Photo: Dylan Johns
Borrowing books from libraries is old hat. The new hotness is borrowing seeds to plant in your garden. That's what the Basalt Public Library and the Central Rocky Mountain Permaculture Institute in Colorado are offering:
Here's how it works: A library card gets you a packet of seeds. You then grow the fruits and vegetables, harvest the new seeds from the biggest and best, and return those seeds so the library can lend them out to others.
NPR's Salt Blog has the story, but no mention on what happens if your plantings failed to produce the seed that you need to return to the library: Link
Just beware of P.V.P. seeds, you could be breaking the law by seed swapping or sharing. Yes, really. http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/crops/00301.html
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I checked the Central Rocky Mountain Permaculture Institute's website and they are dedicated to the idea of preserving genetic seed diversity. The seeds on offer by the library have been donated by organic seed companies themselves, so no worries, either about copyright or future health implications from consuming fruit or vegetables from a lab-altered seed.
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