Sunday March 09 Marks Our15th Annual Seedy Sunday

What’s an awesome local event where you can swap, buy and borrow seeds, plus connect with gardening gurus and indulge your passion for planting? Seedy Sunday, of course!

Sunday, March 9th will mark the 15th annual ‘Seedy Sunday’ event, hosted by Lillooet Food Matters and the Lillooet Food and Agricultural Society.

This popular event  is a welcome signal to Lillooet area growers that spring is nearly upon us and it’s time to get those seeds ready for planting. Seedy Sunday features all things seeds – buying, trading, borrowing and even winnowing. It’s also a venue to connect with other local growers and producers, and indulge in some delicious food. 

The concept of Seedy Sunday is not unique to Lillooet. According to the ‘Seeds of Diversity’ website, ‘Seedy Sunday’ (‘Seedy Saturday’ in some locations) is a series of nation-wide events intended to ‘encourage the use of open-pollinated and heritage seeds, enable a local seed exchange, and educate the public about seed saving and environmentally responsible gardening practices’.

Lillooet Food Matters has been promoting these ideas since 2008. According to Eleanor Wright, a founding member, the group was first inspired by ‘Mother Earth’s Changing Climate Gathering’ hosted by T’it’q’et, circa 2007, and the first ‘Roots Gathering’ held in 2008 and organized by the Ucwalmicw Centre. Initially an informal group, it began with the idea of forming a food security/food growing and buying co-op.  The official name, Lillooet Food Matters, was coined in 2009, along with its formalized mission to be a ‘group of local citizens who are working together to increase food security and food sovereignty in our region’.

Fast forward to 2025 and the group is now about to host its 15th Seedy Sunday. The grass roots event continues to promote awareness on the importance of protecting a diverse variety of seeds, and to educate on how to do it. As one of the organizers says, ‘Seedy Sunday, along with our seed library, is a cornerstone of what we do – seed saving is critical to food security.’

Seed library, you ask? Just like it sounds, the seed library, housed year round in the HUB Connect, is a collection of seeds that are available to borrow. Local gardeners can choose from a variety of seeds, take them home to plant, grow, harvest and save, and then return some seeds to the library in the fall. While this may sound complicated, organizers say that many popular plants such as beans, peas, tomatoes and lettuce are really easy to save.

If you’re keen to participate in seed saving, the library will be on hand and open for lending at the Seedy Sunday event, along with seed saving experts to answer your question.

You can attend Seedy Sunday at the Lillooet Rec Centre Gym on Sunday, March 9th between 11-3pm. Admission is $2 or what you can afford. For further information on Seedy Sunday, Lillooet Food Matters, the seed library and seed saving, check out their website, lillooetfoodmatters.ca, or get in touch at lillooetfoodmatters@gmail.com. Seedy Sunday is supported by a grant from the Squamish Lillooet Regional District Electoral Area B Select Funds.

Think your property’s too small to produce much? Think again!

The Lillooet Food Matters folks recently enjoyed a fascinating tour of Sam Quinlan and Johannes Bordendorfer’s little slice of paradise. Located (literally!) on the banks of the Fraser here in Lillooet, this .6 acre property has more going on than many spreads three times its size. Sam and Johannes call the operation ‘Artemisia Farmstead’ (fun fact – did you know that Artemisia is part of the Latin name for sage brush?).

The property perches on a steep bank down to the river. To address any potential erosion issues and provide stability, Sam and Johannes are planting the bank in native species such as red twig dogwood and willow. This is an ongoing project, but so far seems to be doing the trick.

And while many of us might be content with growing, say, zucchini and tomatoes, these guys are always on the lookout for something a little more unique. Sam proudly showed us his impressive tobacco plants which he hopes to harvest and ferment as ceremonial tobacco.

That’s not to say they aren’t growing some garden regulars. Raised and traditional beds abound with zucchini, corn, tomatoes and an assortment of peppers and herbs.  What they don’t eat or sell, they feed to their large flock of chickens.

