April 2020 marks the
beginning of the fourth year of operation for Ashe Seed Library, located on the
upper level of Ashe County Public Library. The purpose of the seed library is
to offer free, open-pollinated seeds to our community in hopes of preserving
and enjoying our food heritage far into the future. In this spirit, we
encourage folks to save seeds from these plants and either return some to the
seed library or use them to continue to cultivate these special, regional
varieties.
This year is remarkable
in that the library is closed to the public until at least the end of April and
services may remain limited during the prime time period for starting seeds in
our area. Additionally, we recognize that many seed companies are struggling to
keep up with current demand so access to Ashe Seed Library may be one of only a
few options for obtaining some of these varieties in 2020.
We would like to offer
the opportunity for community members to request a limited number of seeds to
be mailed to their homes. Each household may request up to 10 packets of seeds
from the list found here: https://bit.ly/ashe-seed-library-inventory
Please email your
request to ashereference@arlibrary.org or call 336.846.2041 x111 to request your seeds. Please
include the following information in your email (or have it ready if you call):
the common name of each seed, number of packets of each seed, your full name,
and your mailing address.
Once your request is
received, a librarian will process your request, ensure that we have the seeds
available, and contact you if any substitutions or clarifications are
necessary.
Ashe Seed Library is a
partnership among Ashe County Public Library, NC Cooperative Extension-Ashe County Center, Blue Ridge Women in Agriculture, ASU's Sustainable Development Department, and our Ashe County community.
In 2020, we are grateful
for donations of seeds from High Mowing Seeds, Seed Savers Exchange,
Seeds of Resilience Garden (ASU's SD Dept.), NC Cooperative Extension-Ashe
County Center (Ashe County Victory Garden), NC Native Plant Society-Blue Ridge
Chapter, Seed Programs International, and individuals in our
community who diligently saved and donated seeds.
All seeds are offered
for educational purposes and may not meet germination or varietal purity standards
prescribed by NC seed laws.
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