Landreth Seeds
    ~~~OR~~~
    Lettuce, Red Salad Bowl
    Large decorative upright plants with wide leaves that are crisp and delicious. One of our best performers. Beautiful deep-lobed bronze leaves, 6" tall and 14-16" wide plants. Very slow to bolt. Introduced to U.S. gardeners in 1955. Looseleaf, 50 days. ±28,900 seeds/oz
    Packet 250 seeds $2.75
    1/8oz $4.25
    1/4oz $6.25
    1/2oz $9.75
    SeedSaversExchange
    ------------------------

13. Susan's Red Bibb Lettuce - Upright growth habit. Curled and blistered leaf edges are tinged with red, dark lime-green leaf centers, fairly wide mid-ribs. Mild flavor. Looseleaf, 50-60 days. 1,750 seeds per Seed Bank.
    
    Lettuce, Susan's Red Bibb
    Upright growth habit. Curled and blistered leaf edges are tinged with red, dark lime-green leaf centers, fairly wide mid-ribs. Mild flavor. Looseleaf, 50-60 days. ±24,800 seeds/oz
    Packet 250 seeds $2.75
    1/8oz $4.75
    1/4oz $7.75
    1/2oz $12.50
    1oz $20.00
    4oz $48.00
    8oz $57.50
    SeedSaversExchange
    --------------------------

14. Schoon's Hard Shell Melon - Introduced in 1947 by F. H. Woodruff and Sons of Milford, Connecticut. Very hard shell, great shipper. Almost round 6½" fruits weigh 5-8 pounds. Thick apricot-colored flesh, sweet and highly flavored. Excellent for home and market gardens, keeps well. 88-95 days. 175 seeds per Seed Bank.
    
    Schoon's Hardshell Melon
    Very large fruit, have a hard heavy and deeply ribbed rind; a very good shipper or home garden variety, salmon flesh is very flavorful, spicy and unique. A New York heirloom that is a favorite of melon expert Dr. Amy Goldman.
    Price: $2.00 Contains 25 - 50 heirloom seeds
    Product ID:AML129
    BakerCreek
    ~~~OR~~~
    Melon, Schoon's Hard Shell
    Introduced in 1947 by F. H. Woodruff and Sons of Milford, Connecticut. Very hard shell, great shipper. Almost round 6½" fruits weigh 5-8 pounds. Thick apricot-colored flesh, sweet and highly flavored. Excellent for home and market gardens, keeps well. 88-95 days. ±780 seeds/oz
    Packet 25 seeds $2.75
    1/2oz $5.25
    1oz $7.25
    4oz $20.25
    SeedSaversExchange
    ---------------------------

15. Green Arrow Pea - An English main crop variety, a standard home and market variety. Medium-size vines grow 24-28" tall. Slim pointed pods are 4-5" long and contain 8-11 small deep-green peas. Pods are almost always borne in doubles. Very heavy, reliable production. Shell, 62-70 days. 500 seeds per Seed Bank.
    
    GREEN ARROW 68 days - An excellent garden pea from England. The plants grow 24 to 28 inches tall and have 4 1/2 to 5 inch pods, each stuffed with 8 to 11 petite, deep-green peas. A gourmet variety that has been popular in Europe for years!
    PKT. - 2 oz. - $1.99 (approximately 225 seeds)
    #O705 - PKT. - 1 oz. - $2.75 - CERTIFIED ORGANIC
    HeirloomSeeds
    ~~~OR~~~
    Green Arrow
    70 days  Popular with commercial processors and home gardeners as it has high yields and freezes well. It also has an excellent flavor and exhibits disease resistance. Ideal for shelling and eating fresh. Pods average about four inches in length with nine to eleven peas.
    Qty: 1 ounce Sampler - $1.95
    Qty: 3 ounce Packet - $3.65
    VictorySeeds
    ----------------------

16. Fordhook Giant Chard - Introduced in 1934 by W. Atlee Burpee and Co. Broad dark green heavily crumpled leaves with white veins and stalks. Plants grow 24-28" high with 2½" wide stalks. Abundant crops all season and even after the first light frosts. 50-60 days. 200 seeds per Seed Bank.
    
