The SRGC Seed Exchange
The 71st SRGC Seed Exchange 2017-2018 - online ordering is now closed
SRGC Seed Exchange is closed for the season.
SEED DISTRIBUTION: EARLY 2018
The South-West Scotland Group will manage the distribution again in 2018.
Seed requests must reach the Seed Request Manager, Neil McNulty, by the deadline of 15 January 2018.
The seed distribution will begin in early January and all main requests will be sent out by late January. Donors’ seed requests are completed first, then non-donors in order of their arrival date, followed by surplus seed requests. This means that main and surplus requests are sent out separately and may arrive a few weeks apart. The whole distribution should be completed by the end of January.
Please allow for delays in the postal system before enquiring about the whereabouts of your seed.
Please wait until after 15th February to enquire after your seed order: after that queries should be addressed to Neil McNulty, 6 Main Rd, Crookedholm, Kilmarnock, KA3 6JT, Scotland, UK, or at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it."> This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
The seedlist for members to browse is available from this link: click HERE
N.B. Australian Members: We have been made aware that some changes are in place for seed entrance by mail to Australia. We shall be sending out seed in January. Thank you to members for updating us on the new regulations. There is time for us to redesign the list that accompanies the seeds to ensure that it follows the correct format.
Carolyn McNab, seed distribution manager
All seed correspondence and queries by email can be sent to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
About the SRGC Seed Exchange
Seeds of over 5000 species and varieties of alpine and rock plants and bulbs suitable for rock, peat and woodland gardens are listed annually in the Seed List of the SRGC Seed Exchange.
A great many of these seeds are not available commercially.
The SRGC Seed List is prepared each year from donations by Members and is issued in late November/early December : only current SRGC members may request seed - subscriptions are due in October. Holders of electronic subscriptions who access SRGC information online are asked to check the status of their subscriptions and fill in all their profile details to ensure they are valid members in order to take part in the Seed Exchange.
Seed is distributed during January and February, so members receive their seed in time for spring sowing.
In the opinion of many, the SRGC Seed Exchange is the world's best.
Thanks to all the Members who have donated seed and to all the volunteers working to collate the list, packet the seed and organise the distribution of the seed to SRGC Members worldwide, we hope you all enjoy the process and have great success in growing your SRGC Seed.
All seed correspondence, lists and queries can be sent to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.Â">This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. - we will ensure the emails reach the relevant manager.
Seed Lists and ordering:
All members (except those with a paperless e-subscription) will receive a seedlist automatically by post - this is expected to be in early December. Ensure your membership is renewed promptly to be sure of receiving the seed list.
The request system will be live until 15th January 2018, which is the closing date for the receipt of all seed orders.
To access the online ordering system you need to register and activate an account each year, using the password printed on Page 10 in the Secretary's Pages/"Dryas" of summer 2017 (this document can be downloaded from the website - click HERE ). You will also need the digits of your membership number (e.g. member REW 97836 should use 97836)
All queries re passwords and membership numbers can be sent to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.%C3%82%C2%A0">This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
For E-subscription members, your membership number and the access password can be found on your online profile page (where you access the Journal etc.).
The 71st seedlist is available to download to browse here
Please remember that for SRGC Seed Exchange, surplus seed requests must be made at the same time as you make your main allocation request.
US Members
Members from the USA must have a ‘Small Lots of Seeds’ permit, which is issued by APHIS.
You can find details of how to get a permit at:
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/import_export/plants/plant_imports/smalllots_seed.shtml
This must be a ‘small lots’ permit, as this does not require UK phytosanitary certification.
Please apply for your permits ahead of the seed exchange to ensure there is no hold up in getting your seeds back to you.
You must enclose a copy of the permit and conditions and a green/yellow customs label for each request - one for a main request, and one for each surplus request of 50 packets.
If you order seed online, you must still post the permit documents and labels to Neil McNulty, as soon as possible - to arrive before 15 January (or you may send them to Ian and Carole Bainbridge with your seed donation).
You can copy your permit as many times as you need. Please ensure your permit is still valid before you send copies to us; the permits are valid for three years.
