February 16: Updated with vendor list and workshop schedule.
Lynn Morris
Seedy Saturday will return to Ottawa on March 2 – giving gardeners an extra push to start planning this year’s plantings.
The free event will offer
- Seed sales and exchanges
- Workshops on seed starting, soil testing, invasive species, and native bee habits and habitats
- Local artisan and cuisine offerings
- Draw prizes, live music, and a children’s corner
It will be held at Emmanuel United Church, 691 Smyth Road, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, March 2. Admission and parking are free. OC Transpo route 55 goes by the church; Centretowners can catch that bus on Chamberlain at Bank.
All types of urban gardeners – from raised beds to balcony pots, to garden beds big and small – are welcome, whether their aim is food security, healthy food, reviving heirloom varieties, encouraging pollinators, beautifying, community engagement, pursuing an active lifestyle or just getting outside.
Bring your own reusable bags and, if you have some, your seeds for exchange. Some vendors may only accept cash.
The event will be hosted by the Alta Vista Community Association Local Food Committee, a group of community gardeners interested in food security, in collaboration with non-profits Just Food and Seeds of Diversity. For more information: altavistaseeds@gmail.com
Workshop Schedule
- 10:30-11 Native Bees – Habits and Habitat (Scot Nickels)
- 11:30-12 Soil Testing (Julia Peterson)
- 12:30-1 Les Abeilles indigènes (Luc Bourgeois)
- 1:30-2 How to Make your own Peat-Free Seed Starting Mix (Bri Petersen)
- 2:30-3 Invasive Species: Flora and Fauna (Gillian Cooper)
Vendor List:
- Ferme Tournesol
- Urban Gardening Canada
- The Good Shit
- Semences Junco Seeds
- Ottawa Valley Rock Garden & Horticultural Society
- Annapolis Seeds
- Nepean Horticultural Society
- Pepper Merchant
- Raon Kitchen
- Naturaide
- Haico’s Hot Sauce
- Avalon Herbal Clinic
- Soapy Crows
- La ferme de l’Aube
- Box of Life
- Soils Alive Composting
- Kanata Soup
- Urban Harvest Organic Seeds
- Honey Pie Hives & Herbals
- Gaia Organic Seeds
- Matches Seed
- Sweet Williams Farm
See justfood.ca/community-gardening-network/seed-saving-projects-and-events/seedysaturdayottawa/ for updates.