True Harvest Seeds

True Harvest Seeds

36 Ardglass Road
Kilclief
Downpatrick
BT30 7NS
United Kingdom

Opening Hours

Monday to Friday 9.30 to 5pm

Our team at True Harvest Seeds' mission is to save the indigenous wild flowers, shrubs and trees of the island of Ireland. We identified a problem on our island caused by importation of foreign plants of native species. As a geographical unit, we have a unique flora, adapted and fine tuned to our climate by c.14,000 years of isolation. Genetically our flora is being eroded by unregulated imports protected by free trade laws and the subsequent inter-pollination between natives and imports. Bees pay no heed to the differences. We began in 2014 by promoting the use of native-ORIGIN plant material. Our audiences were asking, where can we get native-origin seeds or plants from? Good question. From our many generous land owners' donor sites we make collections and put them to use to: 1. Preserve 10,000 seeds with associated material and data in True Harvest Seeds' seed bank using the ENSCONET protocols, same procedures and similar equipment as many other world class seed banks. 2. This is a Seed Bank so seeds are available for withdrawal by bona fide individuals and organisations who can demonstrate they are able to grow the seeds successfully for their restoration or research projects. 3. We sow seeds and harvest the progeny to make the seeds and plants available to the general public for sale, which makes True Harvest Seeds more self sustaining.

We are:

1. Creating and populating a seed bank with scientifically made, high quality collections.
2. Creating a supply of seeds available via an online shop to the general public (launch date 6th August 2019) of Ireland of native-origin wild flower, shrubs and tree seeds, by growing them at our Seed Centre in Co Down.
3. Creating a supply of potted flowers, shrubs and trees in our nursery at the Seed Centre for sale.

We have a keen interest in volunteer development. We have a volunteer house with three bedrooms and welcome both live-in and local volunteers who want to see the Seed Bank grow to house every species in Ireland. We have trained volunteers around the country who can make the seed collections on their own and send them into the Seed Bank.

It is one of our aims that our volunteers benefit from the training and social inclusion that arises from this mission. It will take many years to complete the work and when the time comes for the current leaders to retire we hope to find the new leaders within those who already know and love the mission.

 

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More Information

Type of Organisation

VCSE

Acronym

True Harvest Seeds

Company Number

NI621885

NI Charity Number

NI100201

Team

  • Debbie Gillies