Seed Keeper project recognizes top school gardens

Palatine, Ill.– The 6th annual Seed Keeper Project will begin on Feb. 1. The purpose of the project is to recognize school gardens in all 50 states and bring attention to their use as a classroom. The project is the vision of the Seed Keeper Company executives Carol Niec and Kerrie Rosenthal of Palatine, Ill.

“We believe that school gardens are important on many levels. They serve as a wonderful tie to curriculum, encourage a love and respect of the outdoors and are essential in teaching children about good nutrition,” said Carol Niec.

The Seed Keeper Project added partner Seeds of the Month Club in 2014. Winning schools receive Seeds of the Month Club for one year from its owner Mike Podlesny. In 2016, winning schools will also receive a copy of Garden-pedia: An A-Z Guide To Gardening Terms by Maria Zampini and Pam Bennett, a donation made possible by the authors. Maria Zampini, Garden-pedia author and principle at Upshoot LLC noted, “We are proud to partner with The Seed Keeper Company and bring awareness to the school garden movement.”

How the Seed Keeper Project works:
•    Beginning February 1st, The Seed Keeper Company will post 10 States each week for 5 weeks in alphabetical order on its Facebook page The Seed Keeper Company. 
•    During the week social media followers are encouraged to nominate a K-12 school, any type of school, and post it on The Seed Keeper Company’s FB Page.
•    If there is no clear winner based on nominations, the Seed Keeper Company will draw a winner using random.org at the end of that week and announce them on our FB page. 
•    Each winning school garden will receive a Seed Keeper Home Farmer seed storage system, a certificate of recognition, Seeds of the Month Club for one year, and a copy of Garden-pedia by Maria Zampini and Pam Bennett.

The person(s) nominating the school garden will be mentioned in the letter accompanying the certificate.
The Seed Keeper Company was established in 2009. The company designs, develops and manufactures products to make gardening easier. The company’s cornerstone products, Seed Keepers, work as a seed pack file with helpful information on A to Z dividers and a kit of tools to assist in seed starting. The products are available nationwide and have been featured in print publications, digital publications and on television.