The NANPS Seed Exchange started in 1988 and has been running continuously ever since. There are over 10,000 species of vascular plants native to temperate North America. Our seed exchange offers you the chance to increase the population of a few of these by:
The success of the NANPS Seed Exchange relies on your participation. See below for more information on how to donate and/or request seeds.
The Exchange is open to all members. If you are not yet a member, you may join online now or include your membership form with your seed request.
New to seed collecting or growing native plants from seed? Review NANPS’ guidelines for seed collection and indoor native seed stratification tips.
*Seeds are most often contributed from NANPS members’ gardens but donations of seed ethically collected from wild sources are also welcome (less than 10% from a healthy population of relatively common species, otherwise do not collect!). Once seed is sent to us we endeavour to store it appropriately (e.g. moist medium for hydrophilic seed, refrigeration at the appropriate time). We are only able to do this after the seed is mailed to us.
If you are donating seeds, please remember to:
Genetic provenance is an important consideration when selecting seeds from the seed exchange and whatever information you are able to provide about the origin of your seed is appreciated.
Donated native plant seed with provenance noted should be sent to:
Seed Exchange
NANPS: North American Native Plant Society
PO Box 69070
St. Clair PO
Toronto, ON
M4T 3A1
Please note that seed donors are permitted to request 30 packets of seed, which is twice the maximum amount for non-donors. Review the list in the section below for seed availability.
Inquiries about how the seed exchange works, or how to unlock the dormancy mechanism for seed offered, can be made to: seeds@nanps.org
The following native species are available to members through the NANPS Seed Exchange. Members can order 15 packets of seeds without having donated (seed donors may request up to 30 packets).
Requests can be emailed to seeds@nanps.org or by mail to NANPS mailing address (see below). Please include the following information with your request for seeds: your name and mailing address, the species you’d like (by botanical name) and any substitutions you would like in case we cannot supply your first choice. If you prefer seed from a specific listed location please so indicate and we’ll try to comply.
Please note that while all seeds donated are native to North America, they may not be local to the donor. Use your own discretion when ordering seeds and choose local stock if available. We recommend that members order seed that originates from their bioregion (the general rule of thumb is within a 200-kilometre range, or 125 miles). The same species grown at different locations will be listed separately, so that members can select the seed source closest to where they live.
NANPS tries its best to list seeds as received. NANPS also uses discretion when receiving seeds of threatened species.
It is not our intention to generate revenue from the seed exchange, but there is a small charge for each packet to cover the costs of packaging and mailing.
The cost of seeds:
If you are a Canadian requester include $2 for the first packet and 50 cents for each additional packet. If you are requesting acorns/nuts of tree species please add an extra $2 to cover the cost of mailing.
If you are an American requester please send $20 to cover the cost of a phytosanitary certificate (required to ship across the border) and 50 cents for each packet of seeds (in U.S. funds). Tree, shrub, and vine seeds cannot be sent to the U.S.
Payment can be made either by:
Cheques can be mailed to:
Seed Exchange
North American Native Plant Society
PO Box 69070
St. Clair PO
Toronto, ON
M4T 3A1
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| W | Seeds are wild collected |
| A | Annual/Biennial |
| L | Limited quantities |
| W | Seeds are wild collected | L | Quantities are limited | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| species | common name | donor | source | ||||||||
| Grasses & Sedges | |||||||||||
| Bouteloua curtipendula | sideoats grama | Hen | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Carex cristatella | crested sedge | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Carex eburnea | black-fruited sedge | Ger | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Carex eburnea | black-fruited sedge | Dam | Puslinch, ON | ||||||||
| Carex grayi | Gray's sedge | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Carex grayi | Gray's sedge | Tan | Oakville, ON | ||||||||
| Carex vulpinoidea | fox sedge | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Chasmanthium latifolium | northern sea oats | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Deschampsia caespitosa | tufted hairgrass | Nat | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Elymus canadensis | Canada wild rye | Nat | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| W | Elymus hystrix | bottlebrush grass | Sch | Oro-Medonte, ON | |||||||
| Elymus hystrix | bottlebrush grass | Jan | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Panicum virgatum | switchgrass | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| W | Schizachyrium scoparium | little bluestem | But | N Bruce Peninsula, ON | |||||||
| Sorghastrum nutans | Indian grass | Hen/Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Perennial Flowers | |||||||||||
| L | Actaea racemosa | black snakeroot | Edg | Toronto, ON | |||||||
| Agastache foeniculum | anise hyssop | Tan | Oakville, ON | ||||||||
| Agastache foeniculum | anise hyssop | Pae | Mississauga, ON | ||||||||
| Agastache nepetoides | yellow giant hyssop | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Ageratina altissima | white snakeroot | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Ageratina altissima | white snakeroot | Tan | Oakville, ON | ||||||||
| Allium cernuum | nodding wild onion | Ger/Nat | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Amsonia tabernaemontana | Eastern willowstar | Alf | Ottawa, ON | ||||||||
| Anaphalis margaritacea | pearly everlasting | Tan | Oakville, ON | ||||||||
| Anaphalis margaritacea | pearly everlasting | Wal | Waterloo, ON | ||||||||
| Anemone canadensis | Canada anemone | Dam | Puslinch, ON | ||||||||
| Anemone cylindrica | thimbleweed | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| W | Anemone virginiana | thimbleweed | Sch | Oro-Medonte, ON | |||||||
| Apocynum androsaemifolium | spreading dogbane | Jam | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Aquilegia canadensis | wild columbine | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| W | Aquilegia canadensis | wild columbine | Sch | Oro-Medonte, ON | |||||||
