Herbalists Without Borders is passionate about saving and sustaining our native medicinals and wants to teach others how to preserve seeds and propagate medicinal plants. There are a number of organizations that focus on saving seeds for food production, but seed saving for medicinal plants is not common.

While we believe that food is a primary source of medicine, HWB also wants to promote Seed Saving models that include medicinal plants.

Many HWB Chapters grow gardens that are used for education, and that grow food to donate to local people - such as growing food for the food pantry, providing fresh produce to take as you need at free clinics or community events, and using them to make and educate on the use of foods, spices, and herbs for wellness.

HWB works to support Chapters globally that want to save seeds and get gardens growing. We also have an HWB U.S. Seed Bank that grows and saves seeds from our own gardens. To find out more, write to Denise our Seed Grant Coordinator at usdonationnetwork@hwbglobal.org!

HWB U.S. has a Seed Grant kit program that works to get healthy food and medicinal herbs to HWB groups to grow gardens in their communities. HWB groups not only grow medicinal plants, but food, as food justice is health justice, and healthy food makes communities healthier.

Our HWB International Apothecary's storage space is located at a farm that is a part of the United Plant Savers Botanical Sanctuary Network, where we grow many medicinals and also work to preserve endangered and at-risk plants.

Protect Our Seed Libraries!

After Pennsylvania’s Department of Agriculture adopted a policy restricting the Simpson Seed Library in Mechanicsburg, PA from sharing locally saved seed, several states have followed suit, threatening the continued existence of seed libraries.

Seed laws exist to regulate entities that sell or commercially exchange seeds. A seed library is a noncommercial nonprofit, cooperative, or governmental organization that donates seeds and receives donations of seed, especially by encouraging members to learn about seed saving and donate seeds to the library.

Donation of seeds is not required in a seed library, so the sharing of seeds does not even rise to the level of barter or exchange, let alone sell.

Seed libraries are far different in nature and scale than commercial seed companies and need to be appropriately recognized under the law to protect their ability to continue freely sharing seeds in communities across the country.

At Risk Medicinal Plants

United Plant Savers has compiled an excellent list of At-Risk Medicinal Plants. Their website details why the plant is at risk and reviews botanical information about the plants.