Vegetable seed sales soar
Not surprisingly, vegetable seed sales are rising as people look to grow more of their own food. How impressive are the numbers?
Thu, Feb 26 2009 at 11:19 AM EST
There are a few businesses that are doing well in this difficult economy, and one of them is the seed selling business. USA Today reports that sales of vegetable seeds are on the rise; some companies are seeing as much as 80 percent growth this year.What's more, the number of homes growing vegetables will jump more than 40 percent this year compared with just two years ago, projects the National Gardening Association, a nonprofit organization for gardening education."As the economy goes down, food gardening goes up," says Bruce Butterfield, the group's research director. "We haven't seen this kind of spike in 30 years."
What do the numbers look like?
- Park Seed sales are up 20 percent
- Renee’s Garden is forecasting a 20 percent increase
- Harris Seeds sales are up 80 percent from a year ago
- Ferry Moss: No percentages of sales; however they have stocked up on 50 percent more seed this year
These are pretty impressive numbers when you consider that many people, including myself, haven’t bought their seeds yet. I would assume the numbers will increase in the coming months.
If you’re looking for places to buy organic seeds, see my post from a couple weeks ago, Organic seed resources.
Another interesting fact, the sales of flower seeds are declining as vegetable seeds rise. It seems people are dedicating more of their garden space to edibles.
There are many discouraging things happening right now in light of our sad economy, but I see this one as a positive thing. It’s important for us to know how to grow our own food and to pass the skill down to our children.
Are you planting a vegetable garden this year? Will it be your first? If not your first, will it be bigger this year? I know mine will be.
Image: LollyKnit
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