Why are there so many seeds in each seed packet? Does anyone know?

*Smiles at you!* I know what you going through! So MANY seeds ! So little space! Okay here's the reason why- For every batch of seeds there is a possibility that several won't seed. They will be 'broken' to where they won't make a plant. So, what you do is plant several seeds in the same pot. When they start to grow, wait a little bit so you can see which ones are the strongest... remove the extras that grew too but aren't as strong. Usually I can plant about 6 or more seeds in one pot and only 3-4 will actually grow! I then remove the least viable ones or move them to their own containers...depends on how much guilt I have! lolol It just makes it easier to ensure at least one plant will come of your hard labor. Good Luck with your planting!

Mate send them my way and I will plant out the whole acreage with the basil! I think that the seeds will last a while longer than the expiration date on them though. We have seeds here in packets that expired 4 years ago! I have still managed to get some of them to germinate. But not all of them! I do know what you mean though. Unless you have a decent sized garden, you will generally not need that many to get a good crop going. Especially if you save the seeds from the first crop to use again in the second crop or if the plant self seeds readily as some do. I guess sharing with friends is the best method there. Getting together with like minded people in a community seed swapping program might be what you need. There should be groups that do that in your area.

I suppose that what governs the number of seeds in a packet is the price and the size of the seed. Packets of seed that felt virtually empty would hardly sell very well! Basil seeds are tiny, so you need quite a lot to make the packet seem to be a reasonable deal at the price. I don't know what the germination rate of basil seeds is but the seedsman would also take that into account when packaging his seeds. I sow basil with many seeds to a pot. Some plants will come up strong and others weaker (and some seeds may not germinate at all). This is the way that they do it when you go to buy a pot of fresh basil in the supermarket. There are always a dozen or more plants to a pot. If you want individual large plants, then sow in pots or seed trays fairly thinly (you can mix the seed with dry sand to make it easier to space the seeds out), cover with a very thin layer of soil (the rule of thumb is to cover most seeds with a depth of soil about 2½ times the diameter of the seed), water so that the soil is moist but not wet, cover with glass or plastic and put in a warm place (over 65°F for basil). Once the seeds have germinated and have their first pair of true leaves, carefully separate the plants, holding them gently by a leaf and being very careful to damage the roots as little as possible, and pr1ck (oh, come ON, MyLot!) them out into individual pots - preferably smallish, say 2" pots. Basil has a tendency to wilt dramatically when transplanted but will usually recover quite quickly when watered. Once the plants in the small pots are seen to be thriving, knock the rootball and the soil out of the small pots and either transplant to open ground or into a larger pot so that the roots have more space. Basil needs a light, sandy soil and frequent watering (but not too much) or it will quickly run to seed. Pinch out any flower buds as soon as you see them appear. The flavour of basil once it has flowered tends to become bitter and less aromatic. If you have a large quantity of seed it is good to sow it in succession - at weekly intervals, say - and to harvest it young, rather as you would mustard and cress, by cutting the tender plants with scissors.

For me no i don't encounter it for now maybe for the long run of time keep up the good work.

I think it's the same as with nails. If you buy them you'll usually get a whole bucket although you only need a dozen or so. Also there may be an environmental aspect to it. If they'd sell 5 seeds a packet they'd have to produce much more packeging material than with bigger packets. Some seeds can also be stored for many years, like 15 years or so. I don't know if that's true for basil, too but if so you could use the seeds in the package for a long time. If I had an excess of seeds I'd give it to the birds if they can eat it. Cheers

Not all the seeds will germinate so you can't just plant a few. I planted a pack of corn and only one germinated I'm so sad that I didn't buy more packs. With basil I give to my friends. And since I use it a lot I don't mind having lots of seeds. So give the extras to charity, that is if the germinated. Or you can sell them and make some money. P.s Don't worry with the expiry date. Seeds don't really expire they just go dormant.

I don't know how many are in the packet but I am sure you could put a few extra in each pot as some of them may not grow properly or be a little bad. And the more basil you have the more often you can have vegan pesto! You could also plant a whole lot of the seeds closer to each other and replant some of the seedlings when they come up. That way it gives you a bit longer to buy a few more pots, and you are only getting pots for the seeds that seem to be definitely growing. We have a pot of basil on the verandah but unfortunately I don't get to eat if very often cos it seems the grasshoppers really like it and often eat all the leaves and even the stalk right down. Good luck with yours.

I haven't much to add - owlwings pretty much said it all. :) How are you doing? :)

A seed packet contains many seeds because every seed in it will not germinate. Some seeds will be dormant,some will have an unhealthy endosperm and will not germinate,some will be diseased. So just to ensure that a few among them will germinate they provide us lots together. Something which you can follow is go for a method referred to as a nursery. Take one or two pots,sow these seeds in few numbers in these pots,healthy ones will germinate. Once they germinate select the healthy ones and plant them according to the reccomendation given on the packet. Hope I could help you out.