Northern Shenandoah Valley Master Gardener Association
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Seed Lending Library

Want to try growing from seed and share the results with others? Borrow seed from one of our seed lending libraries! Visit Clarke County Library, Page Public Library, or Shenandoah County library (or one of our other locations coming soon) to swap seeds at your convenience.

Are you here to check out seeds from your local seed lending library? Please click here.

What is this program?

The NSVMGA Seed Lending Library aims to help members of the community learn the satisfaction and benefits of gardening and saving seeds. We offer free seeds for various vegetables, herbs, and flowers, as well as resources to help you grow plants successfully. Then, you can harvest seeds from your own plants and return a portion to the library to share with others.

How does it work?

Visit your local seed lending library and select up to three packets of seeds per week to take home and grow. Return to this website and complete the check out form to let us know which seeds you selected (this allows us to monitor the needs of our community and stock seeds accordingly). Then get gardening! Allow some of your plants to go to seed and harvest them when they are ready. Save some seeds for yourself and return a portion to your seed lending library to share with others.

Why would I want to collect seeds?

Saving seeds has been around for over 12,000 years, but our culture has lost a lot of knowledge about the process. There are lots of benefits to saving seeds:

  • Increase the genetic diversity and resilience of your plants.
  • Develop seed stock that is well suited to your particular climate and soil.
  • Save money on seeds and plants.
  • Know where your food comes from.
  • Help your community by sharing your seeds and experience.
  • Preserve the art of seed saving.

What sorts of seeds are available?

We offer a variety of vegetable, herb, and flower seeds appropriate for our region. If you would like something that is not currently available, let us know and we will consider adding it to our collection.

Where is the nearest NSVMGA Seed Lending Library?

We currently have three seed lending libraries in the Northern Shenandoah Valley, all located in public libraries:

  • Clarke County Library, 101 Chalmers Court, Suite C, Berryville, VA 22611
  • Page Public Library, 100 Zerkel Street, Luray, VA 22835
  • Shenandoah County Library, 514 Stoney Creek Blvd, Edinburg, VA 22824

Our seed lending libraries are open during the normal business hours of the libraries. A library card is not required to participate, but all library rules and regulations must be followed.

NSVMGA exclusively maintains the seed lending libraries; library staff will not have information regarding seed availability or programming.

Have an idea for a new location in Warren, Frederick, Clarke, Page, or Shenandoah County? Please let us know when you check out!

What if I don’t know how to save seeds?

That’s okay! We have resources available to help.

We recommend starting with easy seeds, such as beans, peas, lettuce, and tomatoes. You can find a basic seed saving guide that includes information for these plants here.

The Virginia Cooperative Extension website has lots of valuable information:

  • Home Vegetable Gardening
  • Get Gardening! – Free courses on beginning vegetable gardening

We frequently update our Facebook page and are hosting a new Beginning Vegetable Gardener Webinar Series from February through July. Be sure to register for this free 6-part series!

If you still need help, contact our Green Help Line at GreenHelpLine@gmail.com. Please be sure to include “Seed Lending Library” in your email subject line.

Sponsors and Donors

Thank you to the local and regional businesses that donated seeds or services to the Seed Lending Library in 2021.

 

Webinars for Beginning Vegetable Growers

Visit our event web page to register.

Vegetables in a basket

Save the Date!

  • Beginning Vegetable Gardeners Webinar 3 – April 15, 7 p.m.
  • Beginning Vegetable Gardeners Webinar 4 – May 20, 7 p.m.
  • GardenFest – June 5
  • Beginning Vegetable Gardeners Webinar 5 – June 17, 7 p.m.
  • Gardening in the Valley Tour – June 26
  • Beginning Vegetable Gardeners Webinar 6 – July 15, 7 p.m.
  • FallFest – September 11, 2021

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Northern Shenandoah Valley Master Gardener Association

10 hours ago

Northern Shenandoah Valley Master Gardener Association
Incorporating Native Plants in Your Garden – Downy Serviceberry (Amelanchier arborea) by EMG JennServiceberry is blooming all over my property right now, so I thought this would be a good native to talk about this week! There are actually four different types of serviceberry, and they can be difficult to distinguish from each other botanically: Downy, Shadbush (A. canadensis), Allegheny (A. laevis), and Apple (A.x grandiflora, a cross between A. arborea and A. laevis; multiple cultivars). Downy, or Common Serviceberry is the largest of the four, and grows into a small tree or large shrub. It is vase-shaped with an open branch structure, and is usually multi-stemmed, growing 12-20’ tall. Green to red and finally purple fruit show up in clusters in late summer to early autumn. A. arborea is native, like all Serviceberries, to most of the East Coast, except for the coastal areas of the Carolinas through to Florida. It will take a variety of soils, including clay, but thrives in slightly acidic, moist soil in full sun. It will tolerate drier soil if it has more shade and cooler temperatures. One of the earliest trees to bloom in the spring, the flowers are a source of pollen and food for hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees. In addition, the serviceberries host hundreds of species of caterpillars. If you have been following my posts, you know how important caterpillars are in the ecosystem! And birds love the fall berries. Serviceberries can be susceptible to occasional rust diseases, as members of the Rosaceae (Rose) family. Because most of these rust diseases have an alternative host in junipers, if there are no species of juniper within a radius of several miles, this should not be an issue. In hot, dry locations, spider mites can affect the appearance of the plant. Serviceberry may be propagated by seed or by softwood cuttings. See www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=amar3 for more information. It does form root suckers, and over time will form a colony, growing as a shrub rather than a tree. Pruning should happen in the fall to avoid an excess of sap loss. The common name serviceberry comes because it blooms as soon as the ground starts to thaw, and it is blooming when people were able to dig graves and bury their dead after the winter. Not the prettiest image…but in bloom, this is a spectacular tree! It is lighting up the woods right now where I live. Other stories about the common name include that the “service” refers to the plant usually being in flower around Easter.This species is most effective in naturalistic plantings and along wood edges, ponds and streams. It is particularly effective against a dark background when it blooms!Join us each Tuesday to learn about #NativePlants you can add to your garden. See previous posts at #addnativeplants. For more information, see:plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/amelanchier/www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?taxonid=286375hgic.clemson.edu/factsheet/serviceberry/ ... See MoreSee Less

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