    FORDHOOK GIANT 55 days - The broad, dark green, heavily crinkled leaves make this a favorite of many! The thick, white, 2 1/2" wide stalks grow on plants 24 to 28 inches high. Produces an abundant crop all season long!
    PKT. - 1/4 oz. - $1.25
    #1015 - PKT. - 1/4 oz. - $2.00 - CERTIFIED ORGANIC
    HeirloomSeeds
    ~~~OR~~~
    Chard, Fordhook Giant
    Introduced in 1934 by W. Atlee Burpee and Co. Broad dark green heavily crumpled leaves with white veins and stalks. Plants grow 24-28" high with 2½" wide stalks. Abundant crops all season and even after the first light frosts. 50-60 days. ±1,750 seeds/oz
    Packet 100 seeds $2.75
    1oz $8.50
    4oz $24.50
    SeedSaversExchange
    --------------------------

17. Druzba Tomato - Bulgarian heirloom first offered by SSE member Carolyn Male. Translates as "friendship." Round 4" fruits are slightly flattened. Heavy set of smooth red fruits. Good flavor, sweet but tart. Indeterminate, 80 days from transplant. 200 seeds per Seed Bank.
    
    DRUZBA 90 days  This densely foliaged Bulgarian heirloom bears plenty of 12 ounce fruit throughout the season! The fruits measure 4 inches across, and are bright red with a high acid content - giving it that robust "real tomato" flavor! Resistant to most foliage diseases. Indeterminate vines.
    PKT. Â 20 seeds - $1.50
    HeirloomSeeds
    ~~~OR~~~
    Druzba TOMATO .16g seed (about 65 seeds)
    Price: $2.50
    SouthernExposure
    ~~~OR~~~
    DRUZBA TOMATO (heirloom) - $1.15 (20+ seeds)
    Bulgarian HEIRLOOM Indeterminate. The word druzba means "friendship" in Bulgarian and Druzba is a very friendly tomato. Not too large, half pound up to a pound, the fruit is born in clusters of 3 to 5. The fruit is a pleasant deep red throughout and almost all are perfect, without either cracks or blemishes. Flavor is very balanced, not overwhelmingly sweet or acid. Matures in the late midseason.
    Pinetree
    -----------------------------

18. Golden Treasure Pepper - Excellent Italian heirloom variety. Large tapered fruits are 8-9" long and 2" at the shoulder. Ripens from green to shiny yellow. Sweet medium-thick flesh and tender skin. 80 days from transplant. SWEET 50 seeds per Seed Bank.
    
    GOLDEN TRESURE 80 days - This sweet Italian variety has medium thick flesh and thin skin. The long, two lobed fruits mature to a lovely yellow color. Full of flavor!
    PKT. Â 20 seeds ??
    HeirloomSeeds
    ~~~OR~~~
    Pepper, Golden Treasure
    Excellent Italian heirloom variety. Large tapered fruits are 8-9" long and 2" at the shoulder. Ripens from green to shiny yellow. Sweet medium-thick flesh and tender skin. 80 days from transplant. ±5,000 seeds/oz
    Packet 50 seeds $2.75
    250 seeds $7.25
    500 seeds $9.75
    1/4oz $16.50
    1/2oz $27.50
    1oz $45.75
    SeedSaversExchange
    -----------------------------

19. Jimmy Nardello's Pepper - The seeds for this variety were given to SSE by Jimmy Nardello who lived in Naugatuck, Connecticut until his death in 1983. Mr. NardelloÂs mother originally brought the seeds with her when she immigrated to the U.S. in 1887 with her husband Guiseppe. One of the very best for frying. Productive 24" plants are loaded with 10-12" long peppers. 80-90 days from transplant. SWEET. 50 seeds per Seed Bank.
    
    JIMMY NARDELLOÂS 85 days  This legendary heirloom was introduced to the U.S. by Guiseppe Nardello in 1887. A favorite from the southern part of Italy, the productive, 2 foot plants will yield plenty of extremely sweet frying peppers.
    PKT. 10 seeds - $2.50 - CERTIFIED ORGANIC
    HeirloomSeeds
    ~~~OR~~~
    Pepper, Jimmy Nardello's
    The seeds for this variety were given to SSE by Jimmy Nardello who lived in Naugatuck, Connecticut until his death in 1983. His family had been growing these peppers ever since coming to the U.S. Mr. NardelloÂs mother originally brought the seeds with her when she immigrated to the U.S. in 1887 with her husband Guiseppe from the Basilicata region. One of the very best for frying. Productive 24" plants are loaded with 10-12" long peppers. 80-90 days from transplant.
    Packet 50 seeds $2.75
    250 seeds $7.25
    500 seeds $9.75
    1/4oz $16.50
    SeedSaversExchange
    ------------------------------

20. French Breakfast Radish - Oblong and blunt, rose-scarlet with a white tip. White, crisp flesh, mildly pungent flavor, top quality. Sow in the spring or fall, pick when small. A garden standard since the 1880s. 30 days from transplant. 900 seeds per Seed Bank.
    
