Even if you have brown thumbs and prefer concrete to cultivation, we’re going to bet you’ll agree the 23 heirloom seed packets commissioned by the Hudson Valley Seed Library are real beauties. Starting tonight their Art Packs will be on display until March 2 in Manhattan at The Horticultural Society of New York at 148 West 37th Street in an exhibit called the Art of the Heirloom. (There’s a preview talk from 6 to 8 pm tonight, to attend, RSVP in the comments of this page.)
There’s also a Seed Library pop-up shop, where you can buy heirloom seeds like Jenny Lind melons, Sparkler radishes, Evergreen Bunching Scallion, and “Cosmonaut Volkov” tomatoes that have been collected and cultivated in our very own growing zones, each in a pack designed by a different artist.
Those represent just a few of the seeds available from The Seed Library, which is an eight-year-old online seed library with its own farm for growing and collecting open-pollinated seeds, many historically grown in New York and all well-suited to our climate. (Become a member, or check out their 2012 catalog here.) This year the Library is offering more than 60 varieties of locally grown seed and around 140 varieties sourced from other like-minded growers. Now you can check out at least 23 of those right in New York City.
