Community Seed Exchange at the Barton Public Library

The CommunitySeed Exchange (CSE) is a free program committed to increasing the ability of home gardeners and homesteaders to provide their own food, to encourage locally adapted seed varieties, and to foster a community of sharing. It is open to all residents of the Northeast Kingdom. The original site & main home of the CSE is at the Barton Public Library, and is a UVM Extension Master Gardener Project.

The Old Stone House Museum has become a ‘Seedling’ member of the CSE for 2019! We have a variety of donated seeds, including ones that are both easy to grow and/or lend themselves to seed saving. By keeping it simple we will be able to develop systems that work for members, our hosts, and the community.

The CSE operates on an honor system. When you register and sign the Safe Seed Promise you become a member of the CSE. Members of the CSE will share gardening and seed saving techniques and may participate in seed & plant swaps as well as other classes and events that members suggest or offer.

Seeds are available at the Twilight House during regular hours. Stop by to become a member, access our links on starting your garden, follow the member group on Facebook and be included in the email distribution list!

Community Seed Exchange – the Basics of How to Start

There are a few factors to consider when saving seeds. First, is the plant an annual, perennial, or biennial?

Annuals – Annuals are the easiest to save and a great place to start. An annual produces seed the same season they are planted.

Perennials – Perennials are often easy to save as well, since the seeds appear when the plant matures. Not all perennial vegetables set seed however. Asparagus, chives and rhubarb are examples of perennial vegetables that do set seed. Others, like horseradish, must be propagated by root division or cuttings.

Biennials – These vegetables produce an edible crop the year they are planted but do not develop flowers and set seeds until the second year. If you want to save seeds for biennial vegetables, the selected crop must be protected over the winter. Many wonderful vegetables are biennials including beets, carrots and cauliflower. They need a month or two of cold weather to promote the formation of a seed stalk, but need protection from extremely cold and persistent winter weather.

What is the difference between heirloom, self-pollinated, open-pollinated and hybrid?

Heirloom – Heirloom seeds are either open-pollinated or self-pollinated varieties that have been handed down for generations (at least 50 years) in a particular region. They were usually selected by gardeners for a specific trait, which might be flavor, productivity, hardiness or adaptability. These are the varieties that are most threatened by the movement towards large agriculture.

Self-Pollinated – Self-pollinated plants have both the pollen & stigma present in the flower and often only require the opening of the flower for pollination. Cross pollination is much rarer than with open-pollinated varieties, but it can occur. Examples of self-pollinated plants are tomatoes and peppers. Self-pollinated are usually combined with open-pollinated in gardening information.

Open-Pollinated – Open-pollinated is often used interchangeably with heirloom, but does not mean the same thing. All heirloom plants are open-pollinated, but there are new varieties of open-pollinated varieties that are being developed and produced. Open-pollinated plants require external pollination by wind, insects or humans.

Hybrid – A hybrid plant has been bred from two different types of a plant. When you purchase a hybrid (F1 0) seed packet, you are getting seeds that were produced by crossing two pure lines of other plants to have the attributes the breeder felt were the best qualities of each plant. There is nothing wrong with planting hybrids. Don’t we all long for that early tomato?! But don’t plan to save the seeds of those plants unless you are in the mood for experimentation.

Easiest Vegetables to Grow in Your Garden

Several of these choices are available in our Seed Exchange offerings.

Join us this season to grow together!

Lettuce – Loose-leaf lettuces and mesclun mixes are quick and easy. They can be harvested when young for a Spring salad. Planting them near tomatoes or other plants that will provide shade in the summer can prevent them from bolting. They also can be planted in flower beds or in containers. Mesclun & other greens like arugula can be broadcast over a two to three foot bed. As the young plants come up, they can be thinned & used in your salads and other dishes.

Radishes – Radishes are a satisfying plant because they are ready to eat so quickly. Resist the temptation to sow to thickly. Radishes are usually planted in rows, and often used to mark slower growing crops like carrots or beans. A few radish seeds in the squash hill can be let go to seed as a pest deterrent.

