Gardening is one of the most fruitful hobbies that one can think of, but it’s also something that can bring major benefits to your health and lifestyle. With all the controversy surrounding the authenticity of organic produce found in supermarkets, people are now trying to grow their own crops, each to their own possibilities. If you have but a small yard, growing potatoes and carrots might not be a viable option, but you can surely find the space for some berry bushes and a few herb containers.

The more you are focused on growing your own fruits and vegetables, the more control you gain over what you eat because you know exactly how that plant was seeded, sprayed, raised, harvested, and deposited. And since it all starts with the seeds, you need a trusted seed seller. Burpee is one of the brands that should be at the top of that list.

Is Burpee a Good Seed Company?

Burpee is a company that dates back to 1876 when it first saw the light of day in Pennsylvania. Founded by Washington Atlee Burpee, the company was established as mail-order chicken business but later expanded its business by selling seeds and other farming tools and supplies.

Burpee is a well-known brand not just because of its experience in the field, but because it was a pioneer in so many different ways. For example, did you know that Burpee was the first catalog in the world to sell yellow seed corn? They have never stopped innovating, as they offered a new cabbage variety and an improved carrot assortment.

But where are Burpee seeds from? Great question! All seeds are shipped from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, int the United States.

Next up, we’re going to go over the main categories of products that Burpee has to offer so that you can get an idea of what to expect as far as their product line-up is concerned.

Vegetable Seeds

Burpee offers a wide selection of vegetable seeds for sale that are carefully divided into search categories so that you can find whatever you’re looking for faster. For example, if you want to plant something, but aren’t sure what to pick and would like some inspiration, you can look at a category of customer favorite veggies.

You can also choose the vegetables that are suitable for growing in containers or indoor sow assortments. Otherwise, you can alphabetically browse all the available vegetables, which include products such as carrots, beets, eggplants, garlic, corn, and many more. Plenty of these vegetables are also divided into subcategories. For instance, people interested in carrots can choose between the Kaleidoscope blend, Touchon, or Deep Purple hybrid.

The filters that have been included in the vegetable category will make it easier for you to narrow down all the available choices and have the website display Burpee exclusive products, or organic or heirloom ones. You can select between bulb vegetables, seeds, or bare roots.  One of the filters allows you to select the planting time so that you can plan out your crops carefully to perhaps take advantage of double planting.

Flower Seeds

Burpee’s collection of annual flowers covers pretty much everything that you can find in conventional and more innovative garden setups. You can browse categories that include new flowers, deer-resistant annuals, or even bedding flowers.

You can always view the entire seed collection that Burpee has to offer, but expect each major flower species to have multiple subcategories, as the company does take pride in the product diversity it has to offer. Each flower product page is equipped with more than just purchasing info. You can learn about your grow zone, discover more growth information about that specific flower, as well as descriptive pictures that will show you how a flower reaching maturity looks like.

The different category filters will make it easier for you to narrow down your choices, as you can opt for flowers that bloom in a specific season, sort out those that are in your favorite color, or pick products of a specific height or light requirement.

Perennial Seeds

While annual plants have a limited lifespan, perennial plants are those that can survive for more than two years. They generally bloom during spring and summer, and even if they die during the colder seasons, they come back as soon as temperatures start going up again.

Burpee sells a wide variety of perennials belonging to more than 60 classes. You can choose between daisies, carnations, hibiscus, irises, poppies, roses, and many others. Much like flowers, perennials also have their own category filters so that you can select specific requirements or plants that belong to a certain category.

You can choose to visualize only perennials that grow in your specific zone, those that reach a certain height, or those with specific light requirements. This will help you shop faster and give you an idea of what perennials will render more growth success according to your current garden setup.

Fruit Seeds and Trees

Regardless of the season, fruits are something that you want to have as part of your daily diet. Burpee is here to meet the needs of gardeners who are interested in growing their own fruit with a variety of seeds that cover everyone from grape to melon-lovers.

The fruit seeds sold by Burpee have options that allow you to filter the products available and pick fruits of a certain color, spread, growth habit, or even planting time. In fact, this entire filter system implemented by Burpee is extremely useful for beginner gardeners who aren’t yet sure what plants are more suitable to grow in their specific region and climate.

In the fruits category, you are also likely to find seeds that are exclusive to Burpee, such as the Ambrosia Hybrid Cantaloupe. Note that the fruit selection offered by Burpee is predominantly sold as live starts or saplings, but some varieties are available as seed.

Herb Seeds

Herbs are probably the easiest thing to grow considering the fact that they don’t occupy that much space and they can easily grow in pots and containers. You can even keep them on your kitchen counter. Every time you want to cook, you can just tear a few basil leaves or add some fresh thyme and notice how your food will gain a lot more flavor.

