As an organic gardener, I try to grow as much as possible from seed. Not only is it more cost-effective, but it also gives me full control over the varieties I plant, ensuring no GMO crops sneak into my garden. Plus, saving seeds year after year is a rewarding practice that keeps my garden self-sustaining.
However, after years of trial and error, I’ve learned that some plants just aren’t worth the hassle of starting from seed. Whether they have poor germination rates, require excessive time and effort, or simply perform better when grown from cuttings or store-bought plants, these are the seven plants I will never grow from seed again – plus a few that many gardeners avoid, but I think are worth the effort.
7 Plants I Will Never Grow From Seed:
1. Lavender
Lavender is a must-have in any garden. It’s fragrant, beautiful, and packed with medicinal benefits. But if you’ve ever tried growing it from seed, you know how frustrating it can be.
- Slow Germination – Lavender seeds take weeks to sprout.
- Cold Stratification Required – You must refrigerate seeds for weeks before planting.
- Weak Seedlings – Even after sprouting, seedlings can take months to become sturdy enough for transplanting.
Instead, I opt for nursery-grown plants or cuttings, which establish much faster and guarantee success. These lavender plants took over a year from start to successful outdoor transplanting. Over 1 year of multiple failed sprouts and months of cold stratification and a year of indoor growth under a grow light. Now they’re doing great outside, but for the next property, not worth the time or energy. At least from me, if my husband wants to do it again, go for it!
2. Blueberries
Blueberries are delicious, nutritious, and fun to grow—just not from seed.
- Unreliable Results – Blueberry seeds won’t always grow into a plant that produces good fruit.
- Takes Years to Bear Fruit – It can take up to five years to get your first harvest from a seed-grown plant.
- Better Grown from Established Plants – Buying a grafted or nursery-grown plant ensures faster fruiting and better-tasting berries.
If you want blueberries in your garden, invest in established plants rather than waiting years for a questionable harvest.
3. Apples, Pears and Most Fruit Trees
Sure, it’s fun to sprout an apple seed from your favorite fruit, but it’s not a good idea if you want edible apples or pears.
- Unpredictable Genetics – Apple seeds don’t grow true to type, meaning the fruit may be inedible.
- Long Time to Maturity – It can take 8-10 years before an apple tree grown from seed produces fruit.
- Best Grown from Grafted Trees – Purchasing a grafted tree ensures reliable fruit production much sooner.
If you dream of homegrown apples, pears or any other type of fruit buy a grafted tree from a reputable nursery.
4. Strawberries
Strawberries are a backyard favorite, but growing them from seed is a slow, difficult process. I’ve failed to grow from seed twice. Never again.
- Inconsistent Germination – Many strawberry seeds never sprout. This happened one year, then the next the seedling never grew past 3 inches.
- Takes Years for Fruit – Seed-grown strawberries take at least 2-3 years to produce fruit.
- Better from Runners or Crowns – Buying bare-root plants or taking runners from an existing plant gives you berries much sooner. Runners are a MUCH easier way to reproduce strawberries.
If you want strawberries fast, start with plants, not seeds. Learn about how to protect your strawberry plants from pests here.
5. Garlic
Garlic is a staple in most gardens, but growing it from seed is unnecessarily difficult. Garlic already takes 10 months from planting to harvest so why make the process longer by a few years when it’s not needed.
- Garlic Usually Doesn’t Produce True Seeds – Most garlic varieties don’t even make viable seeds.
- Bulb Propagation is Faster – Planting garlic cloves (bulbs) is easier and guarantees success.
- Takes Years to Develop – Seed-grown garlic takes multiple years before forming full bulbs.
Skip the seeds and plant individual garlic cloves for a guaranteed harvest. It’s a common gardeners practice to just plant the clove!
6. Sweet Potatoes
Sweet potatoes are expensive to buy and taste amazing fresh from the garden, but they are also tricky to grow from seed.
- Germination Issues – Sweet potatoes are typically grown from slips, not from seed.
- Long Growing Season – Requires a long, warm season (100-150 days) to fully mature.
- Growing from Slips is Easier and Faster – Slips are more reliable and quicker than seeds.
