Wednesday, March 13, 2013

The high cost of online seed!



I’m not sure how companies like Burpee Seed manage to stay in the online seed business. I went to their site to order a packet of romaine seed yesterday and discovered that not only was the cost high ($4.95), but the shipping costs for that one small packet was also $4.95, bringing the total for this purchase to $9.90! Wow! A packet of seed for just under $10? What’s wrong with that picture? No way could I afford that kind of price structure. Especially, considering the fact that the very same item is should be soon available at a local Home Depot garden center for about $1.99!

Now, it’s true. For me to actually get to the seed, I’ll have to burn some gas. In my case, it’s a 30 mile round trip (I live in the country) and the cost in gasoline ($3.52 a gallon) would be about $6. So, unless I was going there for other purchases, I’d end up paying almost the same. Blame it on the skyrocketing cost of gas. (A problem that’s sure to get worst with a left leaning Administration bent on banning all fossil fuels).

I found that a better alternative would be for me to shop locally for seed. Every year about this time, my local Country Mart and even the hardware store down the road, have a few seed display racks out. And while the selection is rather limited, at prices as low as .99 a packet, that’s still quite a bargain.

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