January 25, 2011 You ever notice the fervor in the air this time of year when it comes to seeds? Seed catalogs in hand, calendar at the ready, and garden plans ready to be filled out with the potential new harvest. It’s an exciting time of the year for any food grower, and watching recent videos about seeds got me even more eager to start the season with a bang.

Seed Library
This video is courtesy of Richmond Grows (in Richmond, CA). They explain what a seed lending library is and how it works. If this is something that you’d like to bring to your community, check out their “Create a Library” page.

On the East Coast there is an online seed library: Hudson Valley Seed Library. Many seeds do best in their region of origin and this library offers many varieties of locally grown seed, some they grow themselves – as you can see in this video:

Seed “Bank”
Not your typical bank – at least not on the inside. It’s actually a seed and garden store. Jere Gettle, founder, Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds, opened the facility in 2009 in Petaluma, CA.

“We want to thank each and every one of you for making our family business of seed preservation a success,” said Gettle, “helping us swim against the river of modern agriculture, as we continue to work for the farmer, the gardener and most of all each and every eater!”

Here is a video, courtesy of CHOW, that shows off this unique place.

Haven’t started planning your garden yet? Here’s a resource for many organic seed companies, via Organic Seed Alliance. Happy planning and seed starting!