Announcing the Greater New Britain Community Seed Library

In March, we launched the Greater New Britain Community Seed Library. The four public libraries in New Britain, Berlin, Plainville, and Southington are now stocked with a variety of vegetable seeds for visitors to “check out” and even return their own home grown seeds to share with others in the community. 

The Greater New Britain Community Seed Library is a free program that offers free garden seeds and education to community members. Through the time-honored tradition of seed saving, seed libraries encourage participants to celebrate biodiversity and nurture locally adapted plant varieties, all while fostering community resilience and a culture of sharing. When ROOTS approached the Catalyst Fund at the Community Foundation for Greater New Britain with the idea last year, ROOTS Executive Director Joey Listro described the importance of seed saving as a tool to preserve knowledge while connecting the community.  “Over the years, we’ve been approached by gardeners throughout our community who have grown and saved seeds from their own families that have been passed down through generations. The Community Seed Library will create a venue for people to share their seeds with a wider network of people, building community through seed sharing.” Listro says.  

The stocked seed libraries operate on the honor system; library visitors become members automatically when they “check-out” seeds to plant in their gardens. All members are encouraged to return seeds to the seed libraries, either by seed-saving or by donating packets of purchased seed.

Pat Rukowski, Director of the New Britain Public Library, shared that library patrons have enthusiastically embraced the Community Seed Library as a new program offering. “The community response has been amazing. People were so excited that inquiries began before the seeds arrived. We are now in the second week and many have come in to pick up their seeds,” Rukowski shares. “Libraries are a perfect place to offer a seed library as this is exactly what we do –provide access to information and resources. Not only do we offer the seeds, but we have many helpful informational resources on the topic such as books, magazines and DVDS, and we are also planning special programs. When ROOTS approached us, we were ready and pleased to partner with such a valuable community organization. ”

The Greater New Britain Community Seed Library would not be made possible without the generous grant support from the Catalyst Fund at The Community Foundation of Greater New Britain.

Visit the Greater New Britain Community Seed Library page on our website to learn more.