The Tool Lending Library at MCL was the first of its kind in Allegheny County. The mission of the library is “More than a library-an agent of positive change.” The library has a strong goal of sustainability evidenced by this effort which allows a great number of people to borrow from any of over 350 tools rather than purchasing. The collection consist of hand tools, gardening, automotive, masonry, and power tools. The majority of these items were donated by local residents. Affordable access to tools allows people to maintain/repair their homes, grow their own food, work with neighbors on restoration and improvement projects, and even start new jobs and businesses. A “Library of Things” can help make community living more affordable and is socially rewarding for people.

Accepting donations gives more people in the community a sense of ownership. People are apt to donate their underutilized items to help support a community resource. Having a special collection of a “Library of Things” offers potential for great community partnerships and programming opportunities. Many libraries now have parties where community members can also attend practical skill-sharing events like Repair Parties or DIY classes. Public libraries will always provide an unmatched service to all those who simply cannot afford to purchase all the “things” they need. Creating a unique collection or “Library of Things” is a great best practice for the future.

The post Community Connections and Creating a Library of Things first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

One of the librarians Dr. Soleri interviewed was Jennifer Lyon, who helps manage a seed library in the Mendocino County Library System. Lyon and other librarians from Mendocino presented at the 2017 Conference of the Association for Rural and Small Libraries on how to start a seed library. In their presentation, the librarians noted that:

“For some communities, getting folks to garden and grow some of their own food is the focus. For other communities, seed libraries may be created as an important step to develop a network of seed savers, to create locally adapted varieties, to respond proactively to climate change or loss of gene integrity due to GMOs, or to preserve genetic diversity.” [2]

Another big benefit to having seed libraries located in public libraries (as opposed to in other institutions), is that when they are in public libraries they are open longer hours. Dr. Soleri found that, on average, seed collections located in public libraries are available to the public for double the number of hours of seed collections located elsewhere. Public libraries can also connect seed libraries to health and wellness initiatives. According to the Cooperative Extension System, “Gardening is a great way to not only enjoy some fresh air, but to get some exercise and increase your physical activity, too!” [3]

Dr. Soleri did not set out to study public libraries, but she found out that most seed libraries (67%) in California are in public libraries. Most of these seed libraries are managed by library staff members who have gardening experience.

Julie Zeoli, Adult Services Librarian at the Yoruba Linda Public Library, California, and founder of Yorba Linda Grows seed library. Photo Courtesy of Daniela Soleri.

Seed libraries rely extensively on volunteer labor. They are truly a community endeavor. Dr. Soleri found that, on average, about 75 percent of the work done to manage seed libraries in public libraries was unpaid, and 27 percent of the public library seed libraries studied are managed entirely by volunteers. Furthermore, the library staff members responsible for managing seed libraries occupy diverse roles. Dr. Soleri found everyone from head librarians to part time technicians are responsible for the seed libraries.

Seed libraries acquire new seeds every year from local and national networks. The libraries then distribute those seeds. Most libraries reported acquiring their seeds from special purpose or mission-driven seed companies, either as donations or as purchases.

Dr. Soleri also found public libraries confronting challenges as they manage seed libraries. One public library staff member reported shutting down their seed library after a year and a half because borrowers never returned seed. However, other library staff report that the goal of seed libraries is not to save seed from year to year, but rather to promote access to gardening. Only 10 percent of seed libraries located in public libraries require having a library card to use the seed libraries, suggesting that this unique example of a “library of things” operates differently from the regular circulating collection.

To learn more about how to start a seed library at your public library, visit this collection of resources.

References

[1] Soleri, Daniela. “Civic seeds: new institutions for seed systems and communities—a 2016 survey of California seed libraries.” Agriculture and Human Values (2017): 1-17.

[2] Lyon, Jennifer and Roseanne Wetzel. “How to start a seed library.” A presentation at the 2017 meeting of the Association for Rural and Small Libraries, St. George, Utah, Sept. 7-9.

[3] Cooperative Extension System. “Does gardening count as exercise and physical activity?” Nov. 14, 2012. http://articles.extension.org/pages/27727/does-gardening-count-as-exercise-and-physical-activity.

Resources

Peterson, Jennifer. “Growing Library Gardening Programs.” WebJunction. http://www.webjunction.org/news/webjunction/growing-library-garden-programs.html.

