Packing tomato seeds for mailing

spudleafwillie · February 14, 2006

I pack my tomato seeds ( in a paper coin envelope) and then between two pieces of thin foam sheet I salvage from egg carton tops and shallow foam plates that you get when buying meat or produce at the supermarket. It is about 1/16 to 1/8 inch thick and weighs almost nothing, Just enclose your seeds between two sheets of the foam and secure with tape, put in envelope and mail em. It sure does solved the "crushed seed syndrome".
Regards,
Spud

angelstiger · February 14, 2006

I put seeds in coin envelopes. Then I tape them sideways to a piece of paper folded to fit a #10 envelope. Making sure they stay up from the bottom of the envelope, when they are run through the sorting machine.

Worth1 · February 14, 2006

I have sent some by cutting strips of copy paper and making my own tiny envelopes.
Simply roll them into a tube fold the bottom and apply tape insert seeds fold and tape the other side write on the thing what it is and mail away.
Polystyrene for extra protection sounds like a good idea.

Martha Stuart, ‘Eat your heart out!

Worth

Worth1 · February 14, 2006

This all goes in a regular envelope of course.

travis · February 14, 2006

Spudleaf,

I really like the idea of recycled styrofoam. The egg cartons are good, but the meat trays seem a little bothersome w/re to bacterial contamination, but I guess you could bleach'm ... whatever.

Best thing though is I can reuse styrofoam plates rather than just chuckin'm in the trash.

PV

GreenThumbGal_07 · February 14, 2006

I can think of two vendors (smaller ones) who have used unpadded envelopes for mailing seeds. One vendor has used a empty toilet paper roll tube for protecting the seeds. Another vendor uses bubble wrap.

I tend to prefer the bubble wrap.

GTG

Dunkel · February 14, 2006

I use heat sealed poly bags. I make sure there is air in the bag before sealing. This causes a cushion of air with the seeds inside it's own bubble of protection. I never have had a complaint of damaged seeds from people I have traded with.

**carolyn137** · February 14, 2006

I've sent out literally thousands of packs of seeds over the years, to SSE members, to the folks who requested seeds from my offers of about 300 varieties at GW and to countless others.

If I have something that isn't available commercially and isn't listed at SSE then I'm glad to help out.

And over all those years I've not had one person say that the seeds were crushed or damaged in any way.

And all I do is to use #1 coin envelopes, 6 to a small business envelope and 12 to the larger size, and if more than 12 then a padded mailer of the appropriate size.

The filled coin envelopes are placed inside the SSE request form, which I return to the sender, or inside folded paper, and usually taped to the paper.

Works for me so I'm not going to change what I've done since about 1989.

Carolyn

Andrey_BY · February 14, 2006

I use heat sealed polybags with some fresh air inside as well, but prefer to put them into old commercial seed packagings and then into some unusual regular envelope ('cause I need to hide seeds sending to USA for example) and sometimes add a postcard with Minsk views.
Just always think that people on the other side of Atlantic would love to see Russian packagings and envelopes. And we like to see foreign things :wink:

And then use Belarusian stamps with flowers, berries and trees for the final impression

Grub · February 14, 2006

Thanks for the advice, as I'm now at this point. And to think I've always hated wrapping presents.

February 14, 2006	#2
angelstiger Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: New Hampshire Posts: 79	I put seeds in coin envelopes. Then I tape them sideways to a piece of paper folded to fit a #10 envelope. Making sure they stay up from the bottom of the envelope, when they are run through the sorting machine. __________________ Charlie

February 14, 2006	#7
Dunkel Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: West By God Virginia Posts: 245	I use heat sealed poly bags. I make sure there is air in the bag before sealing. This causes a cushion of air with the seeds inside it's own bubble of protection. I never have had a complaint of damaged seeds from people I have traded with. __________________ I plant... Therefore I am. - Dunkel What the country needs is dirtier fingernails and cleaner minds. - Will Rogers

February 14, 2006	#9
Andrey_BY Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Minsk, Belarus, Eastern Europe (Zone 4a) Posts: 2,278	I use heat sealed polybags with some fresh air inside as well, but prefer to put them into old commercial seed packagings and then into some unusual regular envelope ('cause I need to hide seeds sending to USA for example) and sometimes add a postcard with Minsk views. Just always think that people on the other side of Atlantic would love to see Russian packagings and envelopes. And we like to see foreign things :wink: And then use Belarusian stamps with flowers, berries and trees for the final impression __________________ 1 kg=2.2 lb , 1 m=39,37 in , 1 oz=28.35 g , 1 ft=30.48 cm , 1 lb= 0,4536 kg , 1 in=2.54 cm , 1 l = 0.26 gallon , 0 C=32 F Andrey a.k.a. TOMATODOR

February 14, 2006	#1
spudleafwillie Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Zone 7b sw New Mexico,. Posts: 197	Packing tomato seeds for mailing I pack my tomato seeds ( in a paper coin envelope) and then between two pieces of thin foam sheet I salvage from egg carton tops and shallow foam plates that you get when buying meat or produce at the supermarket. It is about 1/16 to 1/8 inch thick and weighs almost nothing, Just enclose your seeds between two sheets of the foam and secure with tape, put in envelope and mail em. It sure does solved the "crushed seed syndrome". Regards, Spud

February 14, 2006	#3
Worth1 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Den of Drunken Fools Posts: 38,539	I have sent some by cutting strips of copy paper and making my own tiny envelopes. Simply roll them into a tube fold the bottom and apply tape insert seeds fold and tape the other side write on the thing what it is and mail away. Polystyrene for extra protection sounds like a good idea. Martha Stuart, ‘Eat your heart out! Worth

February 14, 2006	#5
travis Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Evansville, IN Posts: 2,984	Spudleaf, I really like the idea of recycled styrofoam. The egg cartons are good, but the meat trays seem a little bothersome w/re to bacterial contamination, but I guess you could bleach'm ... whatever. Best thing though is I can reuse styrofoam plates rather than just chuckin'm in the trash. PV

February 14, 2006	#6
GreenThumbGal_07 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Northern California Posts: 300	I can think of two vendors (smaller ones) who have used unpadded envelopes for mailing seeds. One vendor has used a empty toilet paper roll tube for protecting the seeds. Another vendor uses bubble wrap. I tend to prefer the bubble wrap. GTG

February 14, 2006	#8
carolyn137 Moderator Emeritus Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Upstate NY, zone 4b/5a Posts: 21,169	I've sent out literally thousands of packs of seeds over the years, to SSE members, to the folks who requested seeds from my offers of about 300 varieties at GW and to countless others. If I have something that isn't available commercially and isn't listed at SSE then I'm glad to help out. And over all those years I've not had one person say that the seeds were crushed or damaged in any way. And all I do is to use #1 coin envelopes, 6 to a small business envelope and 12 to the larger size, and if more than 12 then a padded mailer of the appropriate size. The filled coin envelopes are placed inside the SSE request form, which I return to the sender, or inside folded paper, and usually taped to the paper. Works for me so I'm not going to change what I've done since about 1989. Carolyn

February 14, 2006	#10
Grub Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 2,722	Good tips Thanks for the advice, as I'm now at this point. And to think I've always hated wrapping presents.