Oregon City Seed Library

Welcome to our Seed Library page! Here you will find information about our Oregon City Public Library’s Seed Library. Explore the vision and purpose of our new seed collection, and find out how to check out seeds from your local library. It’s easy, fun, and free. And best of all, it supports sustainability and community. Come grow with us at the Oregon City Library!  

Seed Library Vision | Create a public seed library to encourage a culture of sharing and community; to empower our community to grow and feed themselves fresh, healthy, and delicious food.

By participating in the seed library, you are helping to create a culture of sharing and community. Saving seeds leads to a sustainable future for your community and your garden.

Our vision ensures that everyone in our community has access to locally adapted seeds and gardening education. We believe seed saving and seed sharing serve as a vehicle for supporting regional food systems, preserving genetic diversity, and maintaining connections to history and culture.

Seed Library Purpose | To provide free seeds to gardeners, saving and sharing of good quality plant genetics that grow well in the microclimate of our region while providing opportunities for the teaching of new self-reliant gardening skills.

A seed library...

• builds & enriches community
• provides a service to the community and the environment
• supports the Library's Mission & Vision
• is easy to start and maintain
• creates more programming partnerships & outreach opportunities (farmers market, gardening programs, canning/preserving, etc.)
• bolsters botanical literacy
• supports information sharing and preservation*
• just makes sense to be housed in a public library!

*Gardening is a localized knowledge, built through experience. While written guidelines can be helpful, person-to-person information sharing is how gardeners can learn how to be successful in their own unique environments.