Head of the Heritage Seed Library Catrina Fenton reveals news of an exciting Heritage Lottery funded community seed search project kicking off this month

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We need your help to find, conserve and share heritage seeds in the Midlands – to safeguard precious community varieties for the future.

We’re excited to launch a unique two-year project - ‘Sowing your Seeds: Heritage Crops for a Resilient Future’ – funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, to conserve and pass on heirloom vegetable seeds in central England communities.

“With an increasingly unpredictable climate and the loss of both wild and cultivated biodiversity, this important project will help us share knowledge of local and heirloom crops growing in vegetable plots across the Midlands,” says Catrina Fenton, head of the Heritage Seed Library.

“We’d like to learn more about under-represented plants that are thriving locally, as well as finding out and sharing the stories of the people behind them, including their culinary and cultural significance.”

Celebrating its 50th year in summer 2025, the Heritage Seed Library has pioneered the conservation of heritage and heirloom seeds with its 800-plus National Collection, with seed shared with members to grow and enjoy.

We’re incredibly grateful to the National Lottery Heritage Fund and players of National Lottery for making this project possible. The National Lottery Heritage Fund is the largest funder for the UK’s heritage, using money raised by National Lottery players to support projects that connect people and communities to heritage across the UK.

Do you have a local variety you think we should know about? Or would you like to find out more about how to get involved? Please get in touch via our short online survey. And follow #SeedSearch on our social media feeds @gardenorganicuk for more updates.

What do we mean by heritage seeds?

Catrina outlines what we’re looking for when it comes to heritage seeds and heirlooms

Heritage is a broad term, often interchangeable with heirloom (which is more commonly used in the US). When a seed is a ‘heritage seed’, it typically indicates it’s a local variety with connections to a particular person, place, culture or history.
Your vegetable seed may be a known historic variety, but it may also not be that old - and has simply been grown and saved for a long time and is not widely available or can no longer be bought in shops.
Or your interesting seed could be a newer, global crop that’s thriving locally. Over time individuals have developed crops for their special characteristics. These include those adapted to local growing conditions, and which reflect our rich diversity of communities that have made the UK their home.
Finally, your seed may be a family heirloom, given its name by the person who grew it or valued for its culinary use. This project hopes to find and represent the social, historical and cultural significance of these varieties for our communities now and into the future.

If you have healthy seed, you can spare for us - or help us track down - we would love to learn more. Please fill in our survey first so we can contact you to discuss.

Join the Heritage Seed Library

Join the movement to save heritage seeds and protect the future of food. Whether you’re planting your first garden or expanding your collection, your involvement makes all the difference.

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