Join CCSL for some Earth Month awesomness. We’ll have Seed packet labeling , Seed Garden Guild Q and A, plus a pollinator garden proposal fueled by seeds and community. RSVP here to save a space: https://forms.gle/eHPrBjnrYSRygS1fA

Celebrate Earth Day at the Ramsey County Environmental Center as the facility marks one year of operations. Staff and partners will share information about items accepted at the center and what happens to them after they are dropped off. Attendees can enjoy story time, create their own upcycled craft and meet Murphy the Recycling Unicorn. Participants can sow native seeds to take them home to plant in their garden this summer. All are welcome to attend and enjoy refreshments for all or part of the day. See the schedule of events below. 

Parking

Parking, including handicap accessible spaces, will be available directly in front of and behind the building. Follow signs onsite. 

Schedule of events

All day – Tabling in the Exhibit Hall and refreshments. 

9 a.m. - Environmental Center Exhibit Hall Opens 

9:15 a.m. - 10 a.m. - Recycling 101 Presentation 

10 a.m. - 10:15 a.m. – Story Time with Murphy 

10:15 a.m. - 11 a.m. – Drop-In Upcycling Craft 

10:15 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. – Mini-Tour in Reuse Room 

11 a.m. - 11:15 a.m. – Story Time with Murphy 

11:15 a.m. - 12 p.m. – What happens to your items after they are dropped off? Learn from our Recycling and Reuse Partners 

12 p.m. - 2 p.m. – Plant it Forward: Grow a Pollinator Garden 

12:30 p.m. - 12:45 p.m. – Mini-Tour in Reuse Room 

12:45 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. – Recycling 101 Presentation 

1:45 p.m. - 2:15 p.m. – Food Scraps Recycling 101 Presentation 

2:15 p.m. - 3 p.m. – Drop-In Upcycling Craft 

2:45 p.m. to 3 p.m. – Final Mini-Tour in Reuse Room 

🌱 Seed Bee '26: Abundance for All

Sunday, April 12 | 9 AM–Noon | Saint Paul Tool Library 1010 Dale St. N., St. Paul, MN 55103

FREE. Family-friendly. Totally worth your Sunday morning.

Kick off your growing season right! Come dig into hands-on workshops, score free seeds, swap gear, and connect with your community — all before lunch.

Your morning includes:

• 🌿 Up to 5 free native plant seed packets from MN SEED Project, hyperlocally harvested

• 🪴 Start fruits, herbs and veggies using soil blocks & seed spirals (a game-changer for seedlings)

• 🔧 Tool repair demo from SPTL staff + a garden gear swap (tools, containers, seeds — bring & take!)

• 🎨 Community chalk mural making — help create something colorful and beautiful together!

• 🤝 A community connection space to share land, find neighbors, and grow something bigger together

• 🍎 A tasty welcome snack on arrival

🌼 Workshop Lineup

Garden Prep on the Cheap No-till, no problem. Learn how to build a thriving garden bed using repurposed materials and a little sweat equity. With Urban Roots Conservation Program Director, David Woods.

Rooted in the Garden: Mindfulness for Gardeners Slow down, tune in, and actually enjoy your garden. Explore touch, scent, movement, and nature-inspired practices that ground you while you grow. With Forest Bathing Guide Diana Erwin, MSW LICSW.

Edible Natives and Herbs for the Home Garden

Explore herbs and native plants that are both beautiful and edible. Learn how to weave them into your flower and vegetable gardens to create vibrant spaces that support pollinators and add fresh flavor to your kitchen. We’ll cover how to grow, harvest, and enjoy them in daily cooking.  With MN SEED Project Executive Director, Courtney Tchida.

🎟️ Spots are limited — RSVP now here:https://www.simpletix.com/e/spring-seed-bee-tickets-259207. Workshops are first-come, first-served at sign-in. 🙋 Want to help? Volunteer here: https://forms.gle/qCxgdmzc3XD38sVw5

Parking: Limited off-street parking south of the building; street parking available to the north.

