Is this goofy?
>> Monday, January 28, 2013 –
seeds
As I've said before I can't pass by a seed packet display without giving it a look, but I rarely look at the top row of seeds. The other day I did though, and saw this:
I can't decide if this is goofy or not. Oh, I'm well aware that it is Goofy, but why is he on a seed packet?
He's not alone either:
Pluto gets to be on two different packages:
From this I learned that dogs love edible plants much more than ducks or overly happy mice do, as they are featured on a single packet only:
I guess if you think about it, there's logic to this: Dogs dig, gardeners dig, gardeners love growing things, so dogs must love growing things. How can you fault that reasoning?
I'm just not sure what these iconic and beloved characters are doing on seed packets. Sure it's to get the little ones interested in putting some seeds into the ground, but I think that if I were a child who chose some Goofy seeds I'd be disappointed to just see some boring old carrots come out of the ground after a few months of care.
Maybe that's a good lesson to learn early though: the images on seed packets are ideal -- your results may vary.
(By the way, a packet of seeds contains small parts and is a choking hazard -- these are for children over 3 years of age only! Good thing they put that on the label.)
There are growing kits too:
These contain everything you need to grow, I guess, a whole bunch of different things, because there are three characters shown on the front. Exciting!
Oh, these kits contain just two different kinds of seeds, and only one of them is edible! Good thing I read the label.
There are stickers inside though.
Since girls are not really attracted to growing edibles (what?) there are other, more floriferous options in bright pink packages:
Good thing little boys don't love sunflowers and other cool flowers like asters. (what?)
Sort of like the Kosmik Kactus I posted about recently, I'm undecided about these seed packets. Are they just gimmicks to get parents to buy something that they normally wouldn't? Or are these clever ways to introduce the joys of plants to more people? Maybe a good idea, but poorly executed?
What do you think?
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It is goofy. And what's even goofier is the price tag on those seeds... a little extra premium to get ole Mickey in your garden it seems? And don't even get me started on the whole princess thing - ugh.
My kids loved to garden without any extra inducement. We found it helpful to plant lots of seeds, but slso to buy some seedlings as well, for that sense of instant gratification that little people (and lots of us big people, too!) need. It's hard to water the bare ground for too many days in a row!
It's going to be 60 degrees in Chicago tomorrow - just a tease but oh, how I long to smell dirt again!
Having once worked on a project that involved licensing of a Disney figure I can't imagine the hoops that Burpee jumped through for this. They must have felt (researched) that the sales would all make it worth it though!
Yikes! I know why Burpee did this but, heavens to murgatroyd! Do our children really need that much incentive to garden? Really?
Oh my word!! Now I've seen it all! Disney and seeds?? Hmmm.... don't get it. But I guess the biggest consumers the advertisers always focus on is our kids!! The choking hazard is a must :-)
These are not going to turn any kids into gardeners. However, it is conceivable that in a handful of kids it will trigger a desire for the packets, thus leading to an assault of whining that some parents will give into. Or, I suppose, if the parents were going to buy the seeds anyway, they may reason that they could interest the kids with the packaging. Actually, yeah, it is goofy.