We’ll be co-hosting this year’s native plant swap in the Montgomery College Food Forest, organized by Silver Spring/Takoma Park Mutual Aid’s community garden group and Climate Action Coffee.

When: 1pm to 3pm on May 9th

Where: Montgomery College Food Forest, Chicago Ave and Philadelphia Ave, Silver Spring, MD, 20910

RSVP: Optional, at this RSVP Link

Let’s support each other in growing our gardens and spreading the native plant love! Join us Saturday, May 9, for a native plat and seed share at the Food Forest at 7719 Chicago Ave in Takoma Park, MD.

This plant and seed share is for native plants or nativars only – not veggies, houseplants, or non-natives. Some people prefer straight species only, so please clearly identify if it’s a nativar (see below) instead of a straight species native. When in doubt whether a plant is native to our area, check the website of Maryland Biodiversity Project.

All are welcome; we know that gardeners who are at the beginning of their native plant journeys may not have as much to share. Bring what you can – even if that means bringing nothing – and know that we’re very happy to have you there! That said, this event owes its success to the contributions of all of the native gardening community. If you are in a position to contribute plants or seeds, please share as much as you can.

This event will occur rain or shine, but if it’s raining we may retreat into the native plant courtyard just behind the food forest, which has some overhead coverage.

BRING TO SHARE:
– Native plants: bare-root or in new potting soil 
– Native plant seeds
– Gardening supplies: pots, etc.
– Winter-sowing supplies: clear gallon milk/juice jugs, clear take-out containers, seedling trays, etc.
– Low-edge boxes, large yogurt containers, or other supplies for helping folks bring their plants home
– Small paper envelopes for folks to bring seeds home in

PLANT SAFETY:
– Avoid the spread of invasive species like the jumping worm by only sharing bare-root plants or plants in newly purchased soil. Before leaving your home, gently shake all the dirt out of the roots at the site where you dug up the plant. Soak in water to get the last of the soil off. Then transfer to fresh potting soil or fresh water to keep roots moist during the plant share. 
– Label your seeds and plants with species and any other details (growing conditions, color, height, etc.), and clearly label nativars. We’ll have paper there for labels if you don’t have time to make them in advance. 

COVID SAFETY:
– Bring hand sanitizer. 
– If you have cold symptoms, please wear a mask. 
– If you have had contact with someone who has COVID, please sit out this event.

POTLUCK SNACKS/SWEETS:
– One of the things we love most about this plant share is the opportunity to make connections with other native plant enthusiasts. To encourage an atmosphere of building community connections, we invite you to bring a snack or dessert to share via potluck at this event!

VENUE:
– Food Forest at Montgomery College DTSS
7719 Chicago Ave, Takoma Park MD
– Transportation: on-street parking, bike station nearby, bus: P3, 17, 18. Metro: less than a mile from Silver Spring or Takoma stations
– We’ll be in the grassy area next to the food forest. Tables will be labeled by Sunny, Shady, and Tree – place what you’ve brought on the correct table and then feel free to browse! 
– Bathrooms and water fountain available inside the building behind us
– Help yourself to veggies/food from the food forest

DONATIONS OPTIONAL:
– This event is free! 
– However, we do have some costs associated with this event. If you have $1-2 to donate, it is optional but will be appreciated.  

CO-HOSTS:
– Climate Action Coffee, the Pollinator group. For more information or to get involved, please contact Ken Allen: kallen808@gmail.com. 
– Silver Spring/Takoma Park Mutual Aid, community garden group. Peruse this site (sstpmutualaid.wordpress.com) for more info, or check out @sstpmutualaid on instagram or bluesky

WHAT IS A NATIVAR?
A “nativar” is a cultivar derived from native parents and bred for a particular trait. If you bought a native plant that has a cutesy name in quotation marks after the Latin name, that’s a nativar. For example, Amsonia “Blue Ice” or Aster “Purple Dome”. Please label nativars as such (some people prefer only “straight species”/non-nativars). Please don’t bring cultivars with any non-native plant species.