Free the Seeds returns to FVCC
A flower blooms last year at Angie’s Greenhouse in this file photo.
Free the Seeds returns to Flathead Valley Community College on Saturday, March 4 for an eighth year of interactive workshops, activities, seed sharing and more. The organization that runs the event, Land to Hand MT, expects more than 1,000 people to attend this free fair, which runs 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the FVCC Arts and Technology Building. Our theme this year is Cultivating Community.
This year’s event will offer:
• 25 educational workshops by local experts, including live demonstrations in seed starting, saving seeds, beekeeping, backyard animals, and a community conversation about the future of Climate Smart Glacier Country.
• Four workshops will be taught in person as well as broadcast over Zoom. Registration links can be found at landtohandmt.org
• OPI accreditation for K-12 teachers
• Four of the workshops are catered towards kids ages 8 -12 and include cooking lessons, knife skills, and seed cleaning!
• 20-plus booths where attendees can learn about organizations and businesses that support our community food system, conserve our natural resources and promote sustainability.
• A seed swap with thousands of packets of seeds available.
• Question and Answer Sessions - with Alissa from Dirt Rich Compost, expert in home composting and soil ecology and Todd Uizilo from Two Bear Farm, expert in growing vegetables in the Flathead Valley and steward of sustainable farming practices.
• Food and beverages available for purchase from Azul Coffee and The Dancing Burro food truck.
Free the Seeds is an annual community-powered event focused on real seeds, real food and real skills. This year’s fair focuses on cultivating community through our local food system. Topics include herbal salves, soil health, floriculture, fermented food, clean energy alternatives, and permaculture.
Over the last seven years, more than 9,000 people have attended this free daylong fair.
Upward of 85,000 packets of non-GMO, open-pollinated seeds have been given away, with about two-thirds collected locally and packed by local volunteers.
Free the Seeds is a program of the nonprofit Land to Hand MT and has a mission of building a sustainable and resilient future through real seeds, real food, and real skills. To follow along with Free the Seeds related news, check out Land to Hand’s website and social media pages: landtohandmt.org, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.