Seedy Sunday



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Seedy Sunday in Hove is the biggest community seed swap in the UK and it has very quickly become a staple calendar event in my gardening year.
We braved the snow on Sunday to go, packets of saved seed at the ready, Sam somewhat more reluctantly than me admittedly...
I decided this year that I would hand over the growing of one type of veg to Sam - he's kind of interested in the garden but not in quite the same way as me. He's been really pleased with all the harvests but he's not one for the slow burn of sowing something in February and not eating it until September. He chose chillis so armed with five packets of saved seed to swap, he was quite happy to wander round looking for which varieties he wanted to grow. He was also impressed with the food on offer (Vegan chickpea curry amongst other things).
I find it so useful to have an event like this to go to (especially as I don't have an allotment and therefore an allotment community), it gives me a chance to meet and speak to other growers - mostly more experienced than me and always willing to share experience and advice with newer growers like me.
It is also a great place to find unusual plants or varieties that aren't readily available from seed catalogues or garden centres. This year I bought some wild garlic to grow in the shady side of the garden (5 for £2) and some oca which I'd never heard of before but apparently it's a bit like a potato that you can eat it raw as well as cooked (5 tubers for £1). I also swapped some seed for some multiplier onions from the Heritage Seed Library and got some borlotti bean seeds from a seed company specialising in bean and herb varieties.
However, the best thing about a seed swap event like this is that it can be completely free. This one charges a £2 entrance fee which is put back into the event, but after that, if you have seed to swap, there is no need to spend any money which is great for growers like me who are on a budget.

*Image taken from the Seedy Sunday website.