Each year High Mowing donates thousands of seed packets to schools, non-profits and community groups across the country--and this year was no exception, with a whopping 143,657 packets donated to over 600 different recipients! But where did they all go? What did those seeds become? Here are a few ways our donated seeds had powerful and far-reaching impacts this year...

Produce from the Garden at 285 Elm St. in Montpelier, VT, which received seed donations through VCGN
In Vermont we partner with the Vermont Community Garden Network, KidsGardening.org & Gardener's Supply to provide free seeds to garden groups all over the state. This year we sent them 7,875 seed packets which were distributed to:
  • 340+ low-income gardeners in Burlington, VT
  • 140 garden leaders at Grow It! workshops
  • 95 school & education sites
  • 45 migrant farmworker gardens
  • 20 community gardens
  • 16 childcare centers
  • 11 workplaces
  • 9 Gardens for Learning sites
  • 6 affordable housing sites
  • 2 food pantries
  • 1 senior center
  • 1 library
In addition to the many organizations we supported in Vermont and the 12,000+ packets we gave away via our Community Seed Bin, we also supported hundreds of organizations located across North America with our seed donations. Here are a few examples of the projects we supplied with seed this calendar year: Lexington Seed Library at Cary Memorial Library, Lexington, MA - 2500 packets "We have held seed starting, organic gardening and seed saving classes and workshops at our local community farm in support of the seed library. We also teach workshops on worm composting and the plant life cycle in our local public schools and in the children's room at the library. Additionally we helped create a new community garden for our public school community and used your seeds there." Veterans Homestead Project, Hesperus, CO - 200 packets "We provide agricultural training and a social gathering place for combat veterans suffering from PTSD or TBI. Homestead/farm skills support self sustainability, independence, self-worth, sense of purpose, possibility for reintegration to society, possible job training, fellowship, internship or simply a healing environment for combat veterans in Southwest Colorado."

Kingsborough Community College Urban Farm
Kingsborough Community College Urban Farm, Brooklyn, NY - 200 packets "Serving more than 15,000 degree and another 15,000 continuing education students every year, Kingsborough Community College (KCC) is dedicated to promoting educational and employment success for both traditional and non-traditional students. We broke ground on KCC Urban Farm in 2011, and have since become *the* place for community members and college students to explore their role in local and global food systems. Managed by students, faculty, and staff, our on-campus quarter-acre site includes approximately 7,000 square feet for cultivation and produces nearly 4,000 lbs. of produce annually. At KCC Urban Farm, our mission is to catalyze thought, dialogue and action around food system issues. The farm site, staff, harvests, and curriculum are available to students, faculty and staff as they study earth sciences, culinary arts, nutrition, sustainability, GMOs, food security, worker rights and other topics related to our food system. Instruction at the farm includes credit-bearing course integration, Continuing Education classes, job-training programs, campus workshops and farm tours tailored to support course objectives and learning outcomes distinctive for a range of academic pursuits. KCC Urban Farm is a hands-on lab where students practice and develop skills of informed inquiry and academic research in a vibrant and interactive setting." REM Hennepin, Minneapolis, MN - 400 packets "REM Hennepin, Inc. primarily serves individuals from Hennepin county who experience many forms of disability. Individuals receiving services by REM Hennepin may live with intellectual developmental disability (including autism spectrum disorder), brain injury, mental health issues, complex physical needs and neurological conditions. Staff are highly trained and dedicated to promoting community integration and independence. Our company provides seeds, soil, gardening boxes, etc. to our homes so clients can learn how to tend and grow flowers and vegetables." John P. Stevens High School, Edison, NJ - 400 packets "John P. Stevens High School is a registered Eco School with over 2,200 students located in Edison, New Jersey. We are continuing to find new ways to teach living-green practices. We seek to expand the understanding of “how children can make greener choices” by utilizing our greenhouse so that our students will learn the value of gardening for their own nourishment. Educating children about the importance of creating an environmentally clean and safe ecosystem is essential in today’s world. It is not just about telling students what can be done to make greener choices, it is about designing experiences to allow the students to actually make those choices. Our greenhouse and your seeds will provide a cross curricular opportunity to grow food that students will utilize in cooking classes, investigate in scientific studies, and proudly share with the community through a farm stand run by students. We plan to use seed saving techniques so that the greenhouse program will be sustainable for many years to come."

Soil Born Farms' Urban Farm at American River Ranch
Soil Born Farms, Sacramento, CA - 100 packets "Soil Born Farms is a nonprofit farm and education project in Sacramento which focuses on providing experiential learning opportunities for youths and adults with the primary goal of “Connecting Food, Health, and the Environment”. Soil Born Farms focuses on organic and sustainable food production on our own farm sites and by supporting/mentoring new farmers and gardeners, reconnecting people to their food—“seed to table”, and improving access to healthy food throughout our community with a specific focus on our most underserved populations. Our farm-based educational program directly involves about 2,500 K-12 students each year. A percentage of the food we grow on our farm site is donated to our youth program participants, senior centers, food closets, food banks and local events. The total number of people that come to our farms for tours, classes, farm stand, and public events is estimated at about 12,000 annually. Donated seeds will be used in our education program (students from schools throughout the Sacramento area, including many low income schools that get sponsored through our "Adopt-A-School" program) as well as distributed to residents and gardeners." Greater Lansing Food Bank, Lansing, MI - 80 pounds or so "Garden Project is a division of the Food Bank and provides community garden space for people to grow their own food to reduce food insecurity and increase their access to fresh healthy food.  We provide seeds, plants, tool lending, and educational materials to gardeners at more than 116 community gardens in the greater Lansing area. Our preliminary numbers for 2015 show that we helped 843 families grow their own food and we distributed more than 9,642 seed packets and 24,888 vegetable starts.  We just acquired some new greenhouse space, so we’ll be using donated seeds to grow more of our vegetable starts, relying less on donations from local nurseries. The Lansing Roots Farm (just started in 2013) is an incubator farm for people that want to start market gardening, but don’t have enough resources to start on their own. Many of these farmers are refugees, and seeds go to that program as well." Do you work with a school, non-profit or community organization with a garden or farm? Request a seed donation!