    FRENCH BREAKFAST 23 days - This heirloom was first introduced in 1880, and many still consider it to be their favorite! This oblong radish grows 1 1/2 to 2 inches, and is a pretty, bright red color with a white tip. A very mild and sweet choice!
    PKT. - 350 seeds - $1.25
    --------------------------

21. Pink Banana Squash - Cylindrical with tapered blossom end, 18-24 x 5.5-7 in. dia., 10 lbs., hard smooth deep-pink skin, thin brittle rind, solid fiberless yellow-orange flesh, for pies, common in American pioneer gardens. 100-120 days. 40 seeds per Seed Bank.
    
    Jumbo Pink Banana Squash
    105 days.(C. maxima) Large, pink banana-shaped fruit, can weigh 10-40 lbs. This variety is about 100 years old. We have grown this squash for many years, fine flavored, dry, sweet orange flesh, popular on the west coast, large yields.
    Price: $2.25 Contains 20 - 35 heirloom seeds
    BakerCreek
    -------------------------------

22. Rossa Bianca Eggplant - Stunning Italian heirloom, beautiful fruits are prized by chefs. Very meaty 4-6" round fruits, mild flavor and almost never bitter. Well suited for all of your cooking needs, great for Eggplant Parmisiana. 80 days from transplant. 50 seeds per seed bank.

