Happy New Year, everyone! It’s time to start thinking about this year’s garden.

Did you know that over 110 Seedy Saturday events were held in Canada last year? A Seedy Saturday is a non-profit grassroots event that provides an opportunity for gardeners, seed companies and nurseries to exchange seeds and ideas.

The 2014 Salt Spring Island Seedy Saturday will be held on Saturday, February 8th 3:00pm at the Farmers’ Institute on Salt Spring.

The main hall will be full of tables from seed suppliers, nurseries, local farms, community organizations and other garden-related product vendors. There will also be local food vendors offering their wares. The main attraction is the seed exchange, where you can swap and share regionally-adapted seeds and help ensure genetic diversity.

There will also be a roster of presentations from gardening experts. This year’s program includes workshops on pruning, soil health, seed saving, GE Free BC, and Salt Spring’s new Seed Library. There is also a film night on Friday Feb 7th on Sunday, Feb 9th from 10:00am, there will be a workshop with Daniel Brisebois and Rupert Adams on Integrating Seed Production into Market Gardens (advance registration requested, contact ssiseedysaturday@gmail.com).

This event is a great opportunity to get geared up for the start of the growing season, and get started on your seed shopping.

This year, the food program is again organizing a group of local residents to travel to Salt Spring together to take part in the event (Saturday only). We will boat over from Retreat Cove and then take a taxi to the venue, in time to arrive for the 10:00am start, and we’ll return after 3:00. Total cost for roundtrip transportation and event admission will be $24. If you’re interested, please contact Emma Davis at galianofoodprograms@gmail.com or at 539.2175

And don’t miss the Galiano Garden Club’s Annual Seed Exchange! Feb 12th, 2:00pm at the North Hall.