However, even slips are challenging because of it’s growing season and ensuring your potato will actually sprout slips is tricky. Definitely give it a try, but be ready to head over to the nursey to buy some slips – that’s what we’re doing this season after an unsuccessful slip germination!
7. Lemons and Citrus Trees
Like apples, citrus trees grown from seed are unpredictable and take years to fruit.
- Unreliable Genetics – You don’t know what kind of fruit you’ll get.
- Takes 5-10 Years to Bear Fruit – Most people don’t want to wait that long.
- Best Grown from Grafted Trees – Grafted citrus trees produce high-quality fruit much faster.
If you want citrus fast, buy a grafted tree instead of waiting a decade for an uncertain harvest.
8. Potatoes
While technically you can grow potatoes from seed (known as “true potato seeds”), it’s far from ideal and not really recommended. One of our plants did produce true potato seeds a few years ago, but we never used them and opted for seed potatoes instead as an easier route.
- Genetic Variability – Seed-grown potatoes don’t produce the same tubers as the parent plant, leading to inconsistent results.
- Longer Time to Maturity – Growing potatoes from seed takes much longer than planting seed potatoes.
- Best Grown from Seed Potatoes – Planting seed potatoes (small tubers) ensures uniformity and a faster, more reliable harvest.
For a dependable potato harvest, stick to seed potatoes instead of starting from seed!
Plants Gardeners Will Never Grow from Seed – But I Recommend Trying
Asparagus
Asparagus is a fantastic perennial vegetable, but growing it from seed is a test of patience.
- Takes 3+ Years to Harvest – Seed-grown asparagus takes at least three years before you can start picking spears.
- Gender Confusion – Male asparagus plants produce better yields, but with seeds, you don’t know what you’re getting.
- Faster with Crowns – Buying asparagus crowns (one-year-old root systems) speeds up the process significantly.
While crowns are faster, I’ve never had an issue growing the seeds, transplanting them, having them survive for a few years and growing on their own. Yes, if you want time I understand, but it’s an easy process, just takes a little bit of patience. I recommend growing this plant from seed and perhaps buying an asparagus plant that’s already 2 years old to help with the mental idea of having asparagus, but then also having lots of your own seeds to start.
We have a comprehensive growing guide about starting asparagus from seed here.
Difficult Plants to Start from Seed and I’ll Never Grow Again
While I love almost every type of vegetable, there’s a few I’ve tried to grow over the years that I just cannot and will not ever try to grow again, from seed or transplant or anything.
1. Broccoli
Broccoli seeds germinate fine, but the plants are finicky and highly susceptible to bolting in warm weather.
- Pest Issues – Cabbage moths destroy broccoli plants unless heavily protected.
- Space Hog – Broccoli takes up a lot of garden space for a small yield.
- Bolts Quickly – Warmer temperatures make it go to seed too fast.
I love broccoli, but I’d rather buy it from the store than fight cabbage moths and their green caterpillars and the heat every single season. I’ll never grow this green giant again.
2. Cabbage
Cabbage can be tricky to grow from seed due to its high susceptibility to pests and weather fluctuations.
- Pest Magnet – Cabbage worms and aphids love feasting on cabbage plants.
- Needs Perfect Timing – If planted too late, cabbage won’t form heads properly before hot weather hits.
- Takes Up Space – Large plants require significant garden space for a long growing period.
While I love cabbage for sauerkraut and coleslaw, the constant battle against pests and timing issues make it more effort than it’s worth. Yes, we do feed the pest-infested cabbage it to the chickens, but the space and time it takes up in our garden beds for a little chicken snack (since it didn’t form properly due to the heat) is not even worth it for them, so I’ll never grow cabbage from seed or transplant again.
Final Thoughts
Some plants are best grown from seed, while others simply aren’t worth the effort. By learning which plants thrive from seed and which are better started from cuttings, slips, or grafted trees, you can save time, money, and frustration in your garden.
We hope this guide helps you see from experience what works in a garden and what doesn’t If you have any questions about our experiences and thoughts on the matter, or want to share your experiences about plants you’ve struggled to grow from seed, leave a comment below. Be sure to explore our other growing guides, seed-saving tips, and delicious recipes. We’re constantly adding new content and would love for you to grow with us! 🌱 Happy gardening! 🌱