| Aquilegia canadensis | wild columbine | Hen/Nat | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Aquilegia canadensis | wild columbine | Dam | Puslinch, ON | ||||||||
| W | Aralia racemosa | spikenard | Sch | Oro-Medonte, ON | |||||||
| Asclepias incarnata | swamp milkweed | Pae | Mississauga, ON | ||||||||
| W | Asclepias syriaca | common milkweed | Ell | Clarington, ON | |||||||
| Asclepias syriaca | common milkweed | Wal | Waterloo, ON | ||||||||
| Asclepias tuberosa | butterfly milkweed | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Asclepias tuberosa | butterfly milkweed | Jan | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Asclepias verticillata | whorled milkweed | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Baptisia australis | wild false indigo | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Callirhoe involucrata | purple poppy mallow | Alf | Ottawa, ON | ||||||||
| Campanula rotundifolia | harebell | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Chelone glabra | turtlehead | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Cirsium discolor | field thistle | Tan | Oakville, ON | ||||||||
| Coreopsis lanceolata | lance-leaved coreopsis | Jan/Nat | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Desmodium illinoense | Illinois tick-trefoil | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Drymocallis arguta | tall cinquefoil | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| L | Echinacea pallida | pale purple coneflower | Nat | Toronto, ON | |||||||
| Echinacea purpurea | purple coneflower | Nat | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| W | Epilobium ciliatum | fringed willowherb | Sch | Oro-Medonte, ON | |||||||
| Eryngium yuccifolium | rattlesnake master | Alf | Perth, ON | ||||||||
| Eupatorium perfoliatum | boneset | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Euphorbia corollata | flowering spurge | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Eurybia divaricata | white wood aster | Kon/Ger | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Eurybia macrophylla | big-leaved aster | Hen/Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Eurybia macrophylla | big-leaved aster | Tan | Oakville, ON | ||||||||
| Euthania graminifolia | lance-leaved goldenrod | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Eutrochium maculatum | spotted Joe Pye weed | Edg | Muskoka, ON | ||||||||
| W | Eutrochium maculatum | spotted Joe Pye weed | Edg | Toronto, ON | |||||||
| Eutrochium maculatum | spotted Joe Pye weed | Jan | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Eutrochium purpureum | sweet Joe Pye weed | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Gaillardia aristata | blanket flower | Jan | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Gentiana andrewsii | bottle gentian | Dam | Puslinch, ON | ||||||||
| Gentiana andrewsii | bottle gentian | Edg | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Gentiana andrewsii | bottle gentian | Tan | Oakville, ON | ||||||||
| W | Gentianopsis virgata | lesser fringed gentian | But | N Bruce Peninsula, ON | |||||||
| Geranium maculatum | wild geranium | Kon/Hen | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Geum rivale | purple avens | Mil | Shrewsbury, ON | ||||||||
| Geum triflorum | prairie smoke | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Helenium autumnale | sneezeweed | Tan | Oakville, ON | ||||||||
| Helenium autumnale | sneezeweed | Kon | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Helenium autumnale | sneezeweed | Pae | Mississauga, ON | ||||||||
| Heliopsis helianthoides | false sunflower | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Hieracium umbellatum | Canadian hawkweed | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Hypericum ascyron | great St John's-wort | Dam | Guelph, ON | ||||||||
| Impatiens pallida | pale jewelweed | Kon | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Iris hookeri | dwarf beachhead iris | Mil | Shrewsbury, ON | ||||||||
| Lespedeza capitata | round-headed bush clover | Ger | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Liatris aspera | rough blazing star | Tan | Oakville, ON | ||||||||
| Liatris ligulistylis | meadow blazing star | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Liatris ligulistylis | meadow blazing star | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Liatris scariosa var. nieuwlandii | Savannah blazing star | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Liatris spicata | dense blazing star | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Liatris spicata | dense blazing star | Nat | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Lobelia cardinalis | cardinal flower | Kon/Ger/Edg | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| W | Lobelia inflata | Indian tobacco | Sch | Oro-Medonte, ON | |||||||
| Mimulus ringens | monkeyflower | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Monarda fistulosa | wild bergamot | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Monarda punctata | dotted horsemint | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| L | Monarda punctata | dotted horsemint | Nat | Toronto, ON | |||||||
| W | Nabalus latissimus | tall rattlesnake root | Sch | Oro-Medonte, ON | |||||||
| Oenothera biennis | evening primrose | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Oenothera biennis | evening primrose | Wal | Waterloo, ON | ||||||||
| W | Parnassia glauca | fen grass of Parnassus | But | N. Bruce Peninsula, ON | |||||||
| Parthenium integrifolium | wild quinine | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Parthenium integrifolium | wild quinine | Wal | Waterloo, ON | ||||||||
| Penstemon digitalis | foxglove beardtongue | Ell | Clarington, ON | ||||||||
| L | Penstemon hirsutus | hairy beardtongue | Nat | Toronto, ON | |||||||
| Penstemon hirsutus | hairy beardtongue | Ger | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Physostegia virginiana | obedient plant | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Pycnanthemum tenuifolium | slender mountain mint | Wal | Waterloo, ON | ||||||||
| Pycnanthemum virginianum | Virginia mountain mint | Ger/Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Ratibida pinnata | grey-headed coneflower | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Ratibida pinnata | grey-headed coneflower | Alf | Ottawa, ON | ||||||||
| Rudbeckia triloba | brown-eyed Susan | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| W | Scrophularia lanceolata | lance-leaf figwort | Sch | Oro-Medonte, ON | |||||||
| Scrophularia marilandica | carpenter's square | Dam | Puslinch, ON | ||||||||
| Senna hebecarpa | wild senna | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Silphium perfoliