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One Seed, One Community brings people together through a shared experience that teaches how to grow nutritious food and save seeds. You provide participants with the same seed variety, along with guidance on how to grow, harvest, and save those seeds for future use. By participating, individuals not only learn a valuable new skill but also become part of a community focused on sustainability and self-sufficiency.
The program is important not only because it increases the number of seed savers, but In many home gardens, the space is often too limited to maintain the genetic diversity of seed varieties. By encouraging gardeners to grow and save the same seed, we can help build genetic resilience and increase diversity. As participants share seeds through local seed libraries, this collaborative effort strengthens our local food systems and promotes sustainable agriculture. Over time, this process allows for the adaptation of seeds to local growing conditions, improving their vitality and adaptability. |
Getting Started
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Questions to Consider 🤔
When you give seed packets out, explain that you will send a few emails out throughout the growing season walking them through the planting, harvesting, and seed saving. At the end of the season, you'll also want to give information about how they can share the seeds with friends and neighbors, and donate them to the seed library. A nice way to wrap up the program is to host a harvest party, where you come together and weigh how much you grew and share stories, seeds, and food.
Start with a Bean or Pea
We recommend starting with species that are "super easy" to work with. Species like tomatoes, lettuce, peas, and beans are all self-pollinating and produce offspring that are "true-to-type," meaning they will resemble the parent plant. You could also choose to grow a genetically diverse mix, which can be fun to see the diversity on and off the vine. In general, the first time you do a One Seed, One Community Project, we suggest focusing on either a bean or pea variety, and here’s why:
- When is a good time to do a One Seed, One Community project?
- Can we obtain enough seeds? Is there a local source?
- How will we measure our success?
- How will we stay connected with people who take the seeds so they are successful in growing from seed-to-seed?
- Is there a local variety or something that has significance to our community that we could save collectively?
- How will people return or share seeds at the end?
When you give seed packets out, explain that you will send a few emails out throughout the growing season walking them through the planting, harvesting, and seed saving. At the end of the season, you'll also want to give information about how they can share the seeds with friends and neighbors, and donate them to the seed library. A nice way to wrap up the program is to host a harvest party, where you come together and weigh how much you grew and share stories, seeds, and food.
Start with a Bean or Pea
We recommend starting with species that are "super easy" to work with. Species like tomatoes, lettuce, peas, and beans are all self-pollinating and produce offspring that are "true-to-type," meaning they will resemble the parent plant. You could also choose to grow a genetically diverse mix, which can be fun to see the diversity on and off the vine. In general, the first time you do a One Seed, One Community Project, we suggest focusing on either a bean or pea variety, and here’s why:
- Larger Seeds are More Satisfying to Save: Many people find that saving larger seeds, like beans and peas, is more rewarding. The size and tactile nature of these seeds make the process more enjoyable and approachable.
- Beautiful Bean Seeds: Beans often come in stunning colors and patterns, making them visually appealing and a great introduction to the world of seed saving. Their beauty can spark a deeper interest in growing and saving seeds.
- Tomatoes Can Be Tricky to Start for Beginners: While tomato seeds are easy to save, the plants themselves can be challenging for new gardeners. Tomatoes are subtropical and typically require indoor starting on heat mats in many climates, which can add complexity to the process.
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Picking a Bean Variety
We recommend selecting a variety that meets at least some, if not all, of these criteria:
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Painted Pony seeds used for One Seed, One Community Project. It's a beautiful dual purpose bean that can be used as a soup or green bean.
East Bay Local Seeds Painted Pony One Seed, One Community project. They offered several different sizes for folks that had more land. However, now they just give multiple packets to those people.
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Picking a pea variety
We recommend selecting a variety that meets at least some, if not all, of these criteria:
We recommend selecting a variety that meets at least some, if not all, of these criteria:
- Unusual variety: Select something that is not available in your home garden store or big box store; perhaps it's a locally saved variety that has a story. (Maybe you find something that is a local variety, but you can't currently get the volume you need. Put a plan together to grow it out on the side to offer next year.)
