Hello fellow readers,
Last week The Press published a wonderful quote by Robert Brault. ‘In every gardener there is a child who believes in The Seed Fairy.’ Turns out the day before it published I happened to speak with the seed fairies at Catherine Dickson Hofman Library in Blairstown. I love when that stuff happens. There was a sign for seeds on top of a metal file cabinet I noticed while there. Maybe the frozen tundra is getting to me, but a sign for seeds makes me just plain giddy. First I spoke with Amy who said they’ve been sharing seeds for three years. How could I have missed this??? She then introduced me to the lead seed fairy Patti who shared more.
Patti generously sharing Seed & Gardening Wisdom
They used to call it a Seed Library but the Department of Agriculture is now involved in such things which means seeds would have to be tested. Instead, the library relies on donations from generous seed companies. This year Abundant Seeds gave them 500 seed packs. They also have a stash from Baker Creek and Seeds of Change amongst others. The majority are vegetable seeds, with some flower and herbs to boot. They are all non-GMO which means they have not been genetically altered and are non-hybrid, also known as open-pollinated seeds, which allows gardeners to collect seeds from their crop for future planting. They have heirloom seeds and some organic. Wowee, I’m beyond giddy!
True some are a year or older but as Patti explained, seeds can remain viable for a few years. And the price is right (free) so there is no risk to give them a chance to grow.
Beyond the seed donations, the library hosts a seed swap amongst gardeners. Literally it’s in the bottom drawer of the file cabinet. Bring and you can take; or maybe they’ll just let you take. The point is, we have seed fairies all around us. We have to be patient though as it’s not until the beginning of March when library patrons can pick up to 5 packets of seeds for free. And share in the give and take seed swap. Until then, let’s drool over some seed catalogues shall we? Patience is a virtue but drooling is FUN!
Garden dilemmas? askmarystone@gmail.com
February 19th addendum: They Opened the Seed Library Early!
My take-home seeds. Can’t Wait to plant them :^)
