Starting a garden in a new climate zone can be a challenge. It’s a learning process to find out which flowers, veggies, trees and shrubs do best. Many people trade advice, plants and seeds with gardening friends and neighbors. Wouldn’t it be a great to get local gardeners together at a community event and swap seeds and experiences? At the end of the gardening season, most have extra seeds left to share.

How does a community seed swap work? To prepare for a seed swap, collect seeds of plants you would like to exchange and put them in small labeled bags and swap them at a community seed swap with the seeds of other gardeners. There is no money involved; the swap is a 2-way trade. The benefits are many:

- You don’t need to buy seeds
- Gives you the opportunity to try out new varieties
- Preserves plant diversity
- Learn what grows best in your climate
- Great purpose for extra seeds from previous season

Organizing a seed swap is easy and rewarding and there are many resources online. At the seed swap, I recommend to show a picture of the actual plant and have planting instructions ready. A good time to have a seed swap is January and February, just before gardeners start their indoor seedlings.

Share the bounty,

Silke