05/26/2026
🌱Did you know, in 1784, David Landreth opened America’s first seed house in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania? What exactly is a “seed house”? Historically, it was a building used to process, store, and distribute seeds.
Before 1784, farmers in the US didn’t have a local store to buy seeds from. Instead, they would save seeds from previous harvests, trade with neighbors, and purchase imported seeds. Once American seed houses were established, the price of seeds became much more affordable. Locally based companies were able to grow plants for seed production, removing the cost of transport.
From 1799 to almost the modern day, the land that is now Oxon Cove Park has likely grown plants from seeds obtained in a magnitude of ways throughout history. From trading with neighbors to importing from England and purchasing from seed stores to ordering from catalogues (or even off the internet), seeds have been rooted deeply in our country’s history since before it even had a name.
Where do you get your seeds from?
Photo: National Agricultural Library, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture.
