Discover the best practices for wild seed saving of native plants. While many seeds are available from commercial suppliers, preserving seeds of the plants around you helps promote wild, local ecotype varieties over cultivated hybrids, which often have lower-quality nectar and pollen content. We’ll dive into why the practice of seed saving, which dates back 1,000 years in human history, is so important. Learn how planting locally collected seeds can enhance native plant communities in your backyard and the wildlife these habitats support.

Saving and cultivating your own seeds is easy to do, but knowing what kinds of seeds to save, what they look like, when to harvest them, how to process and prepare them for storage is crucial to ensure successful germination. You’ll leave this class with the resources and knowledge to save seeds next growing season.

Presenters:

Donna Miller, UNH Extension Advanced Master Gardener

Stacey Scaccia, UNH Extension Master Gardener

For event details and registration link along with the full 2026 monthly garden workshop schedule visit: https://extension.unh.edu/event/2025/02/2026-master-gardener-demonstration-garden-workshops

This program is brought to you through an on-going partnership between New Hampshire Audubon and University of New Hampshire Extension’s Master Gardener Program. The Demonstration Gardens at NH Audubon’s Massabesic Center provide a place for sharing best practices in eco-friendly home and community gardening, which enhance human health and well-being and wildlife habitat.