ROSA BIANCA 70-90 days  A lovely Italian heirloom that bears medium sized, 8 inch, oval fruits. The pink/lavender colored fruits are occasionally shaded with a cream color. Always sweet and mild, with no bitterness.
PKT. - 20 seeds - $1.25
#O29 - 20 seeds - $2.00 - CERTIFIED ORGANIC
HeirloomSeeds
~~~OR~~~
Eggplant, Rosa Bianca
Stunning Italian heirloom, beautiful fruits are prized by chefs. Very meaty 4-6" round fruits, mild flavor and almost never bitter. Well suited for all of your cooking needs, great for Eggplant Parmisiana. 70-85 days from transplant. ±890 seeds/oz
Packet 50 seeds $2.75
1/8oz $10.00
1/4oz $16.00
1/2oz $25.50
1oz $40.75
SeedSaversExchange

Wow, Skybird!

That beat the heck out of me, saying "149.00/22 = $6.77/pkt : that's kind of expensive." Bravo, Skybird!

My little half a point is that I first saw something about this from a NBC political correspondent! What! Nothing like free nation-wide publicity.

It was about a week ago that I looked at this webpage. I bet this guy is doing a land office business given the current tone of public discourse.

Steve

LOL, Digit! I REALLY hate to see people get ripped off! Human beings shouldnt do that to other human beings! Human beings should treat each other with honesty and respect! Uh, can you tell I have an opinionLOL!

And, my $65 estimate is actually way overestimated too since I tried to calculate how much it would cost to get the actual amount of seed they say they sendwhich doesnt make much more sense than anything else on that site! Forty squash seeds, fifty pepper seeds, and a THOUSAND onion seeds, and almost TWO THOUSAND lettuce seeds! This is going to be a VERY interesting garden. But they have WAY more of each of most of those seeds than anybody is ever realistically going to need, so if you ordered for a "normal" home gardenor even for an acre size gardenit would be considerably cheaper than $65!

I never even thought of your way of dividing them to get a per pack price, Digit! Hey, for the Military and FEMA, and all the other unfortunate folks who dont get the "discount" price, its gonna cost them $13.50 a pack! Such a deal!

MzFuzz, I guess were all reacting to the site and not to your actual questions. I tried to answer a couple of them at the beginning of my post, but to answer one more of them, no, heirlooms are not going to "grow anywhere under any conditions" anymore than hybrids will. It all depends on where you are, how theyre taken care of, and what specific variety you have. The nice thing about the open pollinated varieties is that you can easily save seed, knowing it will come true in successive years, so you dont need to keep buying it over and overif you take the time to save it. And re the foil wrapped packs, Ive never figured out if or how much difference that makes! Park does package some of their seeds in foil, but Ive never used enough of it to determine its usefulness. Actually! I have some old foil (and non foil) wrapped Park seed down in the basement thats about 40 years old! (NO! I DONT throw out seeds!) Im bettin some of it is still goodand some of it isnt! The one year I did winter sowing I used some of those OLDE seedsand some of them DID come up. Just depends on the seed. And Im convinced that for us out here in high-dry-land, seeds last longer than they do in the midwest or other humid areas. Theres no direct correlation with this, but back in Illinois rubber bands disintegrate in a couple years (I have some good ones that are at least 30 years old), paper disintegrates much more quickly, and even fabric deteriorates much more quicklyeven mayonnaise in a jar in the fridge turns rancid amazingly quickly. Not really proof of anything, but I just always assumed seeds keep better/longer out here too.

Anyway, if you have any other questions about OP/heirloom seeds or packaging, well all try to recover from our tangent and give you a serious answer.

REAL seed companies are GOOD things!

Skybird

Wow - such great responses! I can't add anything better - but I think Dan's quote sums it up nicely "two spoons short of a picnic". I love it!!!

I was wondering about the foil packaging as well - don't think I've seen any seeds packaged that way. That may be the only thing the mention that might have merit ... but, not $149! worth, that's for sure ;^)

Thanks Skybird for the info on all those heirloom seed availabilities!

Thanks for your thoughtful response, Skybird. I knew it was a bunch of bunk when I read it too, but I figured you guys would all get a kick out of someone trying to play on people's ignorance. I'm going to be linking this discussion back to my buddy's original post, so hopefully they think about things before they buy. lol

I used to buy some things like Pomona Pectin from an internet outfit that was heavily into doomsday preparations for Y2K. About Dec 2001, they had some pretty awesome sales on case lots of #10 cans of dried, powdered carrots and other bunker food.

Slightly off topic, but does anybody know any good recipes for powdered carrots?

That article is a sales pitch! It is over three times the price that it would be from regular seed growers. The zero mile diet kit was running $ 40. Cdn and I regularly obtain a Prairie Farm Collection of seeds for under $30 Cdn.

It is a good idea for a family to have a stored seed supply,but using fear to sell seeds is downright shabby.

I have some pepper and onion seed in foil packages, so its done. Just not like this...but I suspect the Idahoans are running short of supplies, need money, and came up with this bright idea.

Dan

I just almost had to clean a whole bunch of orange flavored yogurt off of my computer screen, DAVID! Thats what I was eating when I read your reply! Uhhh, about the powdered carrotsif you put them in water, youll have REHYDRATED dried carrots! Lets see! How about some baked rehydrated dried carrots? Or some stewed rehydrated dried carrots? Maybe some fried rehydrated dried carrot patties??? Yum! ;-)

