Written by: Kiya Tavascia
Edited by: Abdul-Ghani Khan
Designed by: Suhana Shaik
Published by: Rayna Almas
According to Seeds of Diversity:
“Seedy Saturdays are a remarkable phenomenon. They are not one event, but a series of separate events, which have sprung up across the country, each individually and uniquely organized under the same general themes of encouraging the use of open-pollinated and heritage seeds, enabling a local seed exchange, and educating the public about seed saving and environmentally responsible gardening practices. They usually occur on a Saturday, hence the name, but also occur on Sundays and other days. Seedy Saturdays are fun, inexpensive events where you can swap and exchange seeds, get exciting varieties that other seed savers are sharing (as well as the stories that come with them), attend workshops and talks, meet vendors and buy seeds from seed companies. Whether you are a first-time or master gardener, seed enthusiast or expert seed saver, there really is something for everyone.”
While the origins of Seedy Saturdays and Seedy Sundays are a bit murky, it seems that they began in the early 1990s in British Columbia. This actually makes a lot of sense, since BC has long been at the forefront of local food and sustainable action in Canada.
Throughout the 90s, the concept of Seedy Saturdays slowly began to spread from the Vancouver and Victoria area of BC east, all the way across the country. Today, there are at least 150 events every year in Canada, in cities and towns of all sizes!
Seedy Saturdays and Sundays are important for so many reasons:
- Bringing together community – most events happen in accessible public spaces
- Making many varieties of seeds available to people for little or no money
- Giving space for teaching and learning about seed and gardening topics
- Bringing awareness to the importance of seed conservation and biodiversity – even for those who don’t attend, the publicity that the events bring give a chance for media attention
- Give local businesses and organizations a space to promote and connect with community members
One of my favourite things about this growing movement is the commitment that events have to making their events fun and accessible to as many people as possible. Most events don’t charge entry fees, most are located on public transit routes (at least in places where the infrastructure exists), and most offer activities (and seeds!) without cost. This makes it possible for people of all kinds to join and to learn – experienced gardeners, amateur gardeners, and even those that are just interested in local food and gardening.
Seeds of Diversity’s website is a good spot to start learning about Seedy Saturdays and Sundays: https://seeds.ca/seedy-saturday/
And they host a national event page to help you find an event to attend: https://seeds.ca/events/
Most events happen early in the year, so checking it out in the new year would be a good choice. And if you can’t find any events in your city, maybe you’ll decide to start your own!