Seed Sharing Takes Root at Local Libraries
Looking to get your hands dirty this gardening season? Hennepin County Libraries have you covered with their seed library program! That’s right, you can now check out seeds along with your books at four library locations.
The seed-lending libraries at the Eden Prairie, Hosmer, Nokomis, and St. Louis Park branches are stocked and ready for all your planting needs.
The idea is simple – browse the seed catalogs, take what piques your interest, then grow those fruits, veggies, herbs and flowers in your own garden. Once you’ve had your harvesting fun, save some of those seeds and return them to the library to keep the cycle going.
“We’re really trying to cultivate a community of growers,” explains Jackie White, seed library curator at Eden Prairie. “Developing local, resilient seed stocks is huge. That’s why we only accept heirloom, untreated donations – no chemicals here, just pure seed diversity.”
The project has some awesome partners too, like the Master Gardeners, Plant-Grow-Share, Seed Feeds, and Seed Sages. These green-thumbed groups have pitched in with seed donations and education to make sure we’re seeding our success, literally.
In its inaugural year in 2023, Eden Prairie‘s seed library was wildly popular with over 16,000 seed packets going home with gardeners of all ages.
Not only are they growing food, but extra produce can be donated to local food shelves to nourish the community.
So what are you waiting for? Get seeding at your local Hennepin County Library branch!
