Master Gardeners host Houseplant and Seed Swap

Despite the long winter, warmer weather will come eventually, and many Sweetwater County residents are already looking forward to starting their gardens, or at least continuing to care for indoor plants. To help with this, the Sweetwater County Master Gardeners are hosting their annual Houseplant and Seed Swap this weekend. 

The Sweetwater County Master Gardeners are an extension of the University of Wyoming Master Gardeners. Their goal is to promote effective horticultural practices in Sweetwater County by sharing research-based information and helping answer people's questions. 

The plant swap is one of the Master Gardener's main events, and it has been going for the past 10 years.

"It's kind of evolved," Amanda Romero, the Extension Coordinator, said of the event. 

She explained that when it first started, the seed swap was a small and informal affair, often involving just setting up a table in the parking lot at Western Wyoming Community College and having people meet to share seeds. 

"It's definitely grown every year," Romero said. 

Last year, almost 90 people showed up for the Houseplant and Seed Swap. The event is now hosted at one of the local libraries, and has also grown beyond simple seed sharing. While there is a table full of seed packets for people to take, the event also involves people bringing their own plants to exchange or give away to whoever wants them. 

"Some people bring in exotic plants, it's really interesting," Romero said, pointing out some of the plants or cuttings can be hard to find elsewhere. "I've gotten some really cool plants from other people."  

Some people may bring houseplants to get rid of since they have too many, extra seeds they bought for their garden and didn't use, or cuttings they've made from plants. 

"We have several master gardeners that grow things for this event, just to give away," Romero added, saying this can be indoor or outdoor plants, including tomato plant starts. 

One of the benefits of the plant swap is providing free plants to beginning growers who may be concerned about spending money on a plant just to have it die. Additionally, the Master Gardeners at the event are there to help people take care of the plants they already have. Last year they even helped someone prune and repot one of their plants. One of the other main benefits of the event is having master gardeners on hand to share resources and information. 

When it comes to gardening, "we have lots of challenges in Wyoming," Romero admitted. Facing things like poor dirt and a shortened growing season, gardeners in Wyoming need to know how to adapt. Romero said the master gardeners can help people learn things like what to plant where, how to care for certain plants, and tips for lengthening the growing season. 

For Romero, the main benefit of the event is being able to share knowledge, and she enjoys spreading the joy of gardening to others. 

"We've given plants out to kids, so then they get to watch that plant grow," she said. 

Those who wish to attend the plant swap are encouraged to bring supplies including any plants and seeds they want to swap, paper towels and zip baggies to keep exposed roots wet, boxes or bags to protect plants from the cold weather while transporting them, something to lay out in the car to protect it from getting dirty while transporting plants, and a way to write down notes on plantcare or contact information for people from the event. 

This year's Houseplant and Seed Swap will take place from 12 - 5 p.m. this Saturday, April 8, at the Rock Springs Library in the Ferrero Room. The event is free and everyone is welcome to attend, even if they don't have plants and seeds to share.