Community Food Projects
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Bishop's Castle Community Seed Bank
Local Seed Library for Food Resilience
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Community Food Resilience Strategy
In partnership with Bishop’s Castle Town Council
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Climate Action Group
Working on the Climate Action Plan
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Going Wild in BC
Landscape and Biodiversity
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Bishop's Castle Community Partnership
Join the BCCP
The Bishop’s Castle Community Seed Bank is a resource for local food resilience.
It is an initiative of the Climate Action Group, a part of the BC Community Partnership.
The Bishop’s Castle Community Seed Bank inventory list for 2023 is
NOW AVAILABLE HERE!
The aims of the seed bank are:
to share knowledge of seed saving, growing and seed sovereignty
to foster community food security through inclusive access to open-pollinated seed
to support the species genetic diversity of seed stock outside of corporate ownership and by saving seed and returning it to the seed bank for others
to build community resilience in the face of climate change and food system shocks
If you think of the Seed Bank as a library, it means that you Borrow, Grow, Save and Share:
Borrow Seed
Grow it (eat some and let some continue to grow on to seed)
Save that seed, then
Share it back to the Seed Bank
Membership
To become a seed bank member we ask that you provide us with you name, email and contact details. While we don’t charge for seeds, we do appreciate donations to help support the costs of the initiative.
Please note: Seeds are intended for personal domestic growing for our local community members and not for commercial use.
To be a member means that you have access to the BC Community Seed Bank and that you are a Seed Steward!
Donating Seed
Please get in touch with daphne@littlewoodbatch.co.uk if you’re interested in donating or finding out which seeds are available.
We accept only open-pollinated varieties of seed (Non-F1 Hybrids and Non-GMO seed). The seed bank welcomes seed donations for fruits, vegetables, flowers, wildflowers, grains and pulses.
If you would like to get involved in this project to share your knowledge, skills or time, please contact us!
Why Save Seed
From 1903 - 1983, the USA lost 93% of species genetic diversity of veg and fruit, and that has continued globally to the present as fewer varieties are deemed viable by commercial retailers for various reasons: Not always uniform, doesn’t transport or store well, not sweet enough... Now, 70% of global genetic seed stock is owned by just 4 corporations. Most people who do grow fruit, veg and flowers buy their seed from large seed companies rather than small, independent seed companies.
All this stacks up to make backyard seed saving a revolutionary act!
How to Help
We’re looking for volunteers to harvest, process and package seeds into envelopes.
The Seed Bank attends the monthly farmer’s market in Bishop’s Castle on the third Saturday of each month and would be glad to have people to host the stall.
Having volunteers as stewards to plant, care for, and harvest plants for seed-stock would allow the Seed Bank to grow and serve the community.
Please get in touch if you’re interested in helping out in any of these ways.
Resources
vital seeds
Gaia Foundation Seed Sovereignty Course
Lampeter Seed Library: How to start your own local seed bank - Below!
Events
The seeds are stored at Little Woodbatch (although it is not open to the public to drop in). Seeds can be accessed by the community at the BC Farmer’s Market on the 3rd Saturday of each month as well as seed swap days and special events (Dates TBA).
