Responsibility

Musings on Responsibility

by Rebecca Hansen

Here at BBB Seed, we are fortunate for the opportunity to talk with so many interesting people and to hear their philosophies on life, living, and gardening.  As we have learned from our customers, there are many different but equally valid views on sustainable agriculture, organic versus non-organic gardening, uses for wildflowers, and just about everything else. The BBB Seed staff is no exception – our opinions are just as varied as those of our customers.

Some people think that using plant species that are native to a specific area is the best way to re-create the way life used to be.  Others just want to grow a beautiful bed of flowers or the perfect heirloom tomato.   Some are excited by the simple emergence of a green shoot above a moist bed of soil, regardless of what lies below.  Some come from farming families while others have been born and raised in an urban environment.  The varied ideas and ideals in our workplace and of our customers help to make our work both fun and interesting.

Though we celebrate these diverse views and thoughts, we at BBB Seed have one goal that brings us together: to take personal responsibility for providing a high-quality product which, to the very best of our knowledge, is environmentally sound.  We make our choices based on seed test information that is provided by the growers and collectors of our wildflower seeds as required by law.  We only purchase seed that, by the results of testing, has a noxious weed content of 0 (zero).  We carefully follow the ever-expanding list of noxious and invasive species lists to ensure that we don’t knowingly distribute varieties to areas where they might be considered invasive.  BBB Seed provides quality products and information to any and all of our customers that they may use for their own purposes.  We cannot control how our seeds are used once they leave the shop, but we hope that our products are put to use in an environmentally sound, agriculturally sustainable manner.  Given the discussions we have had with our customers, we are confident that this will be the case.  After all, in the end, we all have personal responsibility for our own actions. Hence the statement on our packages:

“Beauty Beyond Belief Wildflower seeds, Heirloom Vegetable Seeds, and seed mixes are of superior quality and are carefully chosen based on purity and viability standards, essential elements for a successful, beautiful and self-sufficient landscape. Our seed mixes include no fillers or inert materials.”