I think Im gonna post the heirloom seed companies I already had and those I found when I was looking up prices. The company names of some of them are listed with the prices I looked up, but thisll save anybody whos interested the time of looking for the sites. Im sure there are more, so others might want to chime in and link more.

This first one had almost everything on "that" list, and their prices seemed pretty reasonable. Didnt check it out any further, but did notice they have a pretty good soil temperature and days to germination chart linked on the bottom!
Heirloom Seeds

Seed Savers Exchange

Victory Seeds

Sustainable Seed Company

D Landreth Seed Company

I havent really looked at it, but this place has a high altitude seeds section!
Seeds Trust

Organic/untreated seeds
Fedco Seeds

Of all the places I looked, this was pretty much the most expensive!
Baker Creek

Im probably missing some, but thats all I see right now looking down my list!

Dont take any wooden nickelsuhI mean, any wooden seeds, anybody!
Skybird

It' unfortunate that people are so willing to scam others. I personally didn't buy into the 2YK hype although a fellow whom I know buried barrels of provisions that included non-hybrid seeds.

Yes Dan, we are in significant (and I fear irreversible) decline. I suspect, however that you and I would have different opinions as to the cause. That said, some catastrophic collapse is highly unlikely, although not impossible. And yes, we are motivated by fear. Our government has in the past and continues to use fear as a tool of manipulation quite well, I think.

On the other hand, I think it is prudent to live more like the ant than the grasshopper. I've thought the Mormon teaching along these lines has some merit. Anyway, considering the fact that I have no water (I haul mine), I'm largely dependent upon a functioning infrastructure, in spite of my instinctive self reliance and individualism. Without water, I'd be unable to grow even a cactus.

(Hope this wasn't too political.)

Mark

MsFuzz, although a bit off topic, thank you for introducing this issue.

It bothers me when I see folks like this seedbank guy using scare tactics to take advantage of those who are not smart enough, or not worldly enough, or not wise enough to recognize the falsehoods and misrepresentations in scams. PT Barnum said "there's a sucker born every minute" but that doesn't make it right to take advantage of them. Such behavior and tactics may be legal, but it's certainly unethical. I doubt this guy believes half of what he printed there. If he did and truly were motivated by his announced altruism, he would be giving the seedpacks away or selling them at a fair price. Whipping up people's fears to ones own advantage is loathsome.

That said, I have been dismayed at the recent behaviors of national leaders (of my own political party) who have recently been engaged in just such fear mongering. I'm stunned at some of the things I've heard said on the radio, and even within the capitol building. Granted, we in the USA have a history of this kind of fear mongering within the US government ala Senator Joe McCarthy, but thank goodness the conventional wisdom now accepts that McCarthy was most certainly NOT acting in the best interest of the country, but rather was acting primarily in his own interest in many of his activities. I hope it won't take so long for this recent turn of fear mongering to be seen in a similar light.

Moving on, I think we would be remiss if we do not take advantage of the opportunity presented by this discussion to think, and perhaps take action, to help insure that we are all prepared to deal with any temporary collapse of infrastructure. Here in the rocky mountain states, we are blessed with little risk of Tornadoes (at least those of us in or near the mountains), Hurricanes, and earthquakes. However, even though the risk is very low, we should not be ignorant of the possibility of a major volcano (did anyone pay attention to the recent heat up of the Yellowstone super volcano?), or terrorist attacks on power plants or water systems etc. (Has anyone been following these recent arrests of "Christian Militia"? Those wack-jobs scare me nearly as much as Al-qaeda)

Have you ever noticed how much we rely on credit cards, which rely on internet to approve purchases? If electric power should go down for 2 weeks, do you have enough cash to last till the system is back up? If the water supply should go down for a week or two, do you have water stored to get by? Like Mark, I look at the Mormon plan and I realize there's some real sense in their ideas about having supplies set aside for a rainy day.

How many of you folks have some kind of emergency supplies and cash set aside in case of.......???? Who knows? If you have an emergency kit, what do you have in it? I have some water, and a little cash, but I probably could do a better job of preparedness. What are other SENSIBLE things I should have in my kit?

Bruce

PS - Skybird, I think you have entirely too much time on your hands. It took a while to read all that, let alone write it! You need a winter hobby!

I tend to agree with Franklin, Jefferson and many of the Founding Fathers. The human entity they feared more than any on the planet is the same one I fear most. After all, a monopoly on the the legal use of violence is pretty intimidating.

Since this thread began a poll showed that 79% of Americans think the economy could collapse. That's a huge number, although, having been fed fear for years, it's not surprising.

Mark

I couldn't help but laugh at that site. I love how they have their "special packaging." My special packaging involves me tossing some beans in a drawer, finding them several years later and sticking them in some dirt.

I should start selling seeds. Too bad I'm too lazy to mess with it.

Just a few more open Pollinated seed companys
