A seed library is an institution that lends or shares

seed In botany, a seed is a plant structure containing an embryo and stored nutrients in a protective coat called a ''testa''. More generally, the term "seed" means anything that can be Sowing, sown, which may include seed and husk or tuber. Seeds ...

. It is distinguished from a

seedbank A seed bank (also seed banks, seeds bank or seed vault) stores seeds to preserve genetic diversity; hence it is a type of gene bank. There are many reasons to store seeds. One is to preserve the genes that plant breeders need to increase yield, ...

in that the main purpose is not to store or hold

germplasm Germplasm refers to genetic resources such as seeds, tissues, and DNA sequences that are maintained for the purpose of animal and plant breeding, conservation efforts, agriculture, and other research uses. These resources may take the form of s ...

or seeds against possible destruction, but to disseminate them to the public which preserves the shared plant varieties through propagation and further sharing of seed.

History

The first contemporary seed library was created in 1999 at the Berkeley Ecology Center. It was called the Bay Area Seed Interchange Library (BASIL). The first seed library to be established in a public library was at the Gardiner Public Library in Gardiner, New York and was developed by Ken Greene in 2004. Since then, the number of seed libraries has grown to over 450 across the globe, with most being established in the United States.

Function

Seed libraries can maintain their collections through donations from members, but may also operate as pure charity operations intent on serving gardeners and farmers. A common attribute of many seed libraries is to preserve agricultural biodiversity by focusing on rare, local, and heirloom seed varieties. Seed libraries can also receive donations from companies, either monetarily or through actual donations of seeds. For example
Scottsdale Public Library
is partnered with Blue Zones Project Scottsdale to provide seeds to patrons. Seed libraries use varied methods for sharing seeds, primarily by: * seed swaps otherwise known as seed exchanges, in which library members or the public meet and exchange seeds * seed "lending," in which people check out seed from the library's collection, grow them, save the seed, and return seed from the propagated plants to the library Seed libraries may function as programs of

public libraries ''Public Libraries'' is the official publication of the Public Library Association (PLA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA). It is devoted exclusively to public libraries. The print edition is published six times a year and i ...

, such as the programs of the Richmond Public Library in California (the "Richmond Grows" program is the "unofficial spiritual center of the ublic library seed librarymovement") and the New Port Richey Public Library (Florida). Seed library initiatives in public libraries garner patron participation as a novelty supplement to book check-outs. Seed packets are usually located next to everyday circulated items like books, audiobooks, CDs, and DVDs. Seed libraries in public libraries have been successful because they catch patron hobby curiosities. Public libraries are an appropriate space for seed libraries because they make seeds and plants available to everyone. They are also located in college libraries, such as

Hampshire College Hampshire College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts. It was opened in 1970 as an experiment in alternative education, in association with four other colleges ...

's seed library; museums, such as the Hull-House Heirloom Seed Library, a program of the Jane Addams Hull-House Museum. or as membership based online programs like the Hudson Valley Seed Library. Some have developed as programs of

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens. is ...

s, such as that of the

VanDusen Botanical Garden VanDusen Botanical Garden is a botanical garden situated in Vancouver, British Columbia, in the Shaughnessy neighborhood. It is located at the northwest corner of 37th Avenue and Oak Street. It is named for local lumberman and philanthropist Whit ...

, or from gardening associations and research institutes, such as the Heritage Seed Library of Garden Organic. Other seed libraries have evolved from community sustainability or resilience efforts, such as the Bay Area Seed Interchange Library (BASIL) (the United States' oldest seed library, which developed from the

Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Anglo-Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland, Cali ...

Ecology Center); and still others from the Slow Food movement, such as Grow Gainesville's seed program. While "lending" is straightforward, "returning" or re-depositing seeds presents a challenge, since the new seeds are not necessarily well-described, and may be inadvertent hybrids. Some libraries, like the Live Oak Public Library in

Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia and the county seat of Chatham County, Georgia, Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the Kingdom of Great Brita ...

, do not accept returns or unsolicited donations to ensure quality control. Other libraries, like the Live Oak Public Library in,

Live Oak, Florida Live Oak is a city and the county seat of Suwannee County, Florida, United States. The city is midway between Tallahassee, Florida, Tallahassee and Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville. As of 2020, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Burea ...

, ask that borrowers return seeds if possible but there is no penalty for not doing so, and they will not accept hybrid or GMO seeds. Seed libraries complement the preservationist activities of

s, by collecting local and heirloom varieties that might otherwise be lost, and by collecting new local varieties. In theory, lending and returning seed libraries will also promote local agriculture over time, by growing collections of seeds locally adapted to the region.

History

Function

See also

References

Further reading

External links