Bee City Seedy Saturday
Date: Saturday, March 9
Time: 10 a.m. to noon
Location: rare ECO Centre and Slit Barn, 768 Blair Road, Cambridge
Need Transportation? Take Grand River Transit, Route #57 Blair and get off at the Blair / Old Mill stop. Walk the short distance (90 metres) to rare’s main office at 1679 Blair Rd. A free Langs shuttle service will take you from 1679 Blair Rd to Bee City Seedy Saturday (2.2km) between 9:45am and 11:30am. Return shuttles to 1679 Blair Rd will run at 11am and 12 noon.
This is a free event combining Seedy Saturday, the Bee City Cambridge Annual Expo and the 2024 season launch of One Seed, One Community!
For Seedy Saturday, everyone is welcome to share and exchange seeds! You’ll meet fellow gardeners and find exciting seed varieties that other seed savers are sharing. We encourage attendance whether you are a first-time gardener or a seasoned expert. Please bring small, well-marked packets of vegetable, herb, and native pollinator plant seeds. If you don’t have any seeds to contribute to the exchange, come anyway! Some people will simply share their seeds and the interesting stories that come with them. If you have lots of seeds to share, please consider a seed donation to the food bank garden project at rare as well as the Seed Libraries at Idea Exchange Preston and the Cambridge Food Bank.
At the Bee City Cambridge Expo, see what your community has been doing to protect its pollinators. Visit the displays from the organizations in Cambridge. Learn the facts oabout pollinator ecology, how our gardeners have embraced the pollinator challenge, and how you too can create pollinator habitats!
Finally, One Seed, One Community Cambridge (OSOC Cambridge) is an initiative that unites the Cambridge and North Dumfries community in the shared experience of growing nutritious food and saving seeds. Created by four local organizations: Cambridge Food Bank, rare Charitable Research Reserve, Seeds of Diversity, and Idea Exchange, OSOC Cambridge is an annual program that offers free seeds, community connections, and the experience of growing and sharing food. Each year a new seed variety is selected by OSOC Cambridge. We are excited to reveal the OSOC Cambridge seed variety at Seedy Saturday and you will be able to take home a free packet of the seed of the year!
Music will be provided by Tea For Three: Tea For Three consists of Paul Morris, Gwen Potter & Brad McEwen. The repertoire is traditional folk music, mostly from England, but with lots of tunes from France, Belgium, Scotland, Canada, Scandinavia & anywhere else as long as they like it & it fits. Paul plays a melodeon (button accordion) Gwen plays a viola d’amore (5 string violin with sympathetic strings) Brad plays a cittern (10 string mandola on steroids). In various bands they have performed at folk festivals & events all across Ontario and in the UK. Brad was the founder of the Mill Race Festival of Traditional Folk Music and directed it for its 26 year run. Gwen was Secretary and Paul was an avid participant every single year.
Who’s Attending?
Bee City Cambridge is a designation that acknowledges Cambridge for setting an example that inspires residents with the knowledge that they all have a role to play in protecting pollinators. Made up of various community partners, the Cambridge Bee City Committee has been dedicated to pollinator education, habitat creation, and project monitoring for almost two decades. Visit the booths of these community partners to hear about their pollinator friendly stories. There will be plenty to see and do for the whole family.
Cambridge Butterfly Conservatory: The Cambridge Butterfly Conservatory is a local educational attraction that is dedicated to the preservation and enhancement of our natural environment. We are involved in several initiatives to promote habitat conservation. We aim to show visitors how you can create pollinator habitat that will attract and support our local pollinators and other beneficial insects.
Cambridge Food Bank: With the vision of a compassionate, equitable community where everyone is nourished, the Cambridge Food Bank is working to build health and belonging through food. We are informed by our values of healthy people, connected community, and environmental sustainability. Pollinators are pillars to this work! By supporting local ecological farmers, creating participatory educational opportunities about pollinators and food systems, and supporting pollinator work in our partner gardens, pollinators and people thrive.
Cambridge Pollinator Preserve: The Cambridge Pollinator Preserve is a volunteer project dedicated solely to pollinator protection. Creation of the region’s oldest pollinator habitat was a joint venture of the Ancient Mariner Canoe Club and the City of Cambridge. The on-site Education Centre has raised awareness of the importance of insect pollinators in the region since 2012. The site also provides a field demonstration of sustainable pollinator habitat creation.
Cambridge RIVERS’ EDGE Gardeners: Encouraging pollinators and nature, Cambridge RIVERS’ EDGE Gardeners offer weekly garden walks as well as running Mr. McGregor’s Garden Camp, the April 27th Tea Time event, Homes for the Holidays Christmas Tour, as well as other presentations, newsletters, photo albums and workshops. Chat with them to learn about new plants for your garden that can help pollinators thrive.
Garden Hespeler: The aim of the Hespeler Horticultural Society (Garden Hespeler) is to educate people who share a love for gardening. Their gatherings include guest speakers, workshops, plant sales, and field trips, and their members maintain a civic flowerbed at Bergey Hill. Garden Hespeler recognizes the importance of insect pollinators to our gardens and food supply, and is taking steps to promote their protection.
Idea Exchange Preston: Idea Exchange (Preston) is more than just a public library. It is committed to serving the community’s needs in many ways. As a part of Bee City, Idea Exchange is committed to providing resources to support pollinators. You can find books, events, seeds, and workshops and more to help you support pollinators, too.
Preston Horticulture Society: The Preston Horticulture Society is a group of people who enjoy all aspects of gardening. We have speakers and activities during the fall, winter and spring, while in summer we maintain Gore Park (King Street and Concession Road). Over the last few years we have added native shrubs and flowers to encourage pollination. This helps the vegetables we are now growing for the Cambridge Food Bank.
Reep Green Solutions: Reep Green Solutions is an environmental charity that helps you live sustainably. Our programs help you to take on climate change by taking actions to improve your home energy efficiency, plant trees and maintain healthy yards, water conservation and waste reduction. We hold native plant sales in the spring and fall and offer a full service Backyard Tree Planting program.
