Free seeds, workshops, activities on March 7
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News from Farm Hands - Nourish the Flathead
KALISPELL — Free the Seeds! returns to Flathead Valley Community College on Saturday, March 7, for a fifth year of interactive workshops, activities, seed sharing and more. Organizers expect more than 1,000 people to attend this free fair, which runs 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m. in the FVCC Arts & Technology Building.
This year’s event will offer:
— 24 educational workshops by local experts, including live demonstrations in starting and saving seeds, building a compost tumbler, cultivating mushrooms and brewing compost tea
— Kid-friendly, hands-on activities throughout the day
— 40+ booths where attendees can sample locally grown food, test compostable packaging, set up a square-foot garden box and more
— A seed swap with more than 10,000 packets of seeds available
— Panel discussions focused on recovering food waste, reducing plastic use, gleaning and limiting food and plastic waste at farmer’s markets
— OPI accreditation for K-12 teachers
— Food and beverages available for purchase
Free the Seeds! is an annual community-powered event focused on real seeds, real food and real skills. This year’s fair focuses on reducing and recovering waste to build a healthy community-based food system. Topics include composting, seed saving, gleaning, repurposing, recycling, and vermiculture.
Over the last four years, more than 5,600 people have attended this free daylong fair. Upward of 75,000 packets of non-GMO, open-pollinated seeds have been given away, with about half collected locally and packed by local volunteers. Collection boxes for locally saved seeds will be available ahead of the event at: ImagineIF libraries in Kalispell and Columbia Falls and at the Good Seed Company in Whitefish. Volunteers interested in joining seed-packing parties before the fair or helping at the event can sign up at: freetheseedsmontana.com.
Free the Seeds! is a program of the nonprofit Farm Hands – Nourish the Flathead and has a mission of building a sustainable and resilient future through real seeds, real food and real skills. Free the Seeds! can be found online at: freetheseedsmontana.com and on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
For more information, contact Gretchen Boyer at: gretchen@farmhandsnourish.org or 406-261-5569.
Free the Seeds! is a program of Farm Hands – Nourish the Flathead, a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
