Area gardeners can check out seeds at the library

The Hillyard Library in Spokane and the libraries in Cheney, Fairfield and Otis Orchards all offer dozens of varieties of seeds for checkout. The one at the Otis Orchards Library was the first program to open five years ago. The program is self-propagating: Library users check out seeds, and replenish the supplies by donating seeds from their gardens later in the season.

Section:Gallery

Thu., March 14, 2019

A simple card file holds the seeds available at the Otis Orchards County Library’s free seed bank Monday, March 11, 2019. Two other county libraries have seed libraries that provide free seeds for gardeners and ask that they save some seeds to replenish the bank each year.

Jesse Tinsley The Spokesman-Review Buy this photo
A simple card file holds the seeds available at the Otis Orchards County Library’s free seed bank Monday, March 11, 2019. Two other county libraries also have seed libraries that provide free seeds for gardeners and ask that they save some seeds to replenish the bank each year.

Jesse Tinsley The Spokesman-Review Buy this photo
Gwendolyn Haley, a librarian at the Otis Orchards library, shows off some of the seeds available in the library’s free seed bank Monday, March 11, 2019. Library users can check out seed packets and are asked to save some seeds from their garden to replenish the seed bank each year. Haley said the honor system has been so successful that the seed library is “self-propagating.”

Jesse Tinsley The Spokesman-Review Buy this photo
Beside the Otis Orchards County Library’s free seed bank, housed in a card file, sit samples of seeds brought back by gardeners to the library Monday, March 11, 2019. Hillyard Library in Spokane and the county libraries in Cheney and Fairfield also have seed libraries that provide free seeds for gardeners and ask that they save some seeds from their gardens to replenish the bank each year.

Jesse Tinsley The Spokesman-Review Buy this photo
Librarian Gwendolyn Haley talks about the simple card file that holds the seeds available at the Otis Orchards County Library’s free seed bank Monday, March 11, 2019. Haley said the program offers heirloom seeds.

Jesse Tinsley The Spokesman-Review Buy this photo
A simple card file holds the seeds available at the Otis Orchards County Library’s free seed bank Monday, March 11, 2019. Hillyard Library in Spokane and the county libraries in Cheney and Fairfield also have seed libraries that provide free seeds for gardeners and ask that they save some seeds from their gardens to replenish the bank each year.

Jesse Tinsley The Spokesman-Review Buy this photo
Gwendolyn Haley, a librarian at the Otis Orchards library, shows off some of the seeds available in the library’s free seed bank Monday, March 11, 2019. Two other county libraries also have seed libraries that provide free seeds for gardeners and ask that they save some seeds to replenish the bank each year.

Jesse Tinsley The Spokesman-Review Buy this photo