One summer during the 1950s, Graham and Margaret Collier of Nashville, Tennessee planted all the seeds they had of their family’s heirloom slicing cucumber. Little did they know, none of the plants would survive that summer’s drought. But that's not where the story ends.
Read MoreOver 200 community gardens are present in Flint. The adoption of the city’s first long-range master plan in over 50 years is invigorating community gardening and urban agriculture enthusiasts with the mapping of “Green Innovation” areas and “Green Neighborhoods.” The Flint Seed Democracy is hoping to keep crops for food and seed firmly rooted in the local climate and economy.
Read MorePerhaps the only thing that the staff a Seed Savers Exchange love more about their jobs than growing plants is actually getting to eat some of the amazing fruits that these plants produce. As part of our work here we get to take part in taste evaluations and no evaluation is more anticipated and beloved than our Annual Tomato Tasting.
Read MoreAt no time in our history have Americans been more concerned about their food supply. With an increased uncertainty about what goes into our food, we've witnessed a growing interest in foods that are fresh, local, organic, sustainable, gluten-free and the list goes on.
Read MorePart of the responsibility that comes with maintaining a seed collection containing over 20,000 rare garden varieties includes testing for and eradicating viruses and diseases. This week the staff in our Preservation Department were busy performing ELISA tests (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay tests) to identify any squash specimens infected with the squash mosaic virus (SMV). Roughly 1,000 seedlings were tested from 28 varieties.
Read MoreThe onset of spring has us dreaming about the vegetables that will fill our gardens during the summertime. But it is difficult to imagine summer’s bounty when your pepper plants are two inches tall and your onion stems are so thin you can barely see them. So why don’t we take a walk around a summer garden?
Read MoreWhen you visit Heritage Farm at Seed Savers Exchange, the cutest thing you’ll see may also be the oldest thing we preserve. The ancestors of our herds of Ancient White Park cattle date back to the pre-Christian era where they roamed the British isles, and descriptions of their distinct white coats and U-shaped horns crop up periodically in historical documents. Their island-based origin isolated this breed from other breeds, therefore making them much more genetically distinct and valuable. But how did they get to Seed Savers Exchange, you ask? Well, it’s kind of a complicated story.
Read MoreFood Diversity – mountains of tomato varieties and rainbow carrots, melons grown for roasting their tasty seeds, wacky kinds of hot pepper – defines the work happening at Seed Savers Exchange. Thankfully, we’re not alone...
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Seed Savers Exchange is a non-profit organization with a mission to conserve and promote America's culturally diverse but endangered garden and food crop heritage for future generations by collecting, growing, and sharing heirloom seeds and plants.
In order to fulfill our mission, we:
- Maintain thousands of varieties of different plant types in one of the largest seed banks of its kind in North America - Regenerate seed in isolation gardens and store them in ideal conditions - Document valuable cultural information on varieties and their histories - Distribute heirloom varieties to members and the public through the Seed Savers Exchange Yearbook and the Seed Savers Exchange Catalog
We rely on membership to support our organization and to help sustain the diversity of heirlooms in our seed bank. Join the 13,000 other gardeners and seed savers who support our mission!
Learn more about Seed Savers Exchange in this video:
Exerpt taken from "Garden Guardians" by Alyssa Gammelgaard and Bryce Kilker.
Access to the Seed Savers Exchange Yearbook and online seed exchange, an exclusive network of SSE members sharing over 12,000 unique plant varieties with one another
Show your support for pure seed and good food by becoming a Seed Savers Exchange member today.
Seed Savers Exchange is a nonprofit, member supported organization that collects, preserves and shares heirloom seeds for our future. Since 1975, SSE and our supporters have collected the seeds and stories that would otherwise have been lost.
Seed Savers Exchange is a tax-exempt 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation of heirloom seeds.
Seed Savers Exchange
3094 North Winn Road
Decorah, Iowa 52101
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(563) 382-5990
Customer Service Hours:
Monday to Friday, 9am - 5pm CST
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