BY NICHOLAS JOHNSON

Anacortes American

Romano pole beans, flat-leaf parsley, French breakfast radishes, romaine lettuce, celery root, pumpkins, marigolds,  sunflowers, Silene “Blushing Lanterns” and “Vivid Violet” pincushion flowers.

 

About 30 people gathered Monday night, Jan. 19, to seal seeds for these plants and countless others into tiny, meticulously labeled envelopes at the Anacortes Public Library. 

 

By mid-February, the Fidalgo Seed Share program’s seed library  will open for the 2026 growing season, in its usual spot on the econd floor of the Anacortes Public Library.

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As part of Transition Fidalgo, the seed-share program launched its seed library in January 2023, following years of hosting seed swaps. Since then, home gardeners have been welcome to check out seeds for free, in small quantities, with the expectation that newly produced seeds will be saved and donated back for others to check out in the future. 

 

This year, program coordinator Evie Opp expects to put more seed on the shelves than ever before.

 

“It’s growing,” Opp said. “It’s getting bigger. The word is getting out.”

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In 2023, about 1,800 packets of seed were given away. About 2,400 were given away in 2024 and about 3,500 were given away in 2025. This year, Opp said, the library is on track to have more than 3,700 seeds in stock. More than 80% of that is donated by local gardeners, while the rest are commercial seeds donated by big suppliers, as well as local businesses.

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“We ask that people only take one packet of each variety so there will be plenty to go around,” Opp said. “And, if possible, grow a few plants with the intention to save seed and donate back to the seed share at the end of the season to keep the cycle in motion.”

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In October, the seed-share program hosted a threshing party — not just to harvest seeds but to show attendees how to collect them and clean them without specialty equipment.

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Sequoia Ferrel, a Transition Fidalgo board member who operates Gaia Rising Farm on Guemes Island, said most seed- share programs struggle to keep the seed-saving cycle alive.

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To help with that, she has tended a 30-by-30-foot seed garden for the past two years at her farm for the purpose of growing seeds in a controlled environment to develop hardy, landrace seeds that are well-suited to the local climate.

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In the first year, she grew things such as beans, squash and green pumpkin seeds. Last year, she grew squash, corn and horseradish.

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Ultimately, she said she would like to establish dedicated seed gardens on Fidalgo Island and create a network of gardeners with each growing one or two specific plants over multiple generations to develop seeds that are adapted to local conditions.

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“We don’t pamper them because we want them to be hardy,” Ferrel said.
 

The seed-share program was created to boost the resiliency of the island’s food supply, Opp said. Ferrel said climate change could put that supply at risk by weakening the planet’s ocean- current circulation system.

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“We could have food shortages in just a few years,” Ferrel said. “So it’s important for us to grow our own food.”

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Fellow Transition Fidalgo board member Laurie Sherman agreed.

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“It’s important to control the source of our food rather than relying on Monsanto,” Sherman said.

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In pursuit of growing a more resilient local food system, the program also aims to build community, said Opp, who has been in Anacortes since 2011.

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“Being a part of this group is the only extracurricular I’ve done since moving here,” she said. “And it’s just been great for getting to know people.”

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Sitting in small groups at long folding tables, people laughed while chatting about their gardens and helping each other with the delicate work of slipping seeds into small yellow packets.

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“This is serious business,” Jeane Smith said with a grin.

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NICHOLAS JOHNSON, ANACORTES AMERICAN

This story is republished courtesy of the Anacortes American. You can read the original story by clicking this link.