Seed Swap Sunday
While promoting this event I’ve enjoyed various responses. From someone slowly repeating the three words ‘Seed-Swap-Sunday’ a few times waiting for their meaning to become clear – to plain bewilderment, via “that’s interesting”, “oooh”, and “what day is it on?”. I can find my explanations somehow lacking… I’ll try again.
All seeds are welcome – fruit, veg, herbs, flowers, shrubs, bulbs, tubers, saplings…
Heritage: The past hundred years or so has seen a stunning variety of plants simply come and go. Some lose favour, some crops fail, sometimes a seed supplier drops a line without explanation and a grower mourns the loss of the favourite they can no longer source. Sometimes, as happened with apples in the 70’s, a new variety is promoted to the exclusion and demise of those left to fading memory.
Food security: By saving our own seeds we can maintain the varieties we enjoy and that have adapted best to our local environment. In this way we, and future generations, can continue to enjoy healthy, flavoursome foods without fear of the whims of faceless supply chains; nor depend on unproven, unnecessary, expensive, diminishing fuel dependent technologies of controlling companies which offer neither sustenance, sufficiency or sustainability. Genetically Modified seeds cannot be saved by any grower or farmer and someone whose plants have been contaminated by GM crops is liable to be sued by the GM company.
Economy – If Mr Pelli buys a pack of 50 seeds, uses 10, and exchanges the remaining 40 for 2-40 other seeds, it is pleasingly economical.
It’s great if someone also saves their homegrown seed. They can begin with one seed and receive somewhere between a few and a few thousand seeds which can be effectively banked and invested for exponential growth.
It benefits biodiversity too as pollinators are in great decline and simply desire the opportunity to pollinate. For free.
Development: Sharing and breeding new varieties for flavour, diversity & disease resistance is wholeheartedly embraced.
In previous years Madeline McKeever has given talks at the event to demonstrate and promote seed saving. Her company ‘Brown Envelope Seeds’ -and I’d love to be corrected here- is one of only two Irish organic seed companies which produce and sell their own seeds. The other is the Irish Seed Savers Association. Both actively promote seed saving while ensuring best methods of custodianship are adhered to so that seedlines remain healthy and vigorous in perpetuity. We stock Brown Envelope Seeds for sale and you’ll also find ex-stock available to swap.
When coming to a seed swap you will not be expected to have saved your own seed or be any kind of expert. Just bring your quality, surplus seed and envelopes or ziplock bags for your findings. It’s a sociable afternoon of sharing gardening interests, picking up tips and making discoveries (and finding yourself part of a growing community – roughly 60-70 folk of all ages have trickled through the door at each past event). There’s tea and coffee too.
That’s Seed Swap Sunday. Ours is on the last Sunday of February at Crossna Hall, Knockvicar. Pop in any time between 12-4, I look forward to meeting you there.
You can download for free ‘A Seed Saving Guide For Gardeners And Farmers’ from The Organic Seed Alliance. Visit www.seedalliance.org – highly recommended. Wayne, 2012
