Library Seed Bank

Founded in 2014 by Jeff Quattrone, Library Seed Bank (LSB) changed the dynamics of free and open access to seeds by the public when he brought the concept of seed libraries to the southern New Jersey area. Seed libraries are collections of open pollinated and heirloom seeds that are housed at public libraries, or any other public facing entity. The seed packages are available for free to the public. Distribution policy is determined the entity. Some libraries distribute their patrons only, other to the general public. A business distributes to public.

The goal of LSB is to connect the public to seed and agriculture history in NJ through seed libraries by bringing seeds back to the counties and state they originated in. The local seed libraries provide a permanent home for this through community based programs.

An example of this are the functionally extinct Jersey tomatoes that LSB has revived with community partners including the KIlle #7, the Burpee Sunnybrook Earliana, and the Garden State. In 2022, seeds for the Stokesdale, Valiant and Atlantic Prize were secured. The harvest awaits as of this writing.

Please visit the LSB’s Seed Libraries page for more information.

Propaganda

propaganda
[prop-uh-gan-duh]
noun
1. information, ideas, or rumors deliberately spread widely to help or harm a person, group, movement, institution

In 2017, Jeff’s first solo art art show, Growing the Food Sovereignty Revolution propaganda series, was the launch of Jeff combining his art with his activism. This series of propaganda posters are a homage to the Victory Garden series that the United States government produced during WWI and WWII that encouraged people to secure their own food to support the war efforts. As activists work to disengage people from the industrial food complex, which is about consolidation of food production and seed lines, this propaganda series addresses those issues, and expands the conversation about food sovereignty. Food sovereignty is the right of peoples to secure their own culturally appropriate food in a sustainable and just way. Access to nutritional food and clean water is a human right, and these posters support those rights.

Propaganda is usually associated with oppression, in this series, Jeff flips on that association, and uses it to empower people to connect and embrace their food sovereignty rights.

The start of it all. A retired blog about heirloom vegetables.

About Jeff

Jeff Quattrone is the Founder of Library Seed Bank, an artist by accident, and an activist, a NJ seed and a Jersey Tomato breeding historian by choice. Jeff strives to expand the conversation about preserving local food diversity through seed saving. Jeff also embraces propaganda to do so. Jeff created the Growing the Food Sovereignty Revolution propaganda poster series. Take a tour of this website to see his artwork and his creative work.