Borrow seeds from Mentor Public Library

You can borrow seeds for free from Mentor Public Library's seed library.

Did you know that you can borrow seeds from Mentor Public Library?

Gardeners—from the greenest sprouts to experienced green thumbs—can borrow heirloom and organic seeds from Mentor Library for free.

Here’s how it works. Anyone with a MPL card in good standing can check out seeds from the library for their own garden. The library’s collection already has more than 100 varieties of seed, including herbs, flowers, vegetables and fruit.

People can check out as many as 15 types of seed per year.

With the seed library, people check out the seeds from MPL’s collection, grow them into plants, save some of the seed and then, finally, return those seeds from the propagated plant.

If you're new to gardening, then you can also get some expert advice while you're at the library.

Master Gardener Susan Cowling will discuss seed starting at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 5, at our Main Branch.

She'll explain why and how you can start your own seeds for flowers and vegetables. Learn the proper containers, as well as lighting and watering techniques for growing strong, healthy plants.

The talk is free and open to the public. You can register for it on our website.

Learn how to can, pickle & preserve your harvest at Mentor Library

So you planted a beautiful garden. Maybe you even used seeds from our free seed library.

Now you've got tons of tomatoes, cucumbers, and sweet peppers; and you even managed to protect your lettuce from the deer.

What do you do? You can't possibly eat it all before it spoils.

How do you make the most of your bounty?

Well, actually, you have a bunch of options—canning, pickling, freezing, drying. If you know what you're doing, you can have fruit and vegetables all winter.

But what if you've never canned or pickled something before?

It's OK. We brought in an expert for you. Trained Master Food Preserver Judi Strauss will show you how to keep your fruits, vegetables and sauces fresh. Strauss runs The Charmed Kitchen and has shared her expertise on New Day Cleveland. She can help you too.

Strauss will lead a free program on preserving your harvest at 6:30 p.m. this Thursday, Sept. 27, at Mentor Public Library's Main Branch.

Her talk is open to everyone but registration is requested. You can sign up on Mentor Library's website or by calling 440-255-8811 ext. 241.

Speaking of the MPL's seed library, it's still stocked with herbs that people can grow on their windowsill and kitchen counter.

After all, the outdoor growing season may have tapered for the year, but herbs don't need a garden plot to grow.

Anyone with a MPL card in good standing can check out seeds from the library for their own garden. The library’s collection includes more than 100 varieties of seed, including herbs, flowers, vegetables and fruit.

People can check out as many as 15 types of seed per year.

So check out our seed library and see how your garden grows.

Learn how to save seeds & preserve herbs at Mentor Library

Did your garden grow more greenery than you know what to do with?

Learn how to preserve your herbs and save your seeds during a free presentation at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, July 28, at Mentor Library’s Main Branch.

Karen Kennedy from the local chapter of the Herb Society of America will explain how to preserve herbs for use at a later date, as well as how to dry seeds so they can be shared or planted later.

Mentor Public Library patrons can practice their seed-saving skills while using MPL’s seed library, which launched earlier this year.

With the seed library, gardeners can borrow heirloom and organic seeds from Mentor Library for free.

Here’s how it works: Anyone with a MPL card in good standing can check out seeds from the library for their own garden. The library’s collection includes more than 100 varieties of seed, including herbs, flowers, vegetables and fruit.

People can check out as many as 15 types of seed per year.

With the seed library, people check out the seeds from MPL’s collection, grow them into plants, save some of the seed and then, finally, return those seeds from the propagated plant.

For more information on either Kennedy’s talk or the seed library, call Mentor Library 440-255-8811 ext. 241.

Celebrate Earth Day with MPL & the City of Mentor

Going green is easier than you think. You don't have to live in a solar-powered earth berm to make a difference.

It can be as simple as sorting your recyclables, having a rain barrel or planting a backyard garden.

You can learn more fun and helpful ways to go green during the city of Mentor's Earth Day celebration from 3 to 7 p.m. on Friday, April 24, at Wildwood Cultural Center.

You can get free tree seedlings and build a rain barrel. There will be crafts and games for kids, as well.

And Mentor Public Library will be there with free vegetable, fruit, herb and flower seeds that you can check out from our Seed Library. You can also grab a gardening book or two from our Pop-Up Library.

And the whole shebang is free for you and your family, so come see us this Friday!

How Mentor Library celebrates spring in Lake County

Our Pop-Up Library will be popping up all over the place now that the weather's warmer.

Is it finally over? The subzero temperatures? The freezing wind? The snow? (So much snow.)

Is winter truly gone?

It must be because the sun is out, and some plants have even dared to bloom.

Here are some of our favorite things to do during springtime in Lake County:

1. Get planting

Maybe you're already a certifiable green thumb. Maybe you've never grown anything except dandelions. Either way, we're about to make gardening a little easier for you.

Mentor Library just launched a new seed library.

Here’s how it works. Anyone with a MPL card in good standing can check out seeds from the library for their own garden. The library’s collection already includes more than 100 varieties of seed, including herbs, flowers, vegetables and fruit.

People can check out as many as 15 types of seed per year.

2. Read outside

We are blessed with a plethora of lovely parks—city, county, state and even national parks.

There are few things we enjoy more than a good book in a beautiful place. Some of our favorite places to read outdoors include Wildwood Cultural Center & Park, Squire’s Castle, Mentor Beach Park, James A. Garfield National Historic Site, Eleanor Garfield Park and the Read House next door to our Main Branch.

Visit them sometime on a quiet afternoon or even during your lunch break. And if you need reading material, we can help.

3. Get out there
We're not blessed with a surfeit of sunshine in Northeast Ohio; so, when we get a little glimmer, we need to make the most of it.