Speaking of chickens, this a spectacular flock! – heritage breeds offer gorgeous colours and a variety of sizes. You only have to hear Johannes speak about ‘the girls’ to know they are a particular passion for him. These birds enjoy an enviable living space within a large fenced ‘food forest’ of fruit and other trees. Sam and Johannes have set up some ingenious automated feed and watering systems, allowing for a somewhat less hands-on operation. All hens and just one diminutive rooster, this flock provides eggs aplenty.

The food forest. Lucky chickens!

If the chickens appear to hold a special place in Johannes’ heart, the apple of Sam’s eye is clearly his butter making. Looking to the niche of artisan butter, Sam gets cream from Blackwell Dairy in Kamloops, churns it into rich, creamy butter and makes it available for sale at the Farmers’ Market. To further this project, they have converted part of their basement to a dairy processing room and invested in a European butter churning machine. Thinking ‘but what about all the leftover buttermilk?’ – not a problem – apparently there are usually takers, but if not, it turns out that chickens love it.

So, ya – LOTS going on at Artemisia Farmstead. It was inspiring to see how well-utilized the space is and what a diverse range of food Sam and Johannes are able to produce from this modest spot. And I doubt they’re through yet – I bet if we were to visit again next season, we’d find a whole host of new and unique additions to this amazing little operation!

It was a treat to visit Artemisia Farmstead – our thanks go to Johannes and Sam for their gracious hosting. Don’t forget to visit them at the Lillooet Farmers’ Market and check out what they’re producing!

Seed Saving Workshop Video with Mojave Kaplan

Thank you to everyone that attended in person in the Lillooet Library as well as online for this event!

Seed Saving Workshop in Collaboration with Kanaka Bar Indian Band, FarmFolk CityFolk, the Lillooet Library Association and Lillooet Agriculture and Food Society

An in-person Introductory Seed Saving Workshop held in partnership between Lillooet Food Matters and the Kanaka Bar Indian Band. This workshop, which includes class and seed-cleaning time, is part of a longer on-line event organized by FarmFolk CityFolk: "From the Ground Up: Everything you need to Know about Seed Libraries" as well as Introductory and Intermediate Seed Saving.

Join us in person at the Lillooet REC Center at 10AM or join online on Zoom to watch the workshop live. https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83694885295?pwd=TmhZaEFDVWd1V2pmZ0cyclJOcTFBQT09 Passcode: 787778

Zoom link for the Q&A on Sunday, November 27th at 12 pm PT: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88356033370  

Please register for the event and receive the meeting passcode by contacting Ina at 250-256-0667.

Check out the following resources for learning about Seed Saving:

• Seed Savers Exchange - Seed Saving Guide, includes isolation distances, populations sizes for various crops 

• Organic Seed Alliance - Seed Saving Guide - 30 page booklet format

• Seed Storage Guide from Johnny’s

• Seed Ambassador’s Project Seed Saving Zine

• Seeds of Diversity Canada - How to Save Your Own Seeds Book

EARTH DAY Seed Swap & Bedding Plant Exchange April 22/22

We decided this year it was best to not hold a traditional Seedy Saturday in-person event but rather offer an outdoor experience in April to celebrate Earth Day!  A St'at'imc Elder and drumming ceremony will open the event. Local musicians will play throughout the day. Besides inviting people to bring seeds for the swap table, we encourage folks to start a few extra bedding plants and bring them to the event for swapping. The Community Seed Library will also be there, as well as seed cleaning equipment including the winnower.

In response to concerns about the preservation of biodiversity as well as the need for local food security and a resilient adaptation to climate change, we have invited St'at'imc-owned Split Rock Environmental to come and sell a diverse array of native plants (flowers, berries, ground cover, shrubs, and grasses). We also invited a number of local groups who share these concerns to bring their information tables. To simplify our efforts this year there will be no seed companies present for selling seeds nor the usual Seedy Saturday vendors (except for Split Rock).  We hope next year to return to something closer to the well-loved Seedy Saturday event again.

Let's celebrate EARTH DAY together!