Chicago has had large, organized seed swaps for a while now, but I'd never seen one in St. Louis. That's why I was really psyched to see that Drop. Swap. Grow., a South City-based urban agriculture collective, is organizing a seed swap. It's being led by Wash. U. grad student Holly Schroeder (who also teaches at PASTE in Soulard; runs her own business, South City Studio; and is a member of Show-Me Etsy and the St. Louis Craft Mafia. Where she found the time and energy to do this....)
The seed swap happens this Sunday, March 6, from noon-3 p.m. at Urban Eats Cafe (3301 Meramec). It's 100 percent free. However, you do need to register, and that includes notifying organizers of the types of seeds you will bring. They are also asking people to bring at least three different kids of seeds that will grow into edible plants. If you want to bring flowers and bulbs too, that's lagniappe. (No houseplant cuttings this time, though.)
Anyone who has grown a backyard garden knows there are always more seeds in one packet than the average person can use; swapping allows you and your neighbors to grow more and different stuff, save money, and save seeds from going to waste. (See our earlier blog post on seed-swapping.) Though there are definitely purists-only seed swaps, this is not one; store-bought seeds are totally welcome. Though if you're bringing old stuff... heck the expiration dates! if you have ancient seeds, you're going to have a pretty crappy germination rate (And so will the poor gardener who trades seeds with you.) Speaking of expiration dates, Schroeder has extended the registration deadline:
"We’ve had such a great response, we decided to keep registration open for a few more days. If you haven’t gotten registered yet, you have until midnight this FRIDAY, March 4 to sign up for the swap."
If you want something prettier than a plastic zippy bag to carry your seeds in, Schroeder has even created this cool seed packet template for you to use. Decorations optional, but remember to clearly label what's in the packet! You can get all the details, and register for the seed swap, here. And note that Drop.Swap.Grow. has more events on the horizon this growing season.