Seeds of Change
Peaceful Valley
Bountiful Garden
Horizon Herbs
I agree a fool and his money are soon parted. Gloria

I couldnt resist bumping this back up again after finding something on the Seeds Trust site!

I was looking up info for somebody, and a little box on the side of the screen said:

Bucket of Seeds! $59.95 Our response to new alarmist survival seed companies jumping on the bandwagon! Buy a real product from a real seed company. Bucket includes Seeds Trust President Bill McDormans, Basic Seed Saving book and 37 packets of open\-pollinated, heirloom seeds you can save year after year.

Well, of course I HAD to check it out further, so I went here to find out about the Bucket of Seeds!

MUCH better selection than the expensive ones that started this thread, and $59.95 is a wee tad better than $149.00 (plus $15 shipping!)not to mention the $297.00 that FEMA and military personnel are going to have to pay! ;-)

Then I saw a link on the left side of the Seeds Trust site that said "Reverend Seed," and of course I had to check that out! It went to "Reverend Seeds Word," the Seeds Trust presidents blog, and I found this post:

Share
November 22nd, 2009
We are getting more and more requests for survival seeds. Buckets and cans of hermetically sealed garden seeds are being promoted on survival websites. Frightened citizens want backup in case our fragile food system is disrupted. The thought of growing a garden if necessary is comforting. This leads to calls and emails to heirloom seed companies like ours.

Having extra food and seeds around is something we promote. Im just not sure it has anything real to do with survival. The thought of being the only family with a bountiful garden in an ocean of hungry neighbors, many of whom own guns, is informative if not somewhat disturbing.

Real food security is at best a regional issue. The emergence of modern terms like "foodshed" are evidence of the serious thinking involved in this issue at neighborhood, community and regional levels. We even hear the USDA has grants available now for assessing the food security of each region.

We try to encourage everyone who addresses this issue to get involved in finding out where their food comes from. We encourage them to work with others in their "foodshed" to explore the larger issues involved in food security. While important, this doesnt address the immediate need for something that will make a difference in how people feel now. ~~more~~

I like this company! I think I might need to buy some seed from them next year!

I sure hope your friend decided to not waste his money, MsFuzz.

Skybird

Hey Sky....Do you still have the link to that product? I'd love to be able to pass it on to the friends who started this whole thing, and give them a good alternative to what they were looking at! I went to your "more" link, and tried to backtrack, but couldn't find what you were talking about. Thanks much!

Click the underlined "here" link, further up, MsFuzz. That takes you directly to the page with the "survival bucket" on it and you can go back to the Seeds Trust homepage--or anywhere else once you're there.

If they're gonna buy something like this, it might as well be a decent selection from a real seed company---and at a reasonable price. (I looked down the list of seeds from "that original site" again, and many of them have changed! They're just putting in whatever they can buy in bulk, CHEAP!)

Skybird

So I'm on Costco's email list, and received one today for their Emergency Garden Seeds, and other emergency preparedness packages: Food For Health.

This reminded me of this thread that was started in 2010, although this is Costco and they aren't making any outlandish claims/predictions.

What do you think? I'm still wondering if it wouldn't be just as effective to pick up some seed packets at the end of the season, when they are cheapest, and just keep them until the next year. Then toss them, or use them in your next years garden and purchase some new ones for emergency storage.

I suppose if there were some type of global or area catastrophe, having some seeds on hand may be a good idea. Along with water and emergency rations, of course.

Marj

I had a good laugh at some of the comments on the website. I received some 13 year old tomato seed that my now deceased aunt had squirreled away in a pill bottle from 1999 (maybe she had Y2K concerns). Anyway I started 6 seeds just for fun and got 5 that are just doing great. So much for special desiccant or freezer storage...

Marj,

That was quite a thread, wasn't it? I enjoyed re-reading it.
I agree with you on stocking up with a few packs of seed for the next year, on sale. You can always use them for trades on the seed swap forum. I just want veggie seeds that I like to eat and would waste too much on a package deal like that.

I think it's good to be prepared. You have to decide for yourself how prepared you need to be. We've all been through a few blizzards over the years and it's nice to have enough water, food and fuel to weather the storm and not have to go out in it.

pondgardener, that's awesome! I hope those turn out to be the best tomatoes you've ever had. Let us know how they turn out!

Barb

Posted by colokid . . . Sun, Mar 21, 10 at 13:41
The sky is falling. . .

We have the Mayan calendar thing this year, altho', we have Mayan experts wondering why dates that come later are ignored . . . Harold Camping has been predicting the end of the world since 1996, including 2 dates that passed, last year. Harold Camping will be 92 soon. Sun Myung Moon just celebrated his 92nd birthday.

I won't mention the denomination but I kind of grew up with the followers of the "Millerite Movement" who had to find something to occupy their communal hysteria after 1844. 1914 was such an important year for some folks. Predictions from about 70 years earlier was that it would be the end and we still have people who think that it was the end . . . just the beginning of the end. Of course, 1914 was the end for a lot of people including those killed in the "War to End All Wars" that began that summer.