Hosted by the Minnesota Tool Library in partnership with the Pollinator Pathways of Saint Paul coalition, and funded by the MN Board of Water & Soil Resources. This event is part of a collaborative grant bringing together Hamline Midway Coalition, Bee Line, District 10 Como Community Council, Saint Paullinators, Human Nature, TEST_PLOT, and The MN SEED Project.

https://www.simpletix.com/e/spring-seed-bee-tickets-259207 

It’s March and it’s time to talk about warm season crop that need an early indoor start like peppers, tomatoes and some herbs. We’ll have seeds to share and we’ll explore the tools that make for successful indoor seed starting on a budget. Please RSVP on this form so we can plan for supplies: https://forms.gle/n6znLs9m29bcccHU7

Register today! Space is Limited

It’s a seedy Saturday , get your hands in the dirt type event as we explore the best ways for starting seeds for garden abundance and making the most of our resources as we share with our growing community. Please bring a recycled jug like a water or milk jug to make a winter sown container and we’’ll have the supplies and seeds to try soil blocks and other methods. Please respond to the link below to save your spot soon:https://forms.gle/DGmiVW7aH6dqaugSA

It’s seed starting season and this gathering we’ll be sowing onions for indoor starting. Please bring a container or tray for your seed starting. We’ll have seed starting mix and 4 types of heirloom varieties to choose from. There’s only space for 15 so please RSVP on this form link: https://forms.gle/n6znLs9m29bcccHU7.

D10 and Saint Paul Parks and Recreation are hosting the annual Blizzard Breakfast! Enjoy a maker’s market, winter activities, art making , local organizations and a delicious hot breakfast from St. Timothy’s Lutheran and Como Park Lutheran churches. CCSL and MN SEED will be there with seeds to share and explore.

IJoin us for an epic seed trading session with your neighbors! Everyone is welcome from the newest and youngest of gardeners to experienced cultivators.  All seed types are welcome too:  native plants, herbs, vegetables, annual flowers, perennials, and more. 

Please review this link for registration & seed sharing guidelines, resources for labels, what seeds to share, and swapper mutual benefits. 

This is a FREE Pollinators Pathways event! Free parking is available in the E Lot and on-street additionally, Hamline University is easily accessible via the metro transit bus line.  Masks are welcome. We encourage all participants to consider the health of their neighbors as this is an indoor event.

The MN SEED Project is a MN SEED team led community effort centered on empowering people through seed education: collect, clean, save, swap, and grow native, local plants  from seed.  This swap is part of the Pollinator Pathways  of Saint Paul grant programming for 2026. Pollinator Pathways is a collaboration of Hamline Midway Coalition, Bee Line, District 10 Como Community Council, Saint Paullinators, Human Nature,  TEST_PLOT MN,  Xerces Society and MN SEED.

The Nokomis library is hosting a seed swap for National Seed Swap Day. Bring your labeled seeds to trade and meet seed keepers from the metro area.

Join us for a seedy evening meeting in community to learn more about preparing to share seeds with our neighbors whether at a seed swap, seed library or gifting. We’ll talk about what information should you share with your neighbors, how to package seeds, and the importance of seed stories and preserving our cultural relationships to seeds, seed sovereignty and biodiversity. Bring your seeds if you want to exchange. We’ll have snacks to keep you fueled and seeds to package and take home as well.

Calling all neighbors who have seeds to save from garden produce, zinnias, marigolds / other annuals, or native plant seed heads . Bring them to this seedy session and use CCSL tools and our collective wisdom to crush, shuck, sift and winnow your seeds to save for seasons to come. If you don’t have any seeds to bring you can practice on seeds donate by the community to be shared through the library in the coming season.

This is a family friendly event but kids under 15 should have an adult guide. Space is limited so please RSVP at this link to save your spot.

We’ll also have other resources on hand to show you ways to economically and sustainably store your seeds as well as other helpful information to fuel your growing seed collection for next season.

If you’ve checked seeds out from CCSL or nabbed a packet or two from a little free library collection or satellite location consider donating some of your garden grown seeds back to the library to expand the offerings and our dedication to a locally adapted self sustaining seed supply fueled by our growing community!

