2026 Seedy Events - Another Season in the Books
It’s hard to believe that another incredible season of Seedy Saturdays & Seedy Sundays has come and gone. How many of you made it to an event (or two, or three)? We hope you all did, and most of you should have an event close by to you. These days, there are more than 180 events from coast to coast, and while that number fluctuates year-after-year, it seems to be trending upwards. This is great news for everybody!
What was one beautiful, lively event in Vancouver back in 1990 has blossomed into a real movement spearheaded by hundreds of organizers. To them - thank you!
To you, reading this and supporting seed sharing endeavours - thank you!
One of the most common misconceptions about Seedy Saturdays is that we, Seeds of Diversity, are responsible for making them happen. That is not true in the slightest! We never have, and probably never will, host a seedy event of our own. Each and every event that shows up on our Events page is coordinated by folks in that community. Many of them are members of ours, sure, but none are paid staff of ours, and plenty of them have no relation to us outside of accepting our modest support (more on that below).
This grassroots, boots-on-the-ground uniqueness of these events is part of what makes them so absolutely charming and beautiful to be at. Each one is a little bit, or a lot, different from the next. How the seed swap table is run, what speakers and vendors are invited to take part, the venue, the activities, and the experiences shared amongst attendees.
So, what exactly have we been up to during this busy Seedy event season? Here’s a look at some of the numbers, to tell the story of how we’ve kept busy:
182 events promoted on our events page and across social media
14 new events in 2026
4032 seed packets sent out to 168 events (comprised of at least 18 different varieties of seeds)
3 virtual planning sessions attended by 99 people
14 volunteers representing Seeds of Diversity at 25 events (plus 3 staff that attended 5 events)
67 Seeds of Diversity tables set up by event organizers
And we can’t forget about our amazing volunteer representatives who enliven our displays and seed swaps, and introduce gardeners all across Canada to Seeds of Diversity.
Athabasca AB - March 18
Winnipeg MB - March 7th
Photo credit: Laura Rawluk
Dunbar BC - February 28th
SEEDY SATURDAY A SUCCESS
By Allison Barnes, Dunbar Garden Club President
Our club goals of being dedicated to learning and promoting environmentally sustainable gardening practices while building connections among gardening enthusiasts of all skill levels led us to hosting a community seed swap on Saturday, Feb. 28. We reached out to club members, UBC Friends of the Garden, Master Gardeners and others via various social media groups, and seed donations poured in!
On the Friday morning, a very social group of 10 club volunteers sorted, organized and packaged the seeds ready for the event. Saturday morning we set up tables in the Community Centre lobby and hoped some people would show up! Oh they did ever – over 100 people, over the two hours! Many brought seeds from home to swap, others, either new to gardening or having stumbled across the event, were excited to be able take seeds home, due to the generosity of the gardening community. Club members, several of whom are Master Gardeners, were there to offer advice and answer gardening questions, of which there were many. This was our first ‘Seedy Saturday’ event. It will not be the last!
Squamish BC - March 7th
Our event was on March 7th 2026 at Howe Sound Secondary School, in Squamish, BC.
It ran from 10am to 2pm. We offered a presentation, in a side classroom, on how to start your garden from seeds, presented by Squamish CAN's School Farm Manager, and a seed saving presentation by David Catzel from FarmFolk CityFolk, who was had a table for FFCF outreach and to sell BC Eco Seed Coop seeds.
There was also Local Roots, the Squamish Gardeners group, the Native Bee Society of BC, the Sea to Sky Invasive Species Council, Mountainfarm Herbs, Dragonfly Seeds (from the Sunshine Coast), Two Sisters Farms, Squamish CAN had an outreach and education table, Salt Spring Seeds, the Squamish seed library, a seed swap and resources table (with Seeds of Diversity's outreach information), kids (and adults) activities, coffee, tea and snacks, as well as door prizes.
175 people attended and 18 kids took part in the scavenger hunt.
Shuswap BC - March 7th
Our Shuswap Seed Swap went well, thanks to more than 40 volunteers and lots of prepackaging of donated seeds over the winter.
We expanded our children's area and that was a big hit. We are also developing a seed cleaning demo area. This year we invited children to jump on pillow cases full of beans to shell them and had our pedal powered threshing machine (a work in progress) on display. Hopefully it will be up and working next year! We were glad to have several local seed and gardening related vendors. Three interesting and knowledgeable presenters were well received.
We live in an area where there is a growing interest in gardening and food security. I think one of our strengths is that our group is made up of enthusiastic, dependable people with a sense of humour and joy.
Aylmer, QC - February 28th
Calgary AB - March 21st
We had a total of 79 tables and 59 exhibitors registered, including our long standing caterer in the kitchen (I hope you were able to taste some of their treats), and a surprise bumblebee exhibitor. We had 24 volunteers to ensure the day ran smoothly. The seed exchange table was very busy all day. We had four speakers giving presentations in another room throughout the day.
We counted 1556 people coming through the doors over the duration of the day (down from 1923 in 2025). Mark your calendars for next year - we have reserved Saturday March 20, 2027 at the same location!
Thanks to everyone who took part in Seedy Saturdays and Sundays this year - organizers, volunteers, vendors, attendees. These gatherings matter to us, and we’re delighted to see year after year that they matter to all of you, too.
See you next season - happy growing!
Not yet a member?
An annual membership to Seeds of Diversity gives you access to our seed exchange, seed grow-out programs, and our online news.
We depend on donations to do our work.
Thank you for your support!
Stay in Touch!
