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[AWellTrainedFerret]

My current fort seems to have a problem I haven't encountered before: I'm using pots instead of barrels to store all my food because my embark has no trees. But now, I'm noticing that my food, liqueur, and most importantly, seeds are all disappearing at an alarming rate. Most critically, I've lost all my pig tail and cave wheat seeds seemingly instantly, despite having hundreds last I checked stocks. The only possible explanation I can come up with is that my dorfs are using pots that are already full to store new food and liqueur, destroying what's inside. I know that they weren't cooked, and my brewer/farmer are both legendary so they couldn't have been lost to attrition. After the pig tail seed were lost I even patured a cat in my seed stocks to make sure rodents didn't get in; but to no avail.

Is my assumption about the pots accurate? Or is there something that I'm missing?

[GoldenShadow]

Maybe all of your pigtail seeds are already planted and grew into plants which are now sitting in your stockpile. Tell your farmer workshop to (p)rocess them into thread or use the stil(l) to (b)rew them to get seeds out of them.

[Garath]

as far as i figure, pots work exactly like barrels, but an elf doesnt get upset when you offer one

[AWellTrainedFerret]

I went digging into the bug tracker and maybe this is a combination of two bugs there: One is when a caravan comes with a lot of seeds, it counts towards your seed stock maximum and prevents you from getting seeds from brewing/processing. The other is when a season changes, if the farm plot isn't set to grow that plant all plants currently in it will disappear and give you no seeds. I guess it was just horrible luck on my part that it happened to both my pig tails and cave wheat. And it has taught me that now I have to micromanage my farmers instead of just setting up large plots and letting them work it.

[proxn_punkd]

Or that you plan crop rotations so they don't go out-of-season and die. My usual schedule is Quarry Bushes/Sweet Pods in spring alone, Pig Tails/Cave Wheat/modded stuff in summer and fall, Plump Helms and some Dimple Cups in winter, and I use small plots so there's always some seeds left over.

[Aspgren]

huh. I've never run into anything like this.

I think it's because I -always- use crop rotation... and I haven't ever thought about not doing it.  Not to mention I store large quantities of seeds and usually end up buying seeds from every caravan ever for no particular reason ...
"More is better!" said Urist and drowned in the sewer brew.

[assimilateur]

The other is when a season changes, if the farm plot isn't set to grow that plant all plants currently in it will disappear and give you no seeds.

I modded my underground plants to be grown year-round. Not only does that avoid the problem you're facing now, but it seems perfectly reasonable. If anything, you'd expect conditions underground to be more constant than above ground: it makes less sense to be able to grow strawberries outside in winter than not being able to do the equivalent inside.

And it has taught me that now I have to micromanage my farmers instead of just setting up large plots and letting them work it.

Why would you need large plots in the first place? I've got three-tile plots of the four underground plants that can be used for booze and they yield more than enough for 85 dwarves. Other than that I have 5 female alpacas, 5 female ducks and a three-tile plot of quarry bushes and those again yield more food than I need.

You might need up to four times the equivalent of that if you have a really populous fortress and/or export a lot. More than that and you'd probably end up throwing most of your surplus away after a couple of years.

[fluffhead]

Maybe you have the workshop set to press paste/mill plants.  I think milling the plants doesn't give seeds, also pressing for paste doesn't give seeds either.  maybe you put a task on repeat and processed all your stuff by setting a task on repeat that doesn't give you a seed back.

[Quietust]

Maybe you have the workshop set to press paste/mill plants.  I think milling the plants doesn't give seeds, also pressing for paste doesn't give seeds either.

#1 - Milling plants does give seeds.
#2 - The only things that can be pressed are rock nut paste (which is only produced by grinding rock nuts, otherwise known as quarry bush seeds, at a millstone/quern) and honeycombs (which have nothing to do with plants).