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Why Do You Save Seeds?
Seed saving season has arrived and as you may have guessed, it’s kind of a big deal for us. Here at Seeds of Diversity, we aim to represent a bunch of different things: seeds, biodiversity preservation, food security, human and planetary health, local food systems, community building. But at the end of the day, it really does all come down to protecting genetic biodiversity of plants through seed saving. With over 2900 varieties of seeds in our seed library, we are able to play a role in Canada’s seed saving landscape, but there’s no way we could do it alone. Our members, volunteers, and supporters are the real driving force behind our continued existence and we love to hear from you.
Over the past couple of years, we asked the question, “Why do you save seeds?” on our social media pages and got many beautiful, thoughtful responses from our followers across Canada. So, this post is dedicated to sharing some of them. After all, we all are people protecting the people’s seeds.
Here's What You Said!
“To give back to the community”
“For sharing and growing again.”
“I love to be self sufficient in my gardening! So I can save money mostly and make sure I have extra budget for other areas. I also really love carrying forward heirloom varieties”
“Just started saving last fall! It made sense to keep seeds for veggies I enjoyed, plus saves me money this year as now I don't have to buy. Also just food security, and sharing with those in need.”
“To save on buying seeds and preserve varieties I enjoy.”
“Yes, have been for years, love that I can take one pack of seeds and make years of plants by saving the seeds”
“It's almost impulsive at this point, but mostly I save seeds to share and swap seeds. Potentially guerilla gardening at some point”
“I save for lots of reasons. To save money, to carry on the genetics of rare varieties, to share or sell them to friends, and to grow varieties that acclimate to my growing region.”
“Given the opportunity to create new plants.”
“To share with others!”
“Because it makes sense!”
“To follow the teachings of my father and grandmother”
“Saving seeds is saving money! Also if you have too many seeds you can share”
“I want to continue the history of seed saving that our ancestors did. There were no seed companies and seed catalogues and people survived by saving their own vegetable seeds and replanting them. They also shared them so others could benefit. Look at how many extremely old varieties still survive for us to grow in our gardens today. I have made it my goal to find and grow as many truly rare old varieties and get them into our Seed Library and share them with other gardeners across Canada.”
“Makes sense and is cost effective for those on strict budgets.”
“Seeds are blessing of Mother Nature to human and to livings on earth”
“Seeds are powerful, so much potential, each seed is like a promise of good things to come”
“Because that's how I get to keep growing the good stuff”
“Tomato, pepper, basil,dill,garlic because of cost and selecting the plants that have the best genetics for my garden.”
“Bio regional adaptation, and seed sovereignty as the parsley + chives keep producing every year more vitality! ever eat a delicious squash or citrus and wonder if that delight may be replicated..”
“I want to be as self-reliant as I can”
“I save seeds to keep heirlooms, to breed and well it’s cheaper than using catalogs. Plus during COVID, many of the seeds I wanted were sold out early!”
“Seeds are next year’s promise!!!”
“Because it’s fun, because it results over the years in resilient, locally adapted seeds that thrive in my environment, and because seed stewardship is far too important to be left in the hands of corporations, who will always prioritize short term profit over everything else.”
“Seeds are magic to me. Both the beginning and the end. Again and again. How could I pass that experience up? Plus, sovereignty, sharing…”
“To preserve Seed Diversity/Seed Sovereignty that both face a massive threat by industrial Big Ag., GM/gene-editing, lobbyists, and (in some places) already illegal for food plants. To teach about these issues and seed saving techniques.”
“It’s free! So much potential with every flower and plant.”
“I save seeds for many reasons, but one of the less practical ones is that some of my seeds connect me with my past. I have seeds that my mom had saved, and I always save those varieties each year to keep them viable and to remember my mom’s love of growing things.”
“I just sleep better knowing that me and 4000 of my closest friends could still plant gardens next year even if every seed company in the world went out of business.”
“To have access to non commercial varieties and to keep replanting favourites!”
“I save seeds because food can be (close to) free! The thought that from one tomato, for example, I can yield hundreds of plants and thousands of tomatoes… (mind blowing). Just makes sense!”
“To maintain stewardship of our botanical heritage.”
“For my children and yours…”
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Image: Word cloud generated from the responses we received
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