Star Journal

Top Menu

  • Contact Us
  • Hodag Star Journal E-Edition
  • Subscribe

Main Menu

  • Local
    • News
    • Business
    • Schools
    • Law & Order
    • Arts & Ent
    • Wedding Planner
    • Viewpoint
    • Sports
      • Sports News
      • High School Sports Scores
  • Covid 19
  • Outdoors
  • Wellness
  • Classifieds
    • View Ads
    • Place Ads
  • Our Legals
    • Legal Ads
    • Statewide
  • Obits
  • Lake View
  • Northwoods NOW
  • Living On The Lake
  • Contact Us
  • Hodag Star Journal E-Edition
  • Subscribe

logo

Star Journal

  • Local
    • News
    • Business
    • Schools
    • Law & Order
    • Arts & Ent
    • Wedding Planner
    • Viewpoint
    • Sports
      • Sports News
      • High School Sports Scores
  • Covid 19
  • Outdoors
  • Wellness
  • Classifieds
    • View Ads
    • Place Ads
  • Our Legals
    • Legal Ads
    • Statewide
  • Obits
  • Lake View
  • Northwoods NOW
  • Living On The Lake
Latest NewsLocalNews
Home›Latest News›The Seed Library

The Seed Library

By StarJournal
April 27, 2015
1043
0
Share:

A new kind of recycling, from the ground up

By Jared Raney
Reporter

A new resource for the aspiring gardener is available in Eagle River: a ‘Seed Library.’
It’s pretty much exactly what is sounds like; you go in to the library, check out some seeds, and return them at the end of the season.
“The idea behind it is to save seeds that have been acclimated to our climate,” said Mary Ann Lambrecht, a master gardener and one of the minds behind the project. “There’s libraries like this all over the state of Wisconsin, all over the United States, in fact.”
The problem with buying seed from a catalogue or a big box store is that you rarely know where they came from. Even basic plants like tomatoes might not grow well here in Northern Wisconsin if the seed variety you buy is from Texas.
Heirloom seeds are what the library is looking for—basically seeds that, as Lambrecht said, have been acclimated to a certain area.
“We are starting with commercial seeds because it’s our first year,” said Debbie Jircik, who who was the driving force behind the library. “[heirloom seeds have] stories behind them, they might be connected to people in our area.”

 

IMG_2567        IMG_2550         IMG_2552

 
Another goal of the project is to provide accessability and knowledge to those who would like to start gardening but may not know where to start.
“We are going to provide ongoing support, so there’s going to be classes in seed-saving,” Jircik said. “It’s about educating people about doing the process, and really making it a community project.”
The library, located at Olson Memorial Library in Eagle River, is joining a series of seed libraries throughout the Northwoods called the Seed Savers Alliance. This is the first library in the Alliance to be set up east of Iron County.
“Not everybody do we expect will return seeds. There’s no fines or anything, it’s the honor system, but of course to sustain the library we want people to return some seeds at the end of the season,” Jircik said.
Some heirloom seed have already made their way into the library, such as the Arikara Squash. This partiular seed variety was passed down through from the Arikara Tribe of North Dakota, and has now made it’s way into the Eagle River seed library.
“The idea is yes, we hope that we’ll be able to grow the collection, as interest in the community grows, and peoples’ education about the process of saving seed and gardening grows,” Jircik said.
More information can be found at olson.wislib.org under ‘Resources,’ or at seedsaversalliance.org. You can also contact Debbie Jircik at (715)479-9737, or the library itself at (715)479-8070.

TagsFeatured
Previous Article

The Rainforest comes to Rhinelander

Next Article

Crescent school unplugs for Earth Day

0
Shares
  • 0
  • +
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

Related articles More from author

  • Business

    Letting go is key

    February 5, 2015
    By StarJournal
  • Arts & EntMultimediaPhoto GalleryVideo

    The Rainforest comes to Rhinelander

    April 27, 2015
    By StarJournal
  • LocalNewsOutdoors

    High risk of fire

    May 3, 2015
    By StarJournal
  • Schools

    Careers on Wheels: Students learn what makes these careers go ’round and ’round

    May 11, 2015
    By StarJournal
  • Latest News

    Rhinelander Fans in the Stands

    May 11, 2015
    By StarJournal
  • Business

    Business close up: A new local furniture option

    May 11, 2015
    By StarJournal

Leave a reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

About Us


Star Journal is published by Multi Media Channels LLC, N2919 County Road QQ Waupaca, WI 54981.

  • Contact Us
  • Hodag Star Journal E-Edition
  • Subscribe
Copyright © 2020 Multi Media Channels LLC.
All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied, modified or adapted without the prior written consent of Multi Media Channels LLC.
×