Shopping for seed-starting, potting soil, I came across a super well-known, name-brand, in an 8 qt. bag, for about a dollar more than the lesser-known brand of soil, in a 12-qt. bag. The 8-qt. bag came with a built-in zipper on the top of the bag. The 12-qt. didn't.
For a savings of $1, and 4 extra qts. of soil, I think I'll use a clip from my desk, and seal the bag myself.
If I was an extremely clumsy person and knocked things over a lot, then the built-in zipper would come in handy. Or, if I knew I wouldn't use all of the soil this season, again the built-in zipper might be the better option. But then again, I could always use a 5 cent strip of duct tape to seal the bag shut.
Sometimes, I think we pay way too much for the name and extra conveniences.
By the way, Home Depot didn't have these bags on the shelf with the "big-name" brand, but off to the side, in a large cardboard box. It pays to look around for those seasonal items which aren't part of the regular stock.