That's why this spring and summer, you're going to see us all around the community. We'll be bringing our Pop-Up Library to parks, schools and other places all around Mentor and Mentor-on-the-Lake. Whenever you see it, feel free to grab a book or two.

The books are free to keep forever. You don't need to return them to the library. If you like, you can drop the book off in one of our Little Free Libraries when you're finished.

You'll also see our Flash Libraries during the city of Mentor's summer concert series and farmers markets, as well as Concord Community Days. So when you see us out there, feel free to say hello and (of course) get yourself or your kids something to read.

Skipper from the Lake County Captains checks out a book during one of  our Flash Libraries.

9 Tips for waking up your garden from the Master Gardeners

The snow is gone. The ground is thawing. We finally, finally can start working outside.

The Master Gardeners visited Mentor Library's Main Branch on Wednesday and offered several tips on how to properly wake your garden.

1. Walk your garden

Step one is to get out there. See what needs to be done. Pull early weeds, check for winter damage, and plan how you want to use your available space.

2. Dealing with winter damage

If one of your plants is leaning, it may not need to be staked. Nature has a way of righting itself. However, if staking is necessary, be gentle. For broken branches, prune back to the next branch or node. If any of your plants have been heaved by the frozen ground, replant them at ground level.

3. Clean up

Cut your ornamental grasses back to six to 12 inches; remove old leaves from your perennials, as well as any dead plant material; and cut back any overgrown plants.

4. Pruning

No matter how overgrown a plant is, don't prune off more than 25 percent of it. Remove old and broken branches first. (Once again, cut back to the next branch or node.) If a plant is very overgrown, you have need to prune it over multiple seasons.

5. Lawn care

Sew seed as soon as the soil is workable. You'll want to wait until there's adequate moisture and the soil is about 50 degrees F. By the way, don't apply any pre-emergent herbicides if you're seeding or reseeding your lawn. However, if you're not seeding, you'll want to apply your pre-emergent herbicide in early April.

6. Fertilizing your lawn

If you applied fertilizer in the fall, you only need one application in either late April or early May. If you didn't, then you'll want two applications: one in late April, one in late May. The Master Gardener recommends slow-release fertilizer.

7. Mowing your lawn

Only cut a third of the height from your lawn at any given time. Any more than that will damage the plants.

8. Chemicals and herbicides

Get a soil test before you add anything to your soil. They're inexpensive and profoundly helpful. Don't use any chemical you don't need. You're just poisoning your soil and wasting your money.

9. Planting

In spring, you'll want to plant your bulbs, as well as some of your annual, perennials and flowering trees. And, whenever and whatever you plant, make sure to follow package instructions.

For more tips, check out the Master Gardeners website or the Lake County OSU Extension Office page. For specific advice, call the Master Gardeners advice line between 9 and 11 a.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays: (440) 350-2582.

Finally, for all your green thumbs, Mentor Library launched a seed library on April 1.

Anyone with a MPL card in good standing can check out seeds from the library for their own garden. The library’s collection already includes more than 100 varieties of seed, including herbs, flowers, vegetables and fruit.

People can check out as many as 15 types of seed per year.

So let's get out there, and help Mentor grow.

Mentor Library helping community grow with seed library

Mentor Public Library is helping seed the community with its new seed library, which launches April 1.

Gardeners—from the greenest sprouts to experienced green thumbs—can borrow heirloom and organic seeds from Mentor Library for free.

Here’s how it works. Anyone with a MPL card in good standing can check out seeds from the library for their own garden. The library’s collection already includes more than 100 varieties of seed, including herbs, flowers, vegetables and fruit.

People can check out as many as 15 types of seed per year.

With the seed library, people check out the seeds from MPL’s collection, grow them into plants, save some of the seed and then, finally, return those seeds from the propagated plant.

Mentor Library is also hosting a series of botanical programs in April to get people thinking green.

At 2 p.m. on Wednesday, April 1, at MPL’s Main Branch, the Master Gardeners will give a primer on how to properly wake a garden. They will discuss cleanup, composting, pruning, fertilizing, soil testing, mole problems and impatient gardeners.

Then, at 6:30 p.m. on the same day at the Main Branch, Maria Zampini—the author of Gardenpedia: An A-to-Z Guide to Gardening Terms—will offer fun and helpful tips on how to be a successful gardener. After her talk, she will also sell and sign copies of her book.

Next, at 6 p.m. on Thursday, April 16, the cofounders of the Cleveland Seed Bank—Marilyn McHugh and Chris Kennedy—will talk about seed preservation at MPL’s Main Branch. They will offer their expertise on how to both save and preserve heirloom seeds.

All these talks are free and open to the public. To sign up for them, either call (440) 255-8811 ext. 215 or register on the library’s online event calendar.

Mentor Library is also accepting donations of heirloom and organic seeds for its seed library. If anyone wishes to donate, they can call Senior Services Manager Darlene Workman at (440) 255-8811 or email her at Darlene.workman@mentorpl.org.

Mentor Library looking for organic and heirloom seed donations

Donate your heirloom and organic seeds to Mentor Library's seed garden and help Mentor grow.

Are you a gardener? Mentor Public Library wants your help to seed the community.

We are building a seed library—vegetables, fruits, flowers and herbs. If you have organic or heirloom seeds that you’re willing to share, please contact our Senior Services Manager Darlene Workman. You can either call her at (440) 255-8811 or email her at Darlene.workman@mentorpl.org.

With your support, we can help Mentor grow.

By the way, Mentor Library is hosting a series with the Master Gardeners at its Main Branch to keep your green thumbs verdant. The first session will be at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 4. The Master Gardeners will suggest the best plants for a winter interest.

Then, on Wednesday, March 4, the Master Gardeners will recommend perennials that can give your garden year-round color.