The Vernon Permaculture group has a free seed exchange at the Vernon library.
Image Credit: FACEBOOK/Vernon Permaculture
April 03, 2022 - 1:00 PM
With recent events like wildfires and floods threatening food security, a Vernon group is promoting the exchange of seeds so residents can grow their own produce.
The Vernon Permaculture group is offering a seed swap, encouraging residents to take some seeds and leave some for others at the Vernon Okanagan Regional Library branch. ORL libraries are also offering free seeds in Naramata, Enderby, Summerland and Vernon.
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Erik Hrabovsky, with Vernon Permaculture, set up the seeds in the Vernon library. The past year has been difficult with the pandemic and with wildfires so he decided to come up with an idea to work together and come up with a seed exchange as a community-driven initiative.
Naramata has a “seed snail,” a free-library-like box in the shape of a snail where gardeners can drop off and pick up seeds but there isn’t much of that in the North Okanagan, he said.
“We’re not able to swap seeds as farmers, especially small-time farmers who don’t necessarily have the budget. Seeds are expensive when you start off from scratch,” he said.
Since its inception March 30, he’s already noticed donations and that some of his seeds have been taken. The seed exchange will continue until the late afternoon April 6.
“Anyone can go in there while the library’s open and they can access a range of about 40 varieties of seeds that are in there and they range immensely,” Hrabovsky said.
He’d like to see seed exchanges take off across the Okanagan Valley.
There were disasters and transport problems and there have been online sellers who are depending on supply chains are selling out, he said.
“If I was going to do this again, I want people to be connecting more and not just dropping by and we’re hoping that things like that can happen,” Hrabovsky said, adding he’d like to add an educational component to seed swaps.
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