I am so excited! I just became the proud owner of a plot in a community garden which led me on a journey to find free seeds. Community garden plots are in high demand in my community. I put my name on the list for a plot several years ago and finally, my name has come up. I must admit, I have a brown thumb. As much as I like plants, I can’t seem to keep them alive, but I sure am going to try!
As with anything else, it pains me to pay money for things. I understand that seeds are a ridiculously cheap investment when compared to the amount of food produced, but as I’ve said, I have a brown thumb. So, for me, buying seeds is like flushing money down the toilet. My search for free seeds was rewarded with two options (I’m sure there’s more, but I stopped looking once I found these). It turns out the San Francisco Library is part of a program that fosters distribution of FREE SEEDS! As it happens, I live within walking distance of the Potrero library which participates in this program. I was able to “check out” several seeds for things like beans, lettuce, wheat and, peppers. I can “return” the seeds by bringing back seeds from successfully grown plants. You can visit the website here.
The other source is the USDA. I have not yet attempted this method, but hope to soon. Luckily, some wonderful, free-loving person has written an article on how to obtain these seeds. It looks like there is a bit of a process, but hopefully, this article will help us speed through it. As I mentioned, I’ve not yet done it, but intend to get around to it. The link is here.
I have already planted zucchini and I’m thrilled to report that, not only is it still alive, it’s blooming! The person who had my plot before me graciously left behind a lemon tree, mint, rosemary, and poppies. I am so excited to have food producing plants already planted and mature. The lemon tree is not yet producing lemons, but I have already used rosemary and mint from the garden.
I continue to discover unexpected benefits of the garden. I’ve started using herbs that I have not used before like mint and have been able to use herbs more often than I had in the past because of cost and availability. I recently made rosemary sourdough bread that turned out wonderfully. As a result, my interest in using herbs has expanded. I’m also trying basil bought from the store to see how I might use it. So far, I put it in almost everything I cook.
But wait, there’s more! I’ve also met a few of my plot mates – other plot owners in the community garden. The other people in my community using the garden are friendly and like-minded. I really appreciate the community garden experience and look forward to growing all kinds of new things with the free seeds that other community-minded folks have made available through the free seed movement.
Have you started a garden? How is it going? Let us know about the benefits you’ve experienced from gardening by dropping a line.
Happy growing!