Downers Grove Seed Sharing Library Offers Gardener Orientations

A century ago families in Chicago’s suburbs were cultivating hundreds of varieties of fruits and vegetables, many of them from seeds passed on from generation to generation, and now, a new seed lending library is aiming to bring the tradition back to the area.

The library, housed at the Downers Grove Historical Museum, is one of several hundred seed libraries that have opened around the United States in the past few years, all of which follow the same basic principle. Members check out seeds from the collection for free, grow them and then return a portion of the harvested seeds to the library at the end of the season.

To join the seed library, residents must attend an orientation event, held from 2 to 3 p.m. on April 12 or April 26, at the Downers Grove Museum. Vicki Nowicki, an award winning organic gardener and co-owner of the Land Office, has stocked the library with a collection of thousands of seeds sourced from the Seed Savers Exchange and The Pepperfield Project, including several rare and endangered plants. 

After the orientation, gardeners will be able to choose up to five varieties of heirloom seeds, including beans, peas, tomatoes, and lettuce, to ‘borrow’ and plant. Members will also make a commitment to bring back some of the new seeds in the fall, to restock the library for the next season.

“When immigrants first arrived in North America many of them added to rich store of Native American foods by bringing seeds from their families with them.” Says Nowicki, “but today, families no longer grow their own vegetables or save seeds, and over the past century we’ve lost 90 percent of our vegetable varieties. This seed library will give families the chance to help preserve remaining heirloom seeds and grow the same kind of foods that may have grown in Downers Grove in the 1800’s.”

The historical importance of seeds makes the Downers Grove Museum, operated by the Downers Grove Park District, the ideal location to house the library, which will be one of the first in the Chicago suburbs. 

As well as introducing local gardeners to new varieties of vegetables, the library will add to the park district’s range of environmental skills programs, which also include beekeeping, gardening basics and worm bin workshops.

The orientations take place at the Downers Grove Historical Museum, 831 Maple Avenue, Downers Grove. Parking is also available at Lincoln Center.

This is a free event but pre-registration is required. For more information, Call the museum at 630-963-1309 or visit Downers Grove Parks.