Seed, Sow, Share

Seed Show Share green

Seed, Sow, Share is full-circle gardening.

We recognize that for our County to have a resilient local food system, we need to make sure that our food is local and accessible to the community at every stage, from seed to table, and back to seed again. 

2020 showed us that disruptions in the national gardening and food supply chain can have hard impacts on us locally - so it's important for us to support each other and learn together. That is why we are convening partners and programs into a full-circle community-centered program that can support local seedlines in our food system and the communities that keep them year after year.

What You Can Expect from our Full Circle Gardening Program, Through the Months

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Seed Library

Harvest Pierce County launched our very own Seed Library in March of 2022 during our annual Seed Swap. To learn more including location and how to register to be a member please visit our page dedicated to our Seed Library here!

Seed Swap

As mentioned above, Harvest Pierce County annually hosts a Seed Swap for our community. During this event people from all over our county come together to share knowledge, seeds, and stories of their love for this awesome act of mutual aid and resilience.

This year our 2023 Seed Swap will be held on Sunday February 12th in Puyallup at the Pioneer Park Pavilion from 12 pm - 3 pm. 

If you plan on attending please take a moment to REGISTER FOR THE EVENT HERE. We'll be providing more details as the date approaches, so be on the lookout for additional information. We hope to see you there!

We also encourage gardeners to join our Facebook group Seed Savers & Seed Sharers of Pierce County to trade seeds with other gardeners, and strengthen our seed-sharing network throughout the year.

Seed Stories

Sharing stories and knowledge from PNW locals who love to collect their own seeds. Our team has had the opportunity to meet with community members, and record their stories to be shared with you. Watch all episodes here, and let us know if you have a Seed Story to share!

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Education

In conjunction with our cross-organizational collaborators, Pierce County Planning and Public Works (PPW), Harvest Pierce County offers the Edible Gardens Workshop Series. This free workshop series is for beginning gardeners and typically runs February through October to tackle an array of different topics such as garden planning, seed starting, growing plants, soil health, garden pests and disease, and more. For the 2023 year we are planning to host classes both in person and over zoom, with some classes being held as a hybrid model. Check back in January to see the class series schedule.

Plant Start Giveaway

Harvest Pierce County is partnering with the Emergency Food Network’s- Grow Your Food Program, to help distribute 15,000 plant starts to community gardens and backyard gardeners across the county typically running April through June. Plants are available on a first come, first served basis, and will be at different community gardens throughout the county at varying scheduled times.

Many of these plants are open-pollinated or hybrid, which means if you want to try your hand at seed saving, you can sign up to save seeds from them to donate back to the Pierce County Seed Library!

Sign up for our newsletter (listed at the bottom of this page) to keep updated on when starts are available, how and when to pick them up, and to be connected to free resources and education helping you care for your plant from the ground up.

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Share the Harvest

Share the Harvest grew out of a want for community gardens and backyard growers alike who felt the call to share their gardens bounty with our neighbors in need. Like many things, this programming fell off track during the pandemic, but we are working hard to get it back on track in time for the 2023 growing season. We will be revamping our ‘Where to Donate’ guide as well as our poundage record-keeping/donation sheets to make sure everything is up to date and easy to access. We'll also be adding some handy informational brochures about things to consider when donating homegrown produce to local food banks.

Education

Continue your learning with free classes, resources, and discussions on how to save seeds from the crops you’ve been growing and enjoying all year, as well as other useful sharing tips such as how to best harvest what you grow for the food bank. Visit our Education Page, we’ll be updating it with new materials throughout the season!

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