The Seed Library

The Seed Library at Hillyard houses hundreds of seeds available for check out but unlike other library materials you don’t have to bring the seeds back.

“Checking out” seeds

As a library card holder, you can check out 6 packets of edible plant seeds (marked E for edibles) and 6 packets of decorative plant seeds (marked B for blooms and ornamentals) per season.

Saving seeds

If you check out seeds marked “heirloom” we encourage you to harvest the seeds at the end of the season and return them to the library. While we appreciate replenishing our supply with heirloom seeds, don’t worry if you forget, you won’t be fined! If they are marked hybrid, plant them, enjoy them and then compost them, as they will not produce the same plant and aren’t useful for seed saving.

Donating seeds

Heirloom seed savers who would like to share seeds can do so. Ask us for a donation envelope, fill out the information and we would be delighted to add your heirloom seeds to the collection.

Where did the seeds come from?

Our initial seed collection is made up of seeds donated by seed companies and seeds purchased with donor funds. But eventually the seeds will come from you and other local gardeners.

Questions?

Please ask library staff if you have questions and check our program schedule for gardening-related programs throughout the year. Also, check out our full library of instructional gardening videos on YouTube.

**Currently, the seed library is only available at the Hillyard Library.**