Friday, May 10, 2013

Guest Post- The Grimsby Grows Seed Library

by Adrienne Charette




The Grimsby Grows Seed Lending Library was launched just under a year ago. When we first started planning the project, we saw a number of similar programs being offered through American public libraries, most notably the Richmond Grows Seed Lending Library, and the Fairfield Public Library in Connecticut. There weren't many Canadian seed libraries within public libraries, and the idea seemed like it would be a good fit for the community of Grimsby. We were fortunate to receive funding from the Niagara Community Foundation Mini-grant program to assist with startup costs.

The Grimsby Grows Seed Lending Library is housed at the Information Desk in the Grimsby Public Library. We have an assortment of herb and vegetable seeds, the majority of which were purchased from Tree and Twig, but some which were donated to the Library as well. Members of the Library, as well as the general public, are welcome to come to the Library to check out seeds. Our intention is to make seeds freely available to library users in order to grow their own vegetables and save the seeds - keeping some for the Library, and the rest for themselves. We hope that eventually the Seed Library will be self-sustainable through returned seeds.

In addition to making seeds freely available, we also offer programs at the Library that are of interest to those borrowing seeds. This year, for example, we've offered a vegetable gardening information session and a seed starting drop-in program. In July, Linda will be coming in to speak about seed saving - an essential topic that will encourage people to save and return their seeds in order to make our program sustainable!

OUR MISSION:

The Grimsby Grows Seed Library is a free community seed project that is committed to increasing the people’s ability to grow their own fresh food. This educational project is designed to foster community resilience and healthy eating. Grimsby Grows promotes a culture of sharing as well as Grimsby’s rich agricultural heritage.

If you have any questions about the Grimsby Grows Seed Lending Library, please feel free to get in touch!  The library's website can be viewed athttp://library.grimsby.ca or you can contact us by email at gen-library@grimsby.ca


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