The post Check out Seeds at the Library first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

The MVPL Seed Library launched in April 2013 with a plant exchange. Patrons were invited to bring culls, clippings, and spare seedlings to trade with their neighbors. A blurb on the flyer let people know that we were also accepting donations for our new seed library. Over the course of three hours on a Saturday, more than 120 patrons exchanged over 400 plants, and we received enough seeds to start our library.

How the Seed Library Works

We accept all kinds of seed donations, of both commercially packaged and saved seed. If the donation is saved seed, we ask donors to fill out a form, providing information such as variety, harvest year and location, contact information, and growing notes. We repackage donations into coin envelopes, cramming as much of that information as possible onto a mailing label and sticking it on the front.

Based on practices at other seed libraries, I decided that each envelope should contain enough seed for three to five plants. Given that not all seeds germinate, that means there are generally between nine and fifteen seeds in each packet. Some seeds are incredibly tiny––dust sized even––and for those we generally disregard the rule and just put a pinch in each envelope. Conversely, some seeds are quite large, and consequently those  envelopes will contain fewer seeds.

When we first started, we put the packets in a Tupperware container and stuck it underneath our stairs. Nearly a year later, we have enough seeds for two containers, and large metal recipe file drawer. We’re in the process of moving to a larger standing file cabinet.

Due to lack of time, we don’t strictly monitor what is being “checked out,” but we do have a sign-out sheet where people write their name, the seeds they’ve taken, and can include an email address if they are interested in our gardening programs or in volunteering. I currently have a list of nearly 150 names.

Staffing

When we started, we had the notion that we would find interested volunteers to run our seed library. Our model was based on the Potrero Hill branch of the San Francisco Library, whose seed library is primarily stocked and maintained by a local gardening organization. While nearly a year later we have a core group of about six volunteers that help with stocking and programming, we are still managing the library ourselves. This is because it has proved to be an excellent way to reach out to gardeners and grow community interest in the library. Also, keeping control has let me add resources and re-envision operations in response to our community.

I am still the sole staff member working on the library. The time commitment varies on my end. Last year, after the initial setup, I spent an hour or so each week on maintenance and stocking. This year, our success will probably increase the amount of time needed on my end. Right now we’re ramping up for the growing season, so I’ve got a group of volunteers meeting for an hour and a half each week, and then I’m probably spending an additional two hours each week prepping labels, doing website maintenance, and planning programs. This total time will most likely scale back in fall and winter.

Programming

Programming has been integral in building interest and community. As mentioned earlier, we used a plant exchange to collect the donations used to start the library. The success of this event also created an initial pleasant buzz (apparently our plant exchange was more civilized and friendly than another local plant exchange).

A few weeks after launching the library, Patrick O’Connor from the Bay Area Seed Interchange Library (BASIL) came to the library to give a talk about saving seeds. Before the event we were thinking that seed saving was an activity we could get everyone to participate in, and that the seed library would eventually be entirely stocked with saved seeds. However this talk, which attracted twenty-one attendees, helped us to realize that seed saving was an activity that very often required skill and a large amount of square footage, in addition to desire and enthusiasm. We started to think about adjusting our plan for restocking.

Next I found a local ally in Patricia Larenas, through her lovely blog, Urban Artichoke. In her blog, Larenas talked about seed saving––she does seed trials for Seed Saver’s Exchange, and for local bean company Rancho Gordo as a “bean buddy.” Larenas’s knowledge and enthusiasm helped build our understanding of the needs of local gardeners and seed savers, as well as attracting new seed library patrons. Larenas gave two talks for us. In early May, a few weeks after O’Connor’s seed saving talk, she presented to twenty-one patrons on starting plants from seeds. Then in mid-August, she spoke to sixty patrons about planning, growing, and eating a kitchen garden.

Our city has a local hero, Firefighter Mike. In addition to helping keep our city safe, Firefighter Mike has a love of vegetable gardening. He has built gardens at two of our city’s fire stations. His current post is just under three-fourths of a mile from the library, so one morning in mid July we invited patrons to walk or roll over there for a tour of his garden. Our garden visit let us connect with our community in a new way. We took a leisurely stroll through the neighborhood, chatting about the gardens we passed, and then heard an inspirational story from a passionate gardener. We saw some great looking plants and some cool fire trucks, too. We had thirty-two patrons of all ages join us for this event, the littlest one in his own firefighter suit.

