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Next time you loan a book from your public library, consider checking out some seeds, too. Yes, you read that right. More than two-dozen libraries across the country, including 15 in California, now let patrons borrow DIY plants along with copies of The Great Gatsby and Moby Dick. As , this new offering could be a way to entice more people into the brick-and-mortar book buildings. Plus, it fosters community and makes accessible all different types of seeds.

The borrowing process varies from locale to locale, but in general, goes something like this: A reader-gardener picks from a plethora of plants—from the simplest to the most advanced—and checks them out. At the , for instance, borrowing vegetable, herb, and flower seeds simply requires registering and watching a short orientation video. At the