Cucumbers – Cucumbers are easy to grow as long as the soil is warm. Some varieties may need a trellis or fence to support their vines, but this is actually a bonus in small spaces where vertical gardening saves space. Some research suggests that cucumbers have better production this way, because all the fruit gets good sun exposure and has better circulation.

Green beans & variations – Most green beans are the bush variety and do not spread beyond their rows. Because they will have most of their production within a limited time, it can be practical to plant several times with two or three weeks between plantings. They do need to be checked because they will mature quickly once they produce beans. Beans do well with many other vegetables, so small rows can be planted in other parts of the garden for different harvest times. Pole beans are also easy, but need to be supported. With a teepee of poles they make a great shady tent for any kids that visit your garden!

Zucchini & summer squashes – While jokes abound about surplus zucchini, it is easy to plant just a few hills to enjoy in so many summer dishes, as well as in place of cucumbers. They make good pickles and can be grated & frozen for winter baking.

Tomatoes – You may find it more practical to buy plants, as tomatoes need to be started indoors well before the growing season begins here. There are places to purchase wonderful heirloom varieties, and by buying plants, you can have several different kinds.

You may want to try something new every year – garden centers & those catalogs are hard to resist! But resist the urge to try too many things – there is always another year in the garden!

Other plants that can be tucked in here and there, as well as planted in garden rows are spinach and other greens, herbs like parsley & basil, and single eggplant and pepper starts.

Planning Your Garden for Saving Seeds

In order to successfully save seeds that will grow new plants true to the variety you have chosen, it is important to remember that they must be from open-pollinated and/or hybrid plants, not from hybrids. While hybrids may produce just the product you want from your garden, they will not breed true. So enjoy them for what they are- a plant bred for certain desirable characteristics.

In addition, resist the temptation to choose the less than perfect specimen to gather seeds. By choosing the best plant in your garden you are helping the strain to adapt to your very own mini-climate and growing conditions as well as ensuring viable seeds for sharing.

While it is possible to save seeds for any variety of plant, some seeds are much easier to save. These plants are usually self-pollinating and produce seed the same year they are planted. For other plants, the risk of cross pollination makes seed saving trickier, and some plants are biennials & must be over wintered to be planted for seed the second year.

The following are annual plants that are great to begin your seed saving activities:

Snap Beans – Cross pollination is rare as they produce self-pollinating flowers. Allow the bean pods to dry brown. If a frost threatens, pull the entire plant and hang in a cool dry place until pods are dry.

Lettuce – Lettuce produces perfect self-pollinating flowers. While some outside leaves can be harvested for salad, the lettuce must grow beyond usual harvesting to flower and produce seed heads. Lettuce will ripen at different times making bulk seed harvesting difficult but just right for home gardeners. When about half of the flowers on a plant has gone to seed, cut the top off the plant and dry upside down in a paper bag.

Peas – Peas also rarely cross pollinate, and since many home gardeners grow just one variety, cross pollination should not be an issue. Allow the pods to dry, as with the beans (above), until they are brown.

Peppers – There may be some cross pollination with peppers, but this can be addressed by planting peppers in different locations, including in flower beds. Since there are few plants that don’t tolerate peppers (kohlrabi, fennel) and some that benefit from them (basil, carrots, eggplant, onions, parsley, & tomatoes), they are easy plants to place singly or in small quantities around the garden. Harvest fully mature, healthy peppers for harvesting. Cut the bottom off the pepper and strip the seeds from the central cone. In small quantities they usually do not need more cleaning.

Tomatoes – Cross pollination is rare. While the usual method of harvesting seeds include letting them develop a fungus on the seeds mixed with a bit of water, you should have success in smearing the seeds on a paper towel with their jelly and letting them dry. If you do this in small amounts spread out, you can label right on the paper towels and plant each section directly in the spring.

Other plants to consider are corn, eggplant, dill, borage and annual flowers. Annual flowers such as marigolds, calendula, zinnias, & nasturtiums are easy to save. Collect the dried seed heads & store in a paper bag until thoroughly dry. Be sure to plant a large quantity of flower seeds to ensure you get lots of flowers!