- Unusual characteristic: The peas in the pod are not going to be eye-catching. See if you can find a pea that has some unusual characteristic, ex Golden Sweet Pea (yellow podded), Sugar Magnolia (purple podded), or an attractive bi-colored flower.
- Sugar snap, snow or dual purpose: It takes a lot of shelling peas to make a dish and the same is true for soup peas. We recommend starting with a sugar snap pea. Depending on the community, snow peas may have as much appeal as a sugar snap. You may also be able to find a pea that is dual purpose, such as one that can be grown as a snap or shelling pea.
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Where to find varieties
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Warning! Do NOT want to get seeds from the supermarket or from out of the country. You could unintentionally introduce the bean mosaic virus to your community. |
Organic Seeds
Many small-scale farmers can’t afford the cost of organic certification, but they still prioritize sustainable farming practices and land stewardship. Additionally, it’s often more beneficial to support unique, conventionally grown crops than to choose more widely available varieties. By doing so, we help preserve biodiversity and support smaller seed companies and farmers.
Many small-scale farmers can’t afford the cost of organic certification, but they still prioritize sustainable farming practices and land stewardship. Additionally, it’s often more beneficial to support unique, conventionally grown crops than to choose more widely available varieties. By doing so, we help preserve biodiversity and support smaller seed companies and farmers.
Presentations & Skillshares
Presented at the 10th Annual Seed Library Summit by
Hillie Salo of Silicon Valley Grows, Silicon Valley, CA, USA. Slide presentation
Elizabeth Johnson; Founder & Facilitator SLO Seed Exchange, San Luis Obispo, CA, USA - Slide presentation
Hillie Salo of Silicon Valley Grows, Silicon Valley, CA, USA. Slide presentation
Elizabeth Johnson; Founder & Facilitator SLO Seed Exchange, San Luis Obispo, CA, USA - Slide presentation
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One Seed, One Community Skillshare #1
Presenters: Elizabeth Johnson, SLO Seed Exchange, & Rebecca Newburn, Richmond Grows Seed Lending Library |
One Seed, One Community Skillshare #2
Presenters: Beth Lanigan, Idea Exchange, & Rebecca Newburn, Richmond Grows Seed Lending Library |
Packing
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It takes time to pack seeds, but with some planning it can be fun and efficient. Have a packing party and take a few steps ahead of time to best utilize your volunteers.
Prior to the Packing Party 1. Decide on how many seeds go into each packet. 15-20 is a good number for peas and beans. 2. Figure out a measuring tool that can quickly approximate the number of seeds you are giving. For example, the Painted Pony was a fairly small bean and 20 beans fit in a tablespoon (about 15 mL).. So count out the number of peas or beans and try a few different measuring tools, such as measuring cups. You may want to take a marker and put a line on the container to approximate how many 15-20 would be. Have several sets of these pre-marked before the packing party. 3. Have your envelopes printed. It's not much space to communicate a lot of information. This is one reason we encourage you to get emails from people. Additional information will be shared via email. |
At the Packing Party
Materials: Seeds, labels, measuring tools (predetermine quantity), stapler, & staples, It is a lot of work to attach labels if they are not self-adhesive. If you are attaching paper labels, also have scissors or a paper cutter. It is much faster to staple than to glue them. 
Self-adhesive labels are a lot easier, but can be expensive if you do a lot of packets.
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Increasing Participation
To grow your seed-saving network and offer ongoing support throughout the growing season, collecting email addresses from participants (when they’re willing to share) can be a valuable tool. It allows you to stay in touch, share updates, and cultivate a stronger community of seed savers. Here are some effective ways to increase participation:
To grow your seed-saving network and offer ongoing support throughout the growing season, collecting email addresses from participants (when they’re willing to share) can be a valuable tool. It allows you to stay in touch, share updates, and cultivate a stronger community of seed savers. Here are some effective ways to increase participation:
- Attend Farmers' Markets & Community Events Set up a booth at local farmers' markets or community events to distribute seed packets and connect with potential participants face-to-face.
