Attend Montréal's virtual Seed Festival and go behind the scenes to meet our seed savers!

MONTRÉAL, Jan. 20, 2021  /CNW Telbec/ - Montréal Space for Life is proud to present the 21^st Seed Festival, organized by the urban farming network, Cultiver Montréal. This year, more than ever, Montréal Space for Life and Cultiver Montréal intend to valorise and promote seed savers from across Québec, as well as the province's plant heritage. The programming for the 2021 Seed Festival will be 100% virtual and will give you a behind-the-scenes look at our seed producers and a chance to order local seeds directly from their online boutiques.

Planning for this year's gardening season begins February 3, with the Montréal Seed Festival, where you'll be able to meet some 20 or so Québec seed savers as well as horticultural products and services providers. This virtual edition offers a program with enriching encounters and learning opportunities from the comfort of your home. Participants will be able to take part in an opening panel, two conferences introducing the diverse realities of our seed savers and the wonderful path from seed to plate, as well as seven question-and-answer sessions to exchange with experts and other enthusiasts, or simply to listen! Moreover, the public will be able to consult a map locating the participating seed companies and horticultural service and product providers on the territory in order to obtain the products of their choice. This map will be available online and easily accessible on Cultiver Montréal's website.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

• Click on the link bit.ly/FêteDesSemences to get access to all the virtual event links.
• The programming is free (except for the training session mentioned below).
• All transactions for seed and gardening product purchases will be done solely on exhibitors' official websites, which can be reached through cultivermontreal.ca/la-fete-des-semences
• Consult the map of seed companies and horticultural service and product providers on cultivermontreal.ca/la-fete-des-semences

FREE PROGRAMMING (In French)
Find all the connection links here: bit.ly/FêteDesSemences

Wednesday, February 3
Opening panel: Behind the scenes of local seed production and promotion
7 to 8:30 p.m. | With Jean-Nick Trudel of the Association des marchés publics du Québec, Isabelle Paquin of the Jardin botanique de Montréal and Jane Rabinowicz of SeedChange.

Thursday, February 4
Q&A Session
6 to 7:30 p.m. | Discussion space: come and meet Daniel Brisebois of the Tourne-Sol Cooperative Farm, Manish Kushwaha of Gaia Organic Seeds and Mélanie Chapleau of Jardins de la Gaillarde Organic Seeds.

Friday, February 5
Q&A Session
6 to 7:30 p.m. | Discussion space: come and meet Catherine Sylvain and Isaac Veilleux of Potager ornamental de Catherine, Audrey Fontaine of Jardins La brouette and Olivier Légaré of Les semences du batteux.

Saturday, February 6
Q&A Sessions
10 to 11:30 a.m. | Discussion space: come and meet Catherine Gagnon-Mackay and Yves Gagnon of Semences du Portage, Ariane B. Louis-Seize and Roby Gobeil of Jardin les vie-la-joie and Jean-Philippe Alie of Les fraises alpines l'Ouvre-Coeur.

1 to 2:30 p.m. | Discussion space: come and meet Kélanie Chapdelaine Lavoie of Les Jardins Féconds de Kélanie, Catherine Wallenburg of Northern Seeds and Jean-François Lévêque of Jardins de l'écoumène.

3 to 4:30 p.m. | Discussion space: come and meet Trevor Manning of Urban Seedling, Geneviève Bessette of La shop agricole and Carole-Anne Lapierre of Ça Pousse!

Conference: Toward new Québec farm products, one seed at a time
7 to 8:30 p.m. | By Daniel Brisebois of Tourne-Sol Cooperative Farm.

Sunday, February 7
Q&A Sessions
10 to 11:30 a.m. | Discussion space: come and meet Clémence Ballet of Partage ta terre, Teprine Baldo of Semences le Noyau / Zombie Seeds and Patrice Fortier of La Société des plantes.

1 to 2:30 p.m. | Discussion space: come and meet Martin Boisvert of Néo-Terra, Geoffroy Renaud-Grignon of Champignons Maison and Francis Cardinal of My Space for Life Garden.

Conference: Being a seed producer in a northern environment: the case of Jardins de l'écoumène
7 to 8:30 p.m. | By Jean-François Lévêque of Jardins de l'Écoumène.

FEE-BASED WORKSHOP

Thursday, February 4
Workshop: Organic Seeds and Adapted Varieties: Vegetable Sector
10 a.m. to 3 p.m. | Training session for experienced gardeners given by SeedChange.
Admission: 38,15$
Buy your tickets by following this link: https://bit.ly/3se3voJ 

About us

The origins
We're very proud to note that this event is being held thanks to the efforts of Montréal's urban farming movement. Founded by the organizations Action communiterre and the Depot Community Food Centre in 2000 and subsequently sponsored by the solidarity organization Alternatives in 2017, the event is now in the hands of the urban farming network, Cultiver Montréal.

Sponsors
We would like to acknowledge the generosity of our Gold sponsors, the Association des Marchés Publics du Québec (AMPQ), Ferme coopérative Tournesol and Les Jardins de l'Écoumène.

Cultiver Montréal is Greater Montréal's multisector urban farming network. Acting as a bridge between its members, the main political institutions and Montrealers, Cultiver Montréal is focusing its efforts on developing a sustainable, resilient, nurturing city.

Espace pour la vie is made up of four attractions on the same site: the Biodôme, Insectarium, Jardin botanique and Planétarium Rio Tinto Alcan. These four prestigious municipal institutions form Canada's largest natural science museum complex. Together, they are launching a daring, creative urban movement, encouraging all of us to rethink the connection between humankind and nature and cultivate a new way of living.

@EspacePourLaVie @CultiverMontreal #SeedyWeekend

SOURCE Espace pour la vie