At the end of the season, we put on two final programs. In August, our crop swap ended up being much smaller than the plant exchange, with only twelve attendees. However, there was a lot of delicious produce exchanged, and one woman even made homemade jam. In October we put on another talk about seed saving, given by Santa Clara county master gardener Hillie Salo to twenty-one attendees.

Our library is also lucky enough to host ongoing programing by two other groups––the Santa Clara County Master Gardeners, who come in every eight weeks, and the Bay Area Water Supply & Conservation Agency, which presents talks on water-wise gardening and landscaping.

In 2014, we have found more opportunities to interact with the gardening community. Our second annual plant exchange took place at the end of March. We are partnering with five other seed libraries and Hillie Salo to present Silicon Valley Grows, a seed-saving program modeled on One Book, One Community programs. We’re talking to a group that works to create school gardens and kid gardening programs. I have hopes of doing a handson tomato planting, followed by a tomato tasting at the end of the season. Seed Saving versus

Seed Sharing

Seed libraries have a strong association with seed saving. Seed saving is exactly what it sounds like: the practice of preserving seeds from plants in order to grow them next season. When we started, our vision was that the library would be restocked with primarily saved seed. However, seed
saving can actually be quite complicated! Some plants, such as beans and tomatoes, are fairly easy to save, but others, such as corn, require that a large number of plants be grown in order to preserve genetic diversity. And some plants, such as squash and melons, need to have their flowers bagged in order to ensure that the next generation will be viable and, well, edible. Education in seed saving has been part of our mission, but for new gardeners who just want to see if they can grow a pumpkin, seed saving may be too complicated, time-consuming, or confusing. And for urban and suburban gardeners, who may have smaller plots, growing the minimum number of plants
may be impossible.

Additionally, a slight majority of our donations are actually opened commercial seed packets. For those smaller plots in urban and suburban gardens, a packet may contain too many seeds. So, instead of letting open packets languish in the shed, gardeners bring their leftovers to share. Some of these packets are actually hybrid varieties, and hybrid plants don’t create seed that will give you the same lovely plant the next year. We still put these hybrid seeds into the library, although we do label them. So the focus of our seed library is more on seed sharing, rather than seed saving.

Why Seed Libraries Belong in Public Libraries

Just as traditional libraries enrich a community by providing a way to share books, seed libraries enrich the gardening community by allowing gardeners to share seeds. There are many parallels.

Seed libraries offer a more efficient way to deploy community resources. They encourage experimentation, affording gardeners (or aspiring gardeners) a low-risk way to try something new. They provide a supported entrance into the gardening world for novices. And seed libraries support
a kind-of botanical literacy, teaching people what different plants look like and how they grow.

Seed libraries also support information sharing and preservation. Gardening is a localized knowledge, built through experience. While written guidelines can be helpful, person-to-person information sharing is how gardeners can learn how to be successful in their own unique environments.
Localized knowledge can tell a gardener what the fog in San Francisco does to tomatoes, for example, or when to actually start seeds if your region never experiences a “first frost.” As our climate changes, it will be even more important to preserve and share this understanding of how to garden in a range of conditions.

Start It Up!

For a minimal initial investment, a seed library creates a new way for the community to engage with your library. While some seed libraries are comprehensively indexed, elaborate affairs, a simple box of seeds is enough to sow interest in both veteran and novice gardeners.

Resources

In addition to this article, there are a number of excellent resources that will help create the seed library that’s right for your community.

• The backbone of our seed library community is Richmond Grows! The website includes information on saving seeds and on starting a seed library, and has a Spanish translation available.
• The Richmond Grows! network includes two essential resources:
  1. The Seed Libraries page has videos explaining different seed library systems, a page of featured libraries as examples, a resource page, and a discussion forum.
  2. The Seed Library Social Network has a member map, blog, and drop box with documents that can be repurposed in new seed libraries.
  3. The Center for the New American
• Dream hosted a webinar on starting seed libraries. If you’re looking to run a more elaborate seed library, the librarians who present give helpful information for a more detailed planning process and organization.
• In addition to selling seeds, Seed Saver’s Exchange is a well-established resource for information on saving seeds, sustainable agriculture, and preserving our food heritage. Their series of webinars is particularly illuminating.

