Article taken from stuff.co.nz
Virtually all New Zealand's vegetable seeds are imported, raising fears that new Government rules may restrict or delay imports and cause a vegetable shortage. New Zealand could face a vegetable shortage in coming months because of the Government's crackdown on seed imports. Flowers too might be in short supply as imported seeds get caught up in new rules and costs of testing mount. Carrots, lettuces, tomatoes, parsnips, and leek seeds could all be held up on the wharf awaiting testing for potential contamination. General manager of the New Zealand Grain and Seed Trade Association Thomas Chin is dismayed about the lack of consultation over new seed import rules. In some cases overseas seed growers might not even bother to send seeds because the testing regime might be too costly.
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At this stage of the development of the Nelson Seed Library we have several aspects that we are working on. Finding a home for our seed library is at the top of the list. We are fortunate to be able to confirm that we have been offered a space in the new building of the Tahunanui Community Center which should become available in July/August. We also had an email from the Nelson Libraries which may lead to us having a space in the public library as well.
Now that we have a home we need to decide on the logistics of storing and distributing the seed and other aspects of running a seed library. We are trying to source some storage containers for the seed and some furniture to store those in (shelf/cupboard/drawers/roll top desk/other). We need to network to some reliable gardeners who can help steward seed varieties and we are still seeking donations of seed. Another thing we are considering is running a crowdfunding campaign and applying for some grants to raise a small amount of capital to assist with the setup and initial running costs of the seed library. |