How to get paid for saving seeds:

I'm guessing most of us here enjoy paging through seed catalogs during the parts of the year when we can't garden.

How many of you think that each catalog company grows every single variety in their catalog, on some big, corporate farm?

Yeah, I assumed that, too. A few years ago, though, I stumbled across a mention in a Baker Creek catalog about contract growers. It turns out (logically, once I really thought about it) that no company could grow that many varieties themselves and still be able to keep them isolated. They do grow a lot of them, don't get me wrong. But the standard practice in the seed industry is to have majority of those varieties grown by contract growers, spread all across the country.

And, good news, most seed companies have enough varieties they want to offer, that they could really use more growers!

To get started in that kind of work, I recommend that you at least be familiar with the seed-saving process. Each species has its quirks, and some are easier than others. It also helps to be familiar with the basics of plant-breeding and hand-pollinating, although those skills may not be necessary. At the very least, you will need to have a realistic idea about how well you can isolate varieties. If you can't keep bees from crossing your plants with the neighbor's, then you'll have to stick with plants that self-pollinate. On the other hand, if you have more than a mile separating you from the nearest neighbor, you may be able to grow plants that are wind-pollinated, and therefore harder to keep pure. (There is a huge demand for corn growers for this reason. Corn is hard to isolate.)

Once you've taken a realistic look at your skill level and growing conditions, it's time to look for assignments. Most seed companies don't really advertise for contract growers. It's kind of a word-of-mouth opportunity. Pick your favorite seed companies, and send them a letter or email asking if they could use another contract grower. Each company will have its own application process and its own requirements, but from what I've seen they're pretty good about walking you through it. Each company will also have different pay rates, so I recommend comparing a few before deciding. If you plan to take assignments from more than one company, be upfront about that. The ones I work for are ok with that as long as the assignments won't cross with each other, but other companies might want something more exclusive.

They will also want to know how much space you can devote to the assignment. Now, more is better, but don't fret if you only have a little space. That might mean you focus on specialty herb seeds instead of, say, flint corn. Even the big seed companies don't go through much sage seed every year, so a small garden might be all they need for that.

Somewhere in the paperwork will also be an explanation of what to do if the crop is smaller or bigger than expected. Make sure you follow those guidelines. Crop failure is not a career-ender, as long as you're honest about it.

Once the terms are agreed upon and you've worked out with them what plants you'll grow, they'll send you your seeds. I'll admit, getting a big box of free seeds can be intoxicating to a compulsive gardener like me! Especially after a long snowy winter. I've been known to sit there rattling the box and giggling for a while. Personally, that's why this job suits me so well. I would be growing things anyway. Maybe not the same exact varieties, but certainly the same species. And this way, I get to do it and get paid!!!

I won't go into the growing and seed-saving process, because if you need me to describe it then you're not quite ready for this job. But, I will point out that it is important that the seeds be as clean and dry as you can get them. You get docked if they have to clean your seeds again, and they may decide to reject them entirely. As for how to send them, that will be outlined in the contract they sent you. As far as I know, they all reimburse shipping costs, but you'll want to make sure before you start. After they receive your seeds and verify that they're good, you'll get your paycheck. Double-check against your records to make sure there weren't any clerical errors, but I've never found any problems with that part.

And that's it!

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Before anyone says it, I'm going to answer the most common question: "Wouldn't you make more money if you packaged and sold your seeds directly?"

Answer: Not really.

Don't get me wrong, you would probably make more on a single packet of seeds if you sold them directly, than you would as a contract grower. But unless you have a huge audience and a ready-made market to sell through, you probably aren't going to sell nearly enough packets to make up the difference. And add to that the fact that you'll be spending a large portion of your time with the packaging and the advertising and the selling and the customer-service parts of the business. If you love that stuff, go for it! Personally, I'd rather not. I love the growing, I hate dealing with customers. So, choose what suits you better. For me, contract growing is a much better fit. I get to focus on the parts I love, while the companies deal with the parts I hate.



I think that just about covers it. Questions? Concerns? Comments?

Ellendra Nauriel wrote:Questions? Concerns? Comments?

I'm not really interested in doing this myself as I have enough projects going on, but it was an interesting subject to read about and some questions arose:

1. What is the range of potential pay? It's quite a niche to have an isolated place that can produce "true" seed for these companies, so I'm wondering if we're talking about small amounts of money for people looking to get something out of their hobby, or if the pay has the potential to provide a part-time level of income. I know in some industries that rely on contracting, it's sort of a race to the bottom for pay between the company and producers. To put numbers into the picture: let's say I have 25 beds that are 10x4 in dimension (1000 square feet) - what kind of possibilities are there for income?

2.Can you give some basic requirements of what seed companies expect from their growers? I'm guessing that irrigation & triple mix soil would be mandatory for most veggie varieties?

3.Do companies ever look for wild varieties of plants for seed stock? You mentioned sage(the cooking variety I assume) in your write-up, and in my location I could sustainably harvest 10 pounds of sage seed (white or brush sage) in a half day from local pastures - both used in xeriscaping, ceremonies, etc. I have seen a lot of nurseries selling the wild varieties of dogwood, so I'm guessing that using seeds from wild plants is plausible.

Thanks for the insight,
Cheers

Great topic.

I've been thinking about doing this.  There are a few small seed companies that are looking for growers, but I don't have much in the way of irrigation so I haven't got very far with this research.  Maybe if there was a company that liked survival over purity, I would be a good grower.  

