iSchool Capstone

Heirloom Seed Catalog

Project tags:

archives & special collections

content & digital asset management

Project poster

The Kearsarge Seed Savers Group is a small group of farmers and gardeners in rural New Hampshire with an interest in preserving open pollinated seeds that are either rare or of local interest. Due to competition with hybrid varieties more suitable to long distance transport and disease resistance, more than 90% of the United States fruit and vegetable varieties have vanished. This group’s mission is to preserve heirloom varieties whilst also creating a Darwinian effect that increases production by saving seeds from the best plant and utilizing each generation. Although dedicated to the conservation of often long forgotten varieties, the group has struggled with organization and communication. The solution presented was the development of an Access database to serve as a dynamic catalog for the seed collection that monitors inventory levels for storage and distribution. This is connected to a website for means of communication via xml.

Project participants:

Stephen Augeri

MLIS