The post Simple Steps to Starting a Seed Library first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

Some seed libraries are subscription based, like the Seed Library of Los Angeles, which only charges $10 for a lifetime membership, some are community-based, while others are actually connected to public libraries. One of the highest profile seed libraries is housed at the Richmond (Calif.) Public Library  and has inspired other libraries to start similar projects. Indeed, on the Richmond Grows Seed Lending Library’s website at least 25 listed seed libraries are directly associated with public libraries. The movement has even caught national attention, garnering recent reports on NBC Nightly News and National Public Radio’s Weekend Edition.

So, why seeds?  ALA’s State of Libraries 2012 report notes the Potrero Branch of the San Francisco Public Library’s seed collection as a diversification strategy in a tough economic climate. Certainly, this a significant motivation. Director of the Basalt Public Library in Colorado, Barbara Milnor, told NPR that their seed library is just one more way to get community members into the library, observing, “You have to be fleet of foot if you’re going to stay relevant, and that’s what the big problem is with a lot of libraries, is relevancy.”[i]

There are, however, other important reasons for starting seed libraries.  Dave Mixdorf, the director of the South Sioux City Public Library in Nebraska, started a seed library out of his personal love of gardening.

On a more philosophical level, though, seed libraries are an important part a movement to protect biodiversity among food crops, known generally as seed saving.  The Davis Seed Savers Alliance, associated with the University of California at Davis, observes, “Humans have been saving seeds for over 12,000 years. However, in our culture much of that knowledge, along with significant biodiversity, has been lost over the last hundred years.”[ii]

The International Seed Saving Institute (ISSI) soberly reminds us:

As late as 1900, food for the planet’s hungry was provided by as many as 1,500 different plants, each further represented by thousands of different cultivated varieties. Today over 90% of the world’s nutrition is provided by 30 different plants and only four (wheat, rice, corn and soybeans) provide 75% of the calories consumed by man.[iii]

In other words, 94% of the food crops people have traditionally relied on have either been eliminated or are grown on insignificant levels.

The problem here is this severe reduction in variety is ecologically quite unhealthy.  Variety of living things, or biodiversity, is critical to the survival of all life on Earth.  G. Tyler Miller, Jr. observes, “Loss of biodiversity (1) reduces the availability of ecosystems services and (2) decreases the ability of species, communities, and ecosystems to adapt to changing environmental conditions.  Biodiversity is nature’s insurance policy against disasters.”[iv]

ISSI gives the example of the Irish Potato Famine as an example of the devastation that can occur in places where biodiversity has been severely compromised.  Irish peasants had become overly dependent on a single food crop: the potato.  When one crop dominates the agriculture of a geographical area or community, it is referred to as a monoculture.  Monocultures are extremely vulnerable to natural disaster, as was Ireland in the 19^th century, resulting in mass starvation, extreme malnutrition, political destabilization, and migration.[v]   American agriculture, in becoming ever more focused on fewer and fewer varieties of corn, wheat, rice, and soybeans, may be setting itself up for a possibly analogous disaster.

Another component of the philosophical basis for seed libraries has to do with genetically modified organisms (GMOs).  Large seed corporations have cornered the grain seed market.  The largest of these corporations is Monsanto, which operates a near monopoly on certain crops and sells almost exclusively seed whose genetic material has been modified.

Trish Sheldon, a Florida-based musician, food safety advocate, and state organizer for GMO Free Florida, noted that biotechnology companies have extensively modified proteins and created mutations in the very DNA structure in most of the grain crops in America.[vi]  The testing on these modifications has been shrouded in mystery and jealously guarded as trade secrets.  “There are not enough long-term human safety feeding studies to prove this process is inherently safe,” Sheldon observed.

Community-developed, local seed libraries can address these concerns by encouraging food diversity and a more organic, local food base that is naturally acclimated to regional conditions.  This plays very well into the community orientation of public libraries.  It is hard to imagine a more direct and positive community service than contributing to a safer, more secure local food culture!

The post Borrow Seeds. Grow Plants. first appeared on Public Libraries Online.