How to Organize Seed Packets

Some gardeners are happy just to toss their seed packets in a drawer and forget about them, or pile them in a basket until planting time comes again next year. But others have found that keeping seed packets organized helps them find what they want, when they want it, and not to miss any sowing opportunities because they've misplaced that precious packet of seed. Using a photo album is a simple, quick way of organizing your seed packets.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Photo album with pages for 4-inch-by-6-inch photos
• Tape
• Replacement seed packets (optional)
• Sticky notes
• Write-on labels

1. Decide whether you're going to organize your seeds by sown and not-sown seeds, alphabetically by crop name, by expiration date, or by length of growing period, then sort them out into the appropriate piles.

2. Fold the tops of tattered seed packets down and tape them in place, as necessary, to keep the seeds from spilling out. You can also place seeds from these tattered packets in clean, new seed packets; make sure to record the plant name and any relevant sowing directions on the new packets. Discard any seeds that are moldy or damp.

3. Open a photo album meant for 4-inch-by-6-inch photos, with clear plastic compartments or sleeves to hold the photos. Slip one seed packet into each sleeve.

4. Write any extra information you want to remember about each seed packet on a sticky note or extra sheet of paper, then slip that into the sleeve along with the seed packet.

5. Use write-on labels to identify specific sections of your seed library as necessary. For example if you're sorting them out by sown and not-sown, you can put a label in the corner of each photo-album page to identify whether you're in the sown or not-sown section.

Tips & Warnings

• You can also file your seed packets into a plastic index card file designed for 4-inch-by-6-inch index cards. This lends itself to filing seeds alphabetically, since such card files usually come with alphabetized, letter-by-letter dividers.