- Seed Library Display & Sign-Up Place seed packets at your local seed library with a special display and sign-up sheet. You can have participants sign up with a librarian or provide a self-checkout option. However, personal interactions tend to be more effective for building engagement, as self-checkout sometimes leads to missed sign-ups.
- Create an Electronic Sign-Up Form Simplify the sign-up process by offering an online form that participants can fill out at their convenience. This makes it easy for people to join from anywhere and you won't have to type or decipher handwritten email addresses.
- Target Larger Growers Reach out to people with larger garden plots, such as urban farmers, college horticulture departments, and school gardens. Ask if they’d be interested in growing a “Bed of Beans” or a “Plot of Peas” for the community. You can also offer them informational signs to help educate others about seed saving and the One Seed, One Community program.
These strategies can help you build a more engaged, connected, and active community of seed savers, ensuring the long-term success of your initiative.
Correspondence
You will need to determine the best planting times for the crops you are growing in your area. There are several basic emails you can tweak to get you started if you choose to do a bean. These can be accessed from One Seed, One Community worksheet. Some groups don't collect emails, but instead post regularly on social media to keep people engaged and informed. While others offer ongoing classes throughout the season and keep the participants involved.
Celebrating
Look for ways to celebrate and engage with others. Consider hosting a seed swap or a harvest festival! These events not only create a fun, lively atmosphere but also encourage more people to get involved. You can even showcase the next selection for the One Seed, One Community program and distribute free seeds to attendees.
If your organization has the capacity, you might also explore the opportunity to set up a table at a related community event. Perhaps this can be at a community partner's event. This gives you the chance to connect with seed savers, exchange seeds, and spread awareness about your initiative—while participants enjoy the other activities at the event. It’s a great way to grow your network and inspire new contributors to the cause!
You will need to determine the best planting times for the crops you are growing in your area. There are several basic emails you can tweak to get you started if you choose to do a bean. These can be accessed from One Seed, One Community worksheet. Some groups don't collect emails, but instead post regularly on social media to keep people engaged and informed. While others offer ongoing classes throughout the season and keep the participants involved.
Celebrating
Look for ways to celebrate and engage with others. Consider hosting a seed swap or a harvest festival! These events not only create a fun, lively atmosphere but also encourage more people to get involved. You can even showcase the next selection for the One Seed, One Community program and distribute free seeds to attendees.
If your organization has the capacity, you might also explore the opportunity to set up a table at a related community event. Perhaps this can be at a community partner's event. This gives you the chance to connect with seed savers, exchange seeds, and spread awareness about your initiative—while participants enjoy the other activities at the event. It’s a great way to grow your network and inspire new contributors to the cause!
Share your Successes and Challenges
If you have done the One Seed, One Community and have a resource, tip, or challenge to share, email us at [email protected].
If you have done the One Seed, One Community and have a resource, tip, or challenge to share, email us at [email protected].
A huge thanks to Hillie Salo for creating the One Seed, One Community program!
Hillie Salo of Silicon Valley Grows, Silicon Valley, CA, USA created the One Seed, One Community project. She was inspired by the "one book, one city" or "community read" programs, our project unites communities not around a book, but around the growing of a single seed variety. You can read her article in Cool Beans! Seed Libraries Newsletter, Issue #13, April 2018.
Hillie Salo of Silicon Valley Grows, Silicon Valley, CA, USA created the One Seed, One Community project. She was inspired by the "one book, one city" or "community read" programs, our project unites communities not around a book, but around the growing of a single seed variety. You can read her article in Cool Beans! Seed Libraries Newsletter, Issue #13, April 2018.
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