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1 1 | Friday, M ay 5, 2 0 1 7 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | w w w .insideH A LT O N .com OPL introduces C U T YO U R ENERGY Seed Library CO STS N O W ! H IG H E F F I C I E N C Y W IN D O W S & D O O R S ast week, Oakville Public Library (OPL) launched a new and exciting `green' collection -- the OPL Seed Library. Currently housed at the Clearview Branch, the OPL Seed Library offers a wide selection of organic seeds that customers can borrow to plant and grow in their own backyards. With planting season upon us, those looking to start or enhance their gar dens will benefit from the opportunity to borrow from the Seed Library, completely free of charge. Once their plants have matured, bor rowers will harvest their plant' s seeds and return them back to the library, al lowing more customers to partake in and experience the pleasures of gardening. The Seed Library carries seeds for a variety of plants, including eggplant, squash, lettuce, tomatoes, and lav ender. Through returns and donations, the collection will continue to grow to hold more seeds, including seeds for plants not current ly in the collection. "This new library ini tiative acts as a commu nity project that promotes healthy and sustainable liv ing, as well as encourages a culture of sharing," says Lisa Williams, Manager - Col lections. "It' s a great way to bring our community closer together." The Seed Library was es tablished from a very gener ous donation made by avid OPL supporter, Richard and Barbara Birkett. Mr. Birkett has been a long-time donor, was a former board mem ber, and has volunteered with the library over the past 35 years. "Throughout the ages, planting a garden has always been one of life' s greatest pleasures," says Mr. Birkett. "Growing plants from seeds takes one to a new level of delight." Chicago-based company, Ball Seed, also contributed to the OPL Seed Library by graciously donating the first installment of seeds. Customers are excited about this new collection and have already started to take advantage by borrow ing seeds. In less than one week, the library had to re stock seeds for lavender, ba sil, and tomato. In the near future, the OPL Seed Library will make its way into other library branches. The library' s Woodside Branch will be the next location to receive a collection, which will launch on May 8, 2017. In an attempt to expand the current selection, the li brary is also accepting seed donations. Those who are interested in contributing to the Seed Library' s collection can donate open-pollinated and heirloom seeds by drop ping them off at the Clearview Branch. To avoid cross-pollination and the creation of invasive plants, OPL cannot accept hybrid seeds. If you are in terested in donating seeds from your own garden but are unsure of their type, we encourage you to visit your local greenhouse or garden store for more information. The OPL Seed Library is a very exciting initiative that we are proud to share with the Oakville community. We encourage our partici pants to share the story of their experience with us by sending updates and photos to oplreference@oakville.ca. -- submitted by the Oakville Public Library FR EE U p g ra d e to Triple Glass * * Sale En d s M a y 2 6 ,2 0 1 7