Seed Bank Library

The Seed Library is starting from March 19 to September 21 (last day of summer).

Please call us at 440-333-7610 x 5501 with questions or stop by the Reference Desk.

Rocky River Public Library is once again partnering with the Cleveland Seed Bank to host a Seed Library. The Seed Library offers a selection of 24 different varieties of organic, open-pollinated, vegetable, herb, and edible flower seeds that are available to ‘check out’ at no cost to the community.

The Cleveland Seed Bank currently works with High Mowing Organic Seeds to provide certified organic non-GMO seeds. Each of the 24 varieties offered through the program were carefully selected based on regional growing and climate conditions in Northern Ohio.

Checking Out Seed Packets

In-Person: 

The Cleveland Seed Bank Library, stocked with over 400 seed packets, is located in front of the Reference Desk. You will also find a binder describing each available seed, from Genovese Basil to San Marzano Paste Tomatoes, to help you make informed choices.

Community members are invited to ‘check out’ up to 3 seed packets per month. You must either complete a paper checkout form or use our digital seed packet checkout form, both of which are in front of the Reference Desk.

Note: Seed availability is on a ‘first come first served basis’, so the seeds you want may not be available. We will receive one refill of each seed variety as needed. 

Call Us:
If you are unable to visit the library, please call us at 440-333-7610 x 5501 to reserve seeds for pick up at the drive-thru window.

Please look for a future program regarding seed saving provided by the Cleveland Seed Bank. We will notify all seed recipients directly about this virtual program.

What is the Cleveland Seed Bank?

The Cleveland Seed Bank acts as an independent and accessible source of open-pollinated, non-GMO seeds and aims to develop a regional alliance of seed savers dedicated to the creation of a locally adapted seed supply.

The preservation of local, open-pollinated seed varieties is vitally important for the planet’s ecological resilience and the maintenance of our food security. The unprecedented loss of our planet’s biological diversity and alarming dominance of multinational, corporate agriculture have put seed resilience and thus food availability at great risk. Saving open-pollinated seeds is a decentralized, local solution to this worldwide problem.

The Cleveland Seed Bank is the domestic work of The Hummingbird Project, an international nonprofit based in Cleveland, Ohio. It aims to safeguard and restore the biological diversity vital for sustainable agriculture, both in the U.S. and around the world. Cleveland, Ohio that works for social change through ecological regeneration and community.

Questions?

Please contact the Adult Services Department at (440) 333-7610 ext. 5501, or visit the Cleveland Seed Bank online.