New this Year... Thank you to everyone who made this happen

Boyle County Public Library Seed Bank

The practice of saving seeds has been around for more than 12,000 years. Today, seed saving helps us to develop stronger seeds that are better adapted to our climate and it saves money. Because seed saving is part of our heritage and traditions, it is one way we can come together as a community. When we grow food, our community grows!

OUR SEED LIBRARYIS ABOUT…

*Encouraging our community to dig in and garden

*Reconnecting our community to the traditions of growing tasty, healthy food

*Educating our community about growing, harvesting and savin seeds

*Creating a community-sustained seed collection at our library

*Nurturing a culture of sharing and abundance

STEP 1: CHOOSING SEEDS

Our seed library will depend on donations, growing success, and seasonal changes. We’ll have different seeds available at different times, so please check back with us often to see what’s new.

You can choose from ‘EASY’, ‘MEDIUM’ and ‘ADVANCED’ seeds. These are categorized by how difficult it is to save seeds as ‘true to type’ not how to grow them. If you’re a beginner gardener, don’t worry about saving seeds right now. Instead, select the seeds that you’re interested in growing. Focus first on having fun and learning how to garden. The seed saving part will come later.

STEP 2: BORROWING SEEDS

All you need is a current BCPL library card. Seeds can be checked out just as you would check out books, DVDs or any library materials. The barcode on the seed packet needs to be scanned by the Circulation Staff.

The seed packets contain enough seeds to grow at least five to ten plants. You can check out up to six packets every month. You don’t return the same seeds, so there are no due dates, and you’ll never accrue overdue fines.

STEP 3: SAVING SEEDS

Seeds are a genetic goldmine. When we save seeds we’re passing on the genetic qualities of the plant that provided them.

‘Easy’ seeds are great for beginner gardeners who are ready to save seeds. The perfect flowers from ‘easy’ plants’ are self-pollinating and not likely to cross-pollinate between plants.

‘Medium’ and ‘Advanced’ seeds require special planning. If you’re a more experienced gardener growing plants for seed saving, you’ll want to choose ‘Medium’ and ‘Advanced’ seeds after learning how to isolate plants to prevent cross-pollination.

STEP 4: SHARING SEEDS

Collect seeds from your healthiest or tastiest crops. Be sure to set aside some seeds for yourself. Place some seeds for the Seed Library in clearly labeled envelopes or containers. Please label your envelope, jar or baggie with a donation slip that you can find at Seed Catalog. The more information that you provide, the better we can track the success of our local seed stories.

Bring your labeled seeds to the circulation desk and KEEP GARDENING!