I also looked into selling my own seeds and I discovered that there are some freaky-weird legislation and licencing requirements where I live.  So it would definitely be more profitable to grow for an established seller than try to get licenced and build up my customer base.

Jarret Hynd wrote:

I'm not really interested in doing this myself as I have enough projects going on, but it was an interesting subject to read about and some questions arose:

1. What is the range of potential pay? It's quite a niche to have an isolated place that can produce "true" seed for these companies, so I'm wondering if we're talking about small amounts of money for people looking to get something out of their hobby, or if the pay has the potential to provide a part-time level of income. I know in some industries that rely on contracting, it's sort of a race to the bottom for pay between the company and producers. To put numbers into the picture: let's say I have 25 beds that are 10x4 in dimension (1000 square feet) - what kind of possibilities are there for income?

The pay rates vary a lot, both by company and by plant. The main company I grow for is Baker Creek. Using them as an example, most bean seeds get $8/pound, with 100 pounds being the most common amount assigned. Corn ranges from $8-$15 per pound. Smaller seeds like tomatoes or eggplant will earn around $20/oz with assignments being less than one pound. You can take more than one assignment as long as they don't conflict or cross, so if you have the space you can put together enough assignments to make a decent income.

Some rare varieties will have bonuses or minimum-pay attached. One example is a cucumber variety I'm growing this year. Baker Creek only had 17 seeds of this variety, total! So they've asked me to grow as much seed as I can get out of those, and they're paying either $100 total or $55/pound, whichever is greater.

2.Can you give some basic requirements of what seed companies expect from their growers? I'm guessing that irrigation & triple mix soil would be mandatory for most veggie varieties?

The ones I've worked for have asked if I'm able to irrigate, but it isn't a requirement. There also hasn't been a requirement regarding the soil or how it's amended, although there is a section on the questionnaire every year asking me to describe it. They're actually pretty flexible on that, as long as I make sure they have enough info to match the right assignments to my growing conditions.

The most important thing is that growers be able to keep plants from crossing, and be able to recognize if a plant isn't true to type.

3.Do companies ever look for wild varieties of plants for seed stock? You mentioned sage(the cooking variety I assume) in your write-up, and in my location I could sustainably harvest 10 pounds of sage seed (white or brush sage) in a half day from local pastures - both used in xeriscaping, ceremonies, etc. I have seen a lot of nurseries selling the wild varieties of dogwood, so I'm guessing that using seeds from wild plants is plausible.

Some do. Not many, but some. You can ask if they buy wildcrafted seed when you contact them. Specialty companies like Strictly Medicinal are more likely to buy wild seed, but again, you won't know until you ask.

Thanks so much for explaining this! A youtuber I follow mentioned doing it but didn't really give details. I've seen the seed distribution space in Baker Creek (where they pull the envelopes and put the orders together), but not during the high season-- I know in theory many hundreds of pounds of seed are sold and must be produced, but it's pretty impressive to think about producing hundreds of pounds of bean seed, for example (can you tell I grow on a very small property, lol). Awesome.

r ranson wrote: I also looked into selling my own seeds and I discovered that there are some freaky-weird legislation and licencing requirements where I live.

This is something I’ve just learned recently; that many varieties of plants are patented. So you can’t just willy-nilly sell seeds or cuttings or sometimes even actual plants/trees if they are protected by someone else’s license. I find it simpler and equally profitable to buy seeds (or rooted cuttings), grow plants (trees), and sell them at swap meets at the local feed store. Perfectly legal!

Thanks for the info, Ellendra. I've actually gotten to be more on the marketing side of things the last 2 years, and wouldn't mind orchestrating such an endeavour in my community eventually. There are enough farm gardeners around that could grow out seed, and I have never liked the fact that there aren't really any good online seed distributors in my province - good motivation.

Julie Reed wrote:

r ranson wrote: I also looked into selling my own seeds and I discovered that there are some freaky-weird legislation and licencing requirements where I live.

This is something I’ve just learned recently; that many varieties of plants are patented. So you can’t just willy-nilly sell seeds or cuttings or sometimes even actual plants/trees if they are protected by someone else’s license. I find it simpler and equally profitable to buy seeds (or rooted cuttings), grow plants (trees), and sell them at swap meets at the local feed store. Perfectly legal!

There are work-arounds for those in some instances. I was buying seed potatoes once, and the grower must have been facing a legal issue because they put "these are eating potatoes, but you can use them for other things" lol.

In many places it’s illegal to sell potatoes for planting that are not certified. When buying seed potatoes, most farmers feel it's important to get certified disease-free ones. These have been tested for defects and given the government's (ag dept) stamp of approval. The main reason why these potatoes are encouraged is that they reduce the risk of crop and soil damage. You can (and I have) grow potatoes you buy in the store. But many of those are treated with sprout inhibitors and won’t grow. My feeling is, if I buy local organic potatoes, they were already grown from certified stock, and so likely they are disease free and can be planted.

Very interesting. I always thought it a trifle awkward for a seed company to grow all their own... well, now we know! :)

So I was wondering how many tomato seeds to the ounce.... and in dry weight, it's around 10,000. That's a lot of tomato processing....

Here's a handy chart:
https://harvesttotable.com/vegetable_seeds_per_ounce_per/