Operating from the Boorowa Community Op Shop on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, the Boorowa Rotary Seed Exchange is a program that allows community members in the small NSW country town to access seeds for free.

What is a seed exchange?

A seed exchange is an organised collection of seeds from which users may “borrow” small amounts of seeds to take home and plant. 

Since returning them later as with books and other traditional exchange media would be quite impossible, people may instead “return” borrowed seeds by saving and donating some from the plants grown from their initial borrowed sample or from their own collection.

The seeds can include locally saved seeds, excess bought seeds, seeds brought back from another region or country (if allowed by biosecurity laws), or excess seeds that a seed company donated — individuals decide what they want to swap.

Initially, seeds are donated and collected, then community members can take some seeds and grow them. 

It is anticipated that a portion of the freshly grown seeds will be donated back to the exchange. These seeds are then stored and made available to others who continue to contribute to this cycle of taking seeds, growing them, and donating a portion back to keep the collection viable, healthy and fresh.

In simple terms, a seed exchange is just how it sounds – it loans seeds to gardeners as a free-to-use, hands-on educational resource to enable the community to learn about gardening, seed-saving, and native plant life.

Using a seed exchange is easy and works by the simple philosophy of:

• Take – Visit the seed exchange and take the seeds you would like to grow
• Grow – Grow the seeds at home and hopefully enjoy a bountiful harvest
• Save – Save some seeds for next year from the healthiest plants and fruits
• Share – Return some saved seeds to the seed exchange for the next person to grow

Localised knowledge

Seed exchanges also support information sharing and preservation. Gardening is a localised knowledge, built through experience. While written guidelines can be helpful, person-to-person information sharing is how gardeners can learn how to be successful in their own unique environments.

Localised knowledge can tell a gardener when to actually start seeds to avoid frost damage and other climatic issues. 

As our climate changes, it will be even more important to preserve and share this understanding of how to garden in a range of conditions.

Seed sharing ties in nicely with the mission of community gardens. More and more seed companies are being bought by large corporations that develop and sell hybrid seeds that can’t be saved and must be bought again every spring. Heirlooms, the sort of seeds found in seed exchanges, can be saved and replanted, from year to year.

Taking / Donating Seeds

Seeds are first-come, first-served, and quantities are limited, and donations can be made at the Boorowa Community Op Shop. To date, Bunnings Hardware in Young have donated over 30 packets of seeds to the exchange.

Rotary Boorowa asks that donated seeds include the seed name and variety, the year they were collected, and any notes or special information that the grower may need to know. Vegetable, flower, and herb seeds are accepted.

Seeds are to be dry and in a sealed bag or envelope.

Please note that poisonous, hybrid, or invasive species seeds are not accepted nor are cannabis seeds.

The benefits of a seed lending exchange are many: it is a great way to get free or low-cost seeds, it is a way to have fun, build community with fellow gardeners, and support people who are new to the world of gardening. 

It is also a way to get seed that might not be available to buy anywhere else, or a rare heirloom that no one can find readily.

It also gives people the opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals who share a common passion for growing their own food.

It can be an excellent way to meet new people, nearby gardeners, and expand your own collection of gardening skills and seed selection. While you are exchanging seeds, you’re invited to check out the collection of gardening books at the Boorowa Community Op Shop.