Exeter’s biggest organised seed swap set for Feb 2023

Would you like to get inspired and start planning for the 2023 growing season?

Have you got seeds to spare that are not past their use-by date that you can give away or swap for something else?

Don’t have seeds to swap but would really like to get some seeds and start your gardening journey?

Exeter Seed Swap 2023 is for everyone!

The event takes place on Sunday 26 February, 11am-3.30pm at Maketank, 3-5 Paris Street, Exeter EX1 2JB. 

Organised by Exeter Seed Bank, the event will have plenty of seed swapping, displays, stalls, and hands on activities. Children welcome - and entry is free (donations welcome).

Highlights include a demonstration on how to make pea netting from sustainable materials with Jules Bristow; seed bomb making with Devon Wildlife Trust; corn flower packing with National Trust at Knightshayes; a stall of vegetable perennials from Incredible Vegetables; garden books from Bookcycle; and more.

There are also four talks scheduled on the day which will be held upstairs at Maketank and are bookable via Eventbrite:

1. Lou’s Wild Garden: Find out how to make your urban garden a haven for food and habitat for wildlife. Sign up here.
2. Biopiracy: a Global Issue for Seed Sovereignty and Diversity: How Corporations are Stealing Indigenous knowledge and Patenting the Natural World. Sign up here.
3. Getting the mix right: How to make Composting work for Your Gardening Project; Discover how it works and what type of system can work for you. Sign up here.
4. Bokashi: Worm –loving Fermentation that’s good for your soil. This fascinating method can transform your kitchen waste into high quality organic matter for your soil. Sign up here.

Mandy Biscoe, Co-director of the Exeter Seed Bank, says ‘Seed saving and sharing is a great way to encourage growing and brings communities together. It contributes to food resilience and gets us to think about ways we can enhance the biodiversity of our green spaces.’

Since 2020, Exeter Seed Bank (ESB) has created an ongoing programme of events and activities that follow the seed calendar (sowing, growing, harvesting and collecting of seeds); they collect seeds within the community and from reputable seed suppliers that work for our area’s soils. They are keen to discover local varieties of seeds to re-introduce diversity into our local environment as well as what plants are good to grow and resilient in the face of climate change.

For more information about the event or if you are interested in presenting a talk or having a stall, please contact exeterseedbank@gmail.com

This event has been made possible through funding from the National Lottery Awards for All grant programme, Exeter City Council and Devon County Council.