Before very many more years have passed, everyone on Earth will have been born after 1914. Those post-1914 people will include some who will be picking out new dates for The End of the World.

My seed orders were very small this year. The simple fact is that the shelves downstairs are crowded with seed from large orders in 2010 & 2011. Most seed is viable for a few years. Just like Pondgardener has shown by germinating 5/6 from pre-Y2K seed.

I save seed from tomatoes, peppers, beans, and 3 or 4 brassicas. Oh yeah, there's the Painted Mountain corn, Highlander millet, Terra Hulless oats . . . the stuff grows, I gather some seed. Not much different the shallots or the perennials that come back every year in our yard . . .

Why don't we just have stock and re-stock? What's the big, neurotic deal!! We eat lots of pasta of one sort or another, lots of rice, lots of breakfast cereal, lots of bread - shop for large packages, rotate stock . . . No shopping? I can't imagine that we'd go hungry for an instant over the course of a long month.

I did learn something after Y2K: batteries go dead fairly quickly when they are not used.

Steve

Ok, I'll play!

Fun stiff, Digit! My favorite End of the World happened on April 22, 1959 when I was a junior in high school, sitting in English class--watching the clock as the last few minutes ticked down! No, I didn't remember the exact date--had to google for that! This was in small town Chicago suburbia, and the biggest thing we had going on for the week or two before The End! We were ALL sitting there, "glancing" at each other, and trying not to laugh out loud--even chewing gum got you in big trouble Back Then! I never heard much of what the teacher was saying, but NOBODY heard anything that day! Then the time passed--and life got boring again!

In searching for that date I found a site listing "failed" predictions going back to 156 A.D.! Fire, and Brimstone, and Armageddon, oh, my!

The Costco site doesn't have all the wacko kinds of stuff as is found on the original site linked on this thread, but as far as I'm concerned, Costco is just trying to cash in on the same fear that all the "survivalist" sites use--just trying to rake in the "overlap" from those types of sites. Just my opinion, guys! Not trying to say anybody else's opinion is any better or worse!

Here are the "facts" as I see them! What kind of a "disaster" are we talking about? I'm not talking about The Grid being down for a week, or even a couple weeks! Unless you're gonna EAT them, seeds aren't gonna be any help at all in a situation like that! And keepin' on for even a couple weeks shouldn't be all THAT much of a problem, though I am always amazed by all the people who have to go running out to "stock up" on food when a snow storm is coming! Do these people REALLY not have anything to eat in the house? Canned food, dried beans/rice/pasta, frozen stuff in the freezer, cereal---COOKIES, CANDY! Every time that happens I just don't get it! If food were the only issue, I could EASILY survive more than a month! Might not be happy with what I was eating by the second month, but I wouldn't be starving! Water would run out sooner, but I always have several gallons of potable water around, and while I'd probably get pretty dirty, if I was careful I'd have drinking and cooking water for at least a week or two. Yeah, the milk and bread would be gone--but man does not live by milk and bread alone--or something like that!!!

So, let's say we're talking about a REAL disaster! Terrorists somehow manage to disable ALL utilities--with no foreseeable reparations!

Seeds! Hmm!

Let's hope it's PLANTING TIME right when this happens!

Let's hope The Affected Party has some DIRT to plant them in!

Let's hope The Affected Party has, at some time in the past, ANY time in the past, planted seeds so they know they don't get buried six inches deep! (NO! I don't believe somebody can "read the booklet" and successfully grow a garden! Most of you around here have TRIED to grow seeds, and how many of you think a Newbie is going to get much out of Their Seeds on their first try? Sixty eight years "after the fact" I STILL have trouble with some of them! )

Let's hope The Affected Party has seeds that are appropriate for their location/climate/zone--not at all likely when you're getting "generic" seed from a place that sells them all over the country. The Costco "collection" has hubbard squash, listed on various sites as between 90 and 120 days! Not too many of us are gonna succeed with that!

Let's hope The Affected Party has some way to water them--not at all likely without power since all utilities would be out so there wouldn't be any "city" water, and even folks with a well would be dealing with a "drilled" well--and, uh, I think they're gonna have trouble finding a bucket that they can lower down the shaft and a long enough rope to lower it to get the water out of Said Well! And good luck trying to dig a hand-dug well out here on our end of the world! Even if you're right over an aquifer I think you're gonna need an awfully long ladder to get in and out of it while you're digging it! So unless your dirt happens to be right next to a lake or stream---Poor Seeds!

Let's hope The Affected Party has some VERY good system for Defense! When there are power outages in cities even for just a day there's looting and all sorts of mayhem! What are the odds that somebody growing a large, lush garden full of Good Edibles is going to be able to successfully grow that garden to it's "logical conclusion" with mobs of hungry people roaming around in search of whatever they can plunder!

