Garden Variety: Check out some seeds at the library

Gardeners in and around Douglas County have two new resources this spring in the Lawrence Public Library, 707 Vermont St., and the Baldwin City Library, 800 Seventh St. in Baldwin City. Both have opened seed libraries within their facilities to make seeds more accessible to area residents and facilitate the process of seed sharing within the community.

Lawrence Public Library's Little Red Seed Library opened earlier this month and allows residents to collect up to 10 seed packets.

Lawrence’s Little Red Seed Library opened earlier this month and allows local residents to collect up to 10 seed packets. Baldwin City’s Seed Lending Library opened at the beginning of the year and simply asks that gardeners who obtain seeds save a few from the plants they grow to return to the library for the following season. Both libraries have vegetable, herb and flower seeds available.

Seed libraries lend or share seed in the same way that libraries lend and share books and other resources. A seed library is different from a seed bank, an institution that works to store seeds and plant tissues to prevent loss of genetic variety. Seed exchanges (like the one held in Lawrence each February) and seed swaps are more similar to a seed library but are usually single-day events. Seed libraries are often found as part of botanical gardens, research institutions and through gardening organizations as well as through local public libraries.

Besides the opportunity to start gardening, the two new seed libraries are a great one-stop shop for new gardeners or gardeners needing resources to try something new. Pick up some seeds, then pick up the resources to learn what to do with them. The Baldwin City Library is also hosting gardening classes and has resources for seed saving readily available to make it easier to harvest seeds to share with other library patrons.

The opening of the two local seed libraries are just part of an overall increase in interest in gardening in the U.S. In April 2014, the National Gardening Association reported a 17 percent increase in food gardening from 2008 to 2013, up to about 42 million households.

Participation in community gardens showed the largest increase at 200 percent and has made gardening more accessible to urban residents. The Millennial Generation (Generation Y) in particular is taking an interest, doubling its spending on food gardening from 2008 to 2013.

— Jennifer Smith is a former horticulture extension agent for K-State Research and Extension and horticulturist for Lawrence Parks and Recreation. She is the host of “The Garden Show” and has been a gardener since childhood. Send your gardening questions and feedback to features@ljworld.com.