We must stress that “no permit, no seed” is the SRGC rule! Several packs were left unsent last year as the paperwork never arrived. We will do our best to get everyone their seed, but it must be in compliance with USDA regulations.
US, Australian and New Zealand members
We still need you, please, to send a named and numbered list of main order seeds requested, unless you order online, when the computer will do that job for you and us.
Other overseas members
Please check with your authorities whether your country has any seed import requirements. Let us know what we need to do, and send any necessary documentation. We do wish to comply with any laws relating to seed imports.
SEED EXCHANGE TEAM
Seed Reception Managers:
Drs Ian and Carole Bainbridge: 01557 814141.
Luckie Harg’s, Anwoth Road, Gatehouse of Fleet, Castle Douglas, DG7 2EF, Scotland.
Seed Packeting Manager
The Ayr Group has taken on the job of managing the seed packeting and George Watt is Seed Packeting Manager.
George Watt: 01292 592445
Burnside, Littlemill Road, Drongan, East Ayrshire, KA6 7EN, Scotland
Seed Distribution Team Manager Carolyn McNab:
Barmagachan House, Borgue, Kirkcudbright DG6 4SW, Scotland.
Seed Request Manager
Neil McNulty, 6 Main Rd, Crookedholm, Kilmarnock, KA3 6JT, Scotland.
Note: all seed correspondence, lists and queries should be sent to:
COLLECTING AND CLEANING SEED
It is great fun to grow plants from seed and there is additional satisfaction in growing plants from seed you have collected yourself. The SRGC welcomes donations of seed to the annual Seed Exchange.
Please send fresh clean seed as early as possible - but no later than 31st October 2018 - to Ian and Carole Bainbridge, Luckie Harg’s, Anwoth Road, Gatehouse of Fleet, Castle Douglas, DG7 2EF, Scotland.
Links which may be of interest:
http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=4426.0 Seed photos with scale to help identification and
http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=1010.0 for Seed discussion and links to other websites etc of use in seed ID etc.
For good practical information on seed sowing and care of the seedlings, click here for a superb Seed Sowing Tutorial by Ian Christie, nurseryman and former President of the SRGC.
Notice of a Seed Information Database
The SRGC now has a member-contributed seed/plant information database.
If you have made a donation to the SRGC Seed Exchange, please take a moment to share information about the species you've donated. And whether or not you've donated seed, share information about any worthy garden plant you grow or have grown, no matter how it was propagated.
Meantime this facility is only open to registered forum members. You can read about it and take part here
http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=13727.0
The SRGC is grateful to Erik Fleischer in Canada for developing this system.
The Archived Files: lists from previous years
Follow the links below for previous Seed Exchange lists which are available in the form of downloadable PDF files. These lists are now closed, but the lists remain on the website as a reference and an information source.
We will keep old seed lists here for reference purposes only.
Seed can no longer be requested from these lists.
If checking seed numbers from previous lists, please check that you are consulting the correct year’s list.
Remember, the numbering for all species changes each year as different seeds are donated.
Click Here for the SRGC 2016/2017 Seedlist No. 70
Click Here for the SRGC 2015 / 2016 Seed List No. 69
Click Here for the SRGC 2014 / 2015 Seed List No. 68
Click Here for the SRGC 2013 /2014 Seed List No. 67
Click Here for the SRGC 2012/2013 Seed List No. 66
Click Here for the SRGC 2011/2012 Seed List No.65
Click Here for the SRGC 2010/2011 Seed List No.64
Click Here for the SRGC 2009/2010 Seed List No.63
Click Here for the SRGC 2008/2009 Seed List No.62
Click Here for the SRGC 2007/2008 Seed List No.61
Thanks to all the Members who have donated seed and to all the volunteers working to collate the list, packet the seed and organise the distribution of the seed to SRGC Members worldwide, we hope you all enjoy the process and have great success in growing your SRGC Seed.
In addition to the articles on this website, which includes over a hundred of our Journals, the SRGC has a huge resource of thousands of plant photos and information in the pages of the interactive Forum. The Forum is fully searchable and you may well find there all you need to know about a particular plant.
