By Payton Tholstrup
Wisner’s Greenhouse Project at 23rd & Elk, owned by Joshua and Melissa Wisner, will be hosting their first ever seed swap at 4th and Court Bookshop in Clay Center, KS on Saturday, March 23rd. The event is free and in partnership with the local extension office.
Josh has been part of master gardening classes for a while now. He had always thought seed swaps sounded fun but had never actually planned one. When a local gardener suggested that Wisner’s Greenhouse Project host their own seed swap, he decided to go for it and jumped right in on planning out the event. Recently, he went to a seed swap in Manhattan to get inspiration on how to set everything up.
Tables will be set up at the bookstore and sectioned into categories such as vegetables, flowers, herbs, etc. Participants will put their seeds in the correct designated area and are encouraged to take as many seeds as they bring. If participants do not have their own seeds to bring, that’s okay and they can make a monetary donation instead. He added that it doesn’t matter what kinds of seeds people bring.
Wisner also noted that with the event being held in in the middle of March, some people might bring seedlings, trees, and other plants to swap. Their business will be bringing seeds to sell at the event. He said he isn’t sure how many people save seeds, but that he has quite a few saved from last fall.
He hopes the event will get people excited about gardening in Clay County and foster a sense of community as well. One of his favorite parts of gardening is how willing the gardening community is to share with each other, whether that’s seeds, plants, or even advice. They are still looking for sponsors and will potentially be doing a raffle at the event. There will also be live music and possibly baked goods available.