Now, let's assume that The Affected Party has ALL of the things they need for their seeds! Right time to plant, long growing season, good soil, lots of water, right seeds--GUNS and AMMUNITION---and 24-hour lookouts! Let's consider The Freakout Factor! If the Whole Country Goes Down, people aren't gonna be sitting around contemplating planting Their Seeds! A few MIGHT, but most are gonna be either running around frantically trying to figure out What to do Next--and that's not too likely to be "planting seeds," which would give them no Immediate Relief at all!, or they're gonna be Playing Ostrich, and hunkering down somewhere they consider to be "safe" in hopes of "sticking it out!" Let's face it! Most of us are Humans--whether we want to admit it or not!

With NO communication except human-to-human, mouth-to mouth communication, ALL law and order breaks down! As Digit so aptly pointed out, batteries are a very poor substitute for "power!" Even those folks who might be able to get the Emergency Alert System for a while, assuming the government was able to broadcast, would run out of batteries pretty quickly. Not to mention, what could The Government TELL us in a situation like that--except to Remain Calm! That's helpful!!!

Everybody who's addicted to the WWW, including many of us, and anybody who's addicted to their cell phones, especially anybody born within the last 30 years, is going to be going thru some SERIOUS withdrawal! That in itself would be enough to keep many people from even thinking about seeds--when "their" Whole World has just come Crashing Down Around Them!

No one is prepared for such a scenario, and there is no way TOO prepare for such a scenario. There's some guy now who's converting old missile silos into luxury "survival homes!" The story has been on the news a couple times lately! So, you buy a multi-million dollar Survival Silo--and you SURVIVE! What do you do, hunker down for the next 10--20 years, during which the ensuing Chaos reigns--all by yourself---in a hole in the ground! Don't know about anybody else around here, but that's NOT my idea of "life," even if I've successfully planted my Seeds and have a Bountiful Harvest of fresh produce!

If Yellowstone "goes off" in my lifetime, I hope it's big enough that I Buy It in "the first wave!" I don't want to die slowly by inhaling volcanic dust that cuts my lungs up little by little! If somebody is actually insane enough to drop another atom (or worse) bomb, I hope it's close enough to me to vaporize me! I don't want to die SLOWLY from radiation poisoning! And if the entire U. S. Grid goes down, I don't want to be in a silo--even a luxury one--talking to myself for 10 or 20 years!

So, I guess what I'm saying is that Wishful Thinking and a Boxful of Seeds probably isn't gonna be much help if a truly catastrophic situation should develop!

BUT, I DO agree with you, Misty, that it's a good idea to have seeds around--for those folks who "normally" garden and would know what to do with them, in case of a Lesser Catastrophe, where there might actually be the possibility of growing your own food--just like many of us do now. But most of us who DO garden already save many seeds, and they're the ones WE picked, and the ones we know are realistic for us to grow in our area. And being olde doesn't necessarily mean they need to be thrown out! The SunGold seeds I plant every year were "packed for '96!"

When I went to the Costco site I started to read the "comments!" I was amazed! A whole lot of the people who got the "survival" seeds are planting them already! Huh? Folks having trouble surviving right now? And what are they gonna do when they "need to survive," and all their seeds are used up!!!

Loved the one guy who liked it because of "the professionally chosed variety of seeds!" And he lives in an APARTMENT!!! How far do we think he's gonna get with his seeds!

Those of us who know what seeds ARE, and what they can do, can select and save seeds far better--and cheaper, on our own, and those who DON'T know what seeds are aren't gonna be helped very much by a "bucket of long-lasting seeds!" IMO!

BTW, I checked out the original link---and they STILL have their $149 seeds for sale--the "waterproof seed bank" is FREE---UNTIL THEY RUN OUT! That site is gonna "outlive" most of the survivalists that are buying their seed!!!

If you sell it --- they will buy it!

Skybird

Skybird - you go, girl! ;^)

Yeah, I was surprised Costco was selling the survival seed package. Yah, I just don't know what type of catastrophe would really benefit by having these seed packets on hand - makes much more sense to just be sure you have a few from your own gardening efforts year by year - but that's just a general good sense thing to do, and not necessarily for emergencies! Having canned goods, water, and that type of thing makes more sense for a emergency type of situation, really.

Just remembered - 2012 is another Nostradamus prediction for the END! So that explains why Costco is promoting their emergency supplies, I'm sure. We best get ready for more of this type of advertising, there will probably be more to follow!!

Marj

I agree with Skybird. I don't pay much attention to all of the money making scams that are offered. I save seeds from much of what I grow. They are from varieties proven to grow here. If a person feels compelled to have some spare seeds stored I understand. But first do a little research and buy what will grow in your area and what you like to eat. I don't store seeds in any special manner. And usually have great germination rates on older seeds. I recently bought some seeds at an auction that were packed in 68&69 and going to see if I can get any germination from them. Basically there will be those who will buy something if offered and even hint of crisis is mentioned if it isn't practical. And businesses take advantage of that. In the end I try to use common sense. Some things we can't control and can't prepare for. Jay

Best part of this whole thread is learning that Skybird keeps her seeds around for decades.