Old_codger,
Our input would be if you are looking to start saving/storing seed for
fear of a time when seed stock for growing is no longer available we
would suggest a multi faceted approach of the other replies.
Buying off the shelf packets of seed at the end of the year for cheap
cheap is a great option for low cost however as has been somewhat stated
it can be a crap shoot. Some will save and some will not but in a
survival situation you arent going to be throwing a tantrum if your
leeks dont sprout. You will eat whatever comes up. So we would say go
ahead and build a library of seeds from the garden center and try to
rotate out all of the oldest every couple years with new. This way you
will always have, at the least, 2 years garden in your library. The
plants you grow from these packets may or may not be viable for saving
seed but they will at the least provide you with food to eat and
preserve. In our experience when we purchase lots of cheap packets at
the end of a season, each year that passes germination is reduced by 50
percent though there are exceptions in both directions. I wouldnt want
to even remotely rely on packets saved for several years for my food
supply though they are a great adjunct.
To start saving your own seed and building a never ending self
generated supply of seed you will want to start growing "open
pollinated" or "heirloom" plants in your garden. They are the same with
the only difference being that heirlooms are varieties which are at
least 50 years old. As was stated, many of the garden center varieties
you buy can be hybrids which means any one of a number of things can
happen when you save the seed from these plants. They may be sterile and
not germinate at all, you may get only one strain of the cross, they may
not produce fruit, or they may grow fine for a couple years and then
fizzle. Hence crapshoot.
Be forewarned however that certain seed can be pretty tough to save and
additionally some vegetables are biennials which makes saving seed
difficult in some climates.
That said, if you really want to insure that you will have viable seed
for growing it would be best to grow a season or two's worth of seed
every year. This way you have fresh seed for the next two years and
should be safe. Simple crops like tomatoes, squash, zucchini, cukes,
melons, many peppers, sunflowers, beets, are easy to save seed from with
the right procedure and a few fruit will provide you with LOTS of seed.
Lettuce and spinach are simple to save seed from as well. Other than new
varieties we grow our own lettuce, spinach, from saved seed every year.
All of the seed catalogs offer many open pollinated and heirloom
varieties additionally a google on "heirloom seeds" will find you many
suppliers of strictly heirloom seed. www.seedsavers.org is a good
resource as well as books like The New Seed Starters Handbook by Nancy
Bubel are good.

Good luck,
Mark

old_codger wrote:

>
> North wrote:
>
>>Lets try this again :-)
>>Note the groups that were added.
>>n.
>>
>
>
> Ok, thanks north. I think Alan Connor posted something on this a
> while ago but I can't seem to find it.
> We'll see what the other groups can add.
>
> Thanks.