Yesterday, Mel at Edible Things shared a clever idea for connecting food bloggers and readers: sending a thoughtful parcel through the mail every month. I re-tweeted that idea to the US and UK Foodie Penpals communities and soon began a conversation with Mel and Karen from Samphire Shop. Karen suggested adapting the concept for seeds, which felt like a perfect fit. This post explains the idea, how the original Foodie Penpals scheme works, and how Seedy Penpals will run.
How the Foodie Penpals scheme works
The Foodie Penpals model that inspired this project is simple and friendly. Here’s the basic format:
- Anyone interested signs up via a contact form hosted by the scheme organiser.
- Participants are matched in a one-way chain rather than a direct swap: penpal A sends to penpal B, penpal B sends to penpal C, and so on.
- Parcels are food-themed and put together with care. Boxes often include home-baked or locally sourced treats, unusual shop finds, and personal touches. The original Foodie scheme suggested a price limit for items to keep participation accessible.
- Recipients open their packages, enjoy the contents, and share the experience.
- At the end of the month, participants who blog write about their parcel, and those who don’t blog can contribute a guest post or a short write-up. Posts are then shared on the host blog so everyone can read and celebrate the exchanges.
What Seedy Penpals aims to do
Seedy Penpals adapts the same warm, community-focused format for seeds instead of food. The idea is to encourage gardeners, seed savers, and curious beginners to share surplus seeds—whether they are favourite commercial varieties, rare heirlooms, or carefully saved home seeds. Sharing seeds is a low-cost, sustainable way to discover new plants, preserve genetic diversity, and build friendships across regions.
Participants will send a small, well-packaged parcel of seeds to their assigned penpal each month. Boxes might include a selection of seed packets, short notes about cultivation tips and history, labelled envelopes, and suggestions for companion planting or saving seed. The emphasis is on thoughtful curation rather than value, so parcels remain friendly and accessible to gardeners of all levels.
Benefits of joining Seedy Penpals
- Discover new and unusual varieties that you might not find locally.
- Share heirloom and home-saved seeds, helping to preserve interesting genetics.
- Learn practical tips from other gardeners about growing conditions, sowing times, and seed saving.
- Make new connections with people who share a love of plants, biodiversity, and home growing.
- Encourage sustainable and ethical seed exchange practices by promoting clear labelling and honest provenance.
Participation and practical notes
Seedy Penpals will begin by gauging interest and collecting feedback about how people would like the scheme to be organised—frequency, matching rules, packaging suggestions, and any regional considerations. Once a good number of participants register, organisers will publish clear guidelines covering seed safety, labelling, and any postal restrictions to ensure a smooth and responsible exchange.
To keep things simple and enjoyable, the scheme follows the principle of one-way matching rather than direct swaps. That means each participant prepares one parcel and sends it to the person they have been assigned to, and they will receive a parcel from someone else in the chain. This model reduces the complexity of matching and helps the project scale smoothly.
Updates
UPDATE 9th July 2012:
The initial survey has now closed. We received a great response—thank you to everyone who took part, shared the survey, or helped spread the word. Mel and I will review the feedback and work out the next steps. I will post more information soon about how Seedy Penpals will operate.
UPDATE 11th July 2012:
Mel and I discussed the feedback in detail and agreed this is a project worth pursuing. We have started developing the structure and guidelines for Seedy Penpals and will provide a clear sign-up and information process as soon as it is ready.
UPDATE 25th July 2012 – Time to launch
Seedy Penpals is now ready to go. Let’s get Seedy!
If you love seeds, gardening, and the idea of discovering new varieties while meeting like-minded people, Seedy Penpals offers a friendly, low-pressure way to join a community exchange. Look out for the official sign-up details and guidelines, which will explain how matches are made, how to package and label seeds responsibly, and how to share your experience afterward. We hope Seedy Penpals will become a regular, joyful part of the seed-saving calendar for many gardeners.