Burpee offers plenty of different herbs in the form of seeds, offering you the possibility to choose between 85 different options. You can opt for basil, parsley, rosemary, dill, lemon balm, oregano, and plenty of other herbs.

The herbs category features one specific filter that we really liked: days to maturity. If you’re looking for herbs that can grow really fast, you can choose those who are fully grown in a maximum time frame of 24 days, for example.

Burpee's Heirloom & Organic Seeds

Before we describe these two categories, let’s briefly explain what heirloom and organic seeds are.

If you know what the term “heirloom” means, you should know that its significance isn’t very different when it comes to seeds. Heirloom seeds are those that come from plants passed from one generation to another. These seeds, much like other types of heirlooms, are considered valuable and have been saved for even hundreds of years. Heirloom seeds are typically known for their rich flavor and they are often used in a small home or farm production.

Organic seeds were very difficult to find a few years ago, but since organic plant growth is now more spread and people are more aware of the quality and origin of the food they consume, the market for organic seeds has slowly expanded and will continue to grow as demand rises.

Are Burpee Seeds GMO?

Producing organic seeds is pretty similar to producing organic food. these seeds are those obtained from products that have been organically raised, whether they’re of heirloom or hybrid varieties. Organic seeds have to come from plants that have been grown without chemicals, that haven’t been treated, and are non-GMO.

In terms of heirloom, Burpee offers plenty of different plants with a heritage that goes even 100 years back. You can find heirloom carrots, celeriac, broccoli, beets, beans, basil, and others.

The organic plant variety offered by Burpee is generous enough to encourage garden owners to try and cultivate multiple plants that are suitable for their growth areas. You can have organic product that ranges from cantaloupes and corn to eggplants and radishes.

Gardening Supplies

Because Burpee is aimed at providing people who are passionate about gardening with all the solutions they need to avoid going to multiple stores in search of the products they want, they have a special section dedicated to gardening supplies.

This particular section includes a variety of tools and accessories that are great for beginners and experts alike. Some of the gardening supplies sold by Burpees include:

• A wide selection of accessories, such as kneelers for more comfortable gardening, sun caps to keep you protected while working outside in the middle of the summer, plant clips, plant labels and marking pens, protective tree wrap, and others.
• Plenty of different fertilizers for your garden, including nutrients and food for very specific types of plants. You can find organic tomato food, bone meal. azalea food, humic acid, organic growth activator, water-soluble plant food, and others.
• Different types of garden tools that range from diamond hoes, transplanter tools, bulb planters, trowels, gardening knives, dibbles, tool bags, rakes, etc.
• Greenhouses and greenhouse accessories, such as shade kits, plant hangers, shelves, workbenches, anchoring kits, and the likes.
• Grow light fixtures that are suitable for different types of plants and plant trays, with different features depending on what you need and how much you’re willing to spend.
• A variety of other product categories that offer a complete gardening experience, allowing you to shop for everything you need for from a single online store. Burpee also offers soil mixes, testers, ties, fences, seed starting mixes, raised bed systems, watering hoses, vegetable supports, tomato cages, and others.

The Fine Print

Burpee Shipping Policy

If you’re convinced that Burpee has the potential to become your number one seed provider, it’s time that you learn some information related to the shipping system that the company put in place.

Every one of your orders will be processed during the weekdays, as the company doesn’t ship on weekends. It usually takes between three to 10 business days for the order to be sent. Whether you will receive your products via UPS or USPS will depend on the type of products you ordered.

When it comes to seeds, it takes about 10 days for the order to be shipped (plants have different shipping conditions that we won’t get into right now).

As far as shipping rates are concerned, Burpee has a flat shipping rate of $2.99 for all seed packets, with different standard shipping rates that are applied to non-seed products, depending on the total value of the order.

Can You Return Seeds?

This is something that a lot of people disregard when they make online purchases, but the return policy of a product is your way of staying safe and making sure that you ultimately get the product you paid for. The seed packets that Burpee sells have a one year guarantee which also serves as a return time frame.

But something that we found interesting is the company’s seed usage policy. Burpee mentions that upon purchasing their seeds, you agree not to distribute them, as they are destined for home gardening use. When you mail back the items you want to return, you have to include your full name, address, and order number, together with your contact information and a copy of your packaging slip.

It can take between seven and 14 days to process a return request, and you will be reimbursed through the original payment method or by issuing a refund check.

Conclusion

Burpee is one of the best seed suppliers that the online environment has brought to our attention to this date. With decades over decades of experience in whatever grows in soil, Burpee is focused on offering a little something to everyone who is interested in gardening.

From seeds to bare plants, and from containers to hoses, the website has a very rich product pool that offers buyers the possibility to shop for all their gardening needs in one single place.

Aside from actually selling gardening products, the website is also a rich source for information, especially for those who are new to gardening and require more information about specific plants they’re looking to grow.