It’s the annual Como Harvest Festival where you can vote for your favorite pie, learn new skills from your neighbors that celebrate the season and tie us more closely to community, CCSL will have seeds to sprout on your counter top and seed saving tips for all of your late season harvesting. Yes you can save that tomato, pepper, pea, bean or zinnia to grow again next season! We’ll share how!

CCSL will have seeds for late season greens, root veggies and native plants to check out as well as seed saving demos for peppers and tomatoes. Ask us about joining the Seed Garden Guild or more about the Minnesota Native Plant of the Month in the Park Bugle.

CCSL and CPLC are again hosting Summer Garden Conversations at Como Park Lutheran Church. Join in for some garden fun with other neighbors as we share information on managing pest pressure, harvesting garden produce safely to share, what to grow to make the most of the shoulder season and when to plant it and saving seeds from some of our favorite fruits, flowers, herbs and veggies. This series is perfect if you are a member of Como Grow a Row or the CCSL Seed Garden Guild so sign up here as space is limited! Bring a fellow gardener too as it’s always more fun with friends!

Thank you to Evergreen Collective for hosting this drop in seed saving class 11-1 on Saturday July 26th. This will be an informal way to explore seed saving with some of our favorite veggies, flowers, and herbs. Bring a seed pod or dried seed head and lets get to the seedy gritty of saving seeds! For more information or to indicate your interest or attendance follow this link to the facebook event.

CCSL and CPLC are again hosting Summer Garden Conversations at Como Park Lutheran Church. Join in for some garden fun with other neighbors as we share information on managing pest pressure, harvesting garden produce safely to share, what to grow to make the most of the shoulder season and when to plant it and saving seeds from some of our favorite fruits, flowers, herbs and veggies. This series is perfect if you are a member of Como Grow a Row or the CCSL Seed Garden Guild so sign up here as space is limited! Bring a fellow gardener too as it’s always more fun with friends!

There will be lots of fun at the annual block party hosted by St. Timothy Lutheran Church! We’ll have seeds to share and in the spirit of libraries and books we’ll have a special make and take!

Find CCSL again at the Thursday Como Farmer’s Market at the corner of Hoyt and Hamline! Find seeds, sage garden information and more while shopping for veggies, Momos and other tasty treats at this small but oh so happening Farmer’s Market that’s part of the Saint Paul Farmer’s Markets specializing in locally grown and created goods! Thank you to Como Park Lutheran Church for hosting this market bringing local access to fresh locally grown food to our neighbors!

Thanks to our friends at the Saint Paul Farmers Markets and Como Park Lutheran Church the Como Park neighborhood has it’s first official Farmers Market this season. We are beyond excited to join in this weekly market once a month to share seeds, seed saving and timely garden fun starting this market. Come check out locally adapted seeds, sign up for the Zinnia Collective, Seed Garden Guild, and Como Grow a Row as well as make a custom prairie garden seed ball fueled by seeds from the MN SEED Project and Invenire Garden. We’ll also be accepting your garden grown seed and seed stories to add to the CCSL collection. Going forward find CCSL at the Farmer’s Market the first Thursday of the month through October 2025.

Come Stencil some storm drains and clean up around the south Como section of our neighborhood then gather for a community meal and lots of family fun at the Orchard Recreation Center. Como Community Seed Library and the MN SEED Project will be there sharing seeds and planting flowers for our winged friends. Take something home for the butterflies, moths, and birds.

Como Park Lutheran Church is hosting another Growing for Good event focussed on growing in community for everyone. This will be a family friendly free event with games, make and takes, giving garden tours, ask a master gardener table, Grow a Row signup and other ways to learn and share! Stay tuned for all the details!

Hey neighbors Como Park Lutheran Church is hosting their annual neighborhood food collection Sunday March 23. They make it really easy to drive up in their parking lot at Hamline and Hoyt and drop off your donations and they’ll have treats too! Check out the flyer below for more details!