Seeds: Organic vs Conventional

Choosing Vegetable Seeds for Your Garden

When planning your gardening season, one potentially important decision is choosing between organic and conventional vegetable seeds. This choice is more than just a label; it reflects your commitment to the soil ecosystem and overall environmental health.

Seed Type	Parent Plant Growing Method	Seed Treatment
Conventional	Grown using standard agricultural methods (may involve synthetic chemicals).	May be treated with non-organic fungicides or coatings.
Organic	Grown organically, without prohibited synthetic chemicals.	Not treated with non-organic seed coatings or fungicides.

As you can see, this is more than just treated seeds vs untreated seeds; it reflects how the parent plant was grown in the first place.

Why Choose Organic for Vegetable Gardening?

Choosing organic seeds aligns perfectly with a low-input, sustainable approach to vegetable gardening.

• Environmental and Health Benefits: Organic growing prioritizes building healthy soil ecosystems. This approach, where you reduce external chemical inputs and encourage soil biodiversity, is crucial for managing the often-challenging clay soil common in the Greater Toronto Area.
• Genetic Resilience: Organic seeds often come from parent plants that have proven their hardiness and ability to thrive naturally without chemical support. This robustness is passed on, setting up your garden for success.
• Heirloom Variety Availability: Organic seed companies often focus on heirloom and open-pollinated varieties, which offer unparalleled flavour and genetic diversity. To learn more about variety types, check out our Seeds: Open-Pollinated vs Hybrid mini guide.

Practical Considerations for GTA Growers

Even with a relatively short growing season, your initial plant selection is important to success.

• Prioritize Soil Health: Regardless of the seed type you choose, focusing on soil preparation and maximizing organic matter is the foundation of successful vegetable gardening. It will improve your garden fertility in the long-term and improve the flavour of your harvest in the short-term. For more details, see our guides on Soil Preparation and Soil Testing.
• Embrace Diversity: An organic gardening philosophy encourages resilience. Select hardy varieties and consider integrating perennial vegetables and herbs that thrive in the Toronto climate (like native plants) to improve overall garden sustainability.
• The Variety Trade-off: Conventional seeds currently offer a wider selection. If you cannot find an organic version of a specific vegetable, you can still purchase the conventional seed and apply organic growing practices throughout the season to achieve a clean, healthy harvest.

Ready to Grow More?

Join our community of gardeners and start growing your own food in the city! From balcony boxes to backyard plots, community gardens, and urban farms, we’re dedicated to helping you succeed in vegetable gardening and urban agriculture.

• In the Greater Toronto Area (GTA)? Join Our Program at Downsview Park: Enroll in our full-season Grow Veggies program for hands-on learning and a share of the harvest.
• Get Monthly Tips: Sign up for our monthly Grow With Us newsletter to receive seasonal tips and our gardeners’ to-do lists.
• Follow Us: Find us on Instagram or Facebook to see what we’re growing at our teaching garden in Toronto.