Washtenaw Community College
IN-24: Innovation A

Sandy McCarthy and Maureen Perault, two librarians from the WCC Richard Bailey Library started a Seed Library 3 years ago. The goal is to promote healthy eating on campus, by encouraging and teaching people to go back to growing their own foods and be a little more personally sustainable, and to encourage the sowing, harvesting, and sharing of seeds. The Seed Library looks to use open-pollinated, open-sourced heirloom seeds. Approximately 60 varieties of seeds were purchased from two local seed providers, Ann Arbor Seed Company and Nature and Nurture Seed Company. The Seed Library is self-help. The seeds are packaged in a little envelope with enough to get any small backyard garden started. Instructions are included on how to start growing the seed. The seed library has vegetables, herbs and flowers such as sunflowers, nasturtiums, and marigolds. The Seed Library opened on March 15 and most of the seeds were taken by the end of the semester, April 30th. Seed “borrowers” included 60% students, 20% employees, and 10% community members. Several other libraries across Michigan have contacted the WCC library to get information on how to start their own seed library. News information: http://www.washtenawvoice.com/2016/03/07/3087/ https://www.washtenawvoice.com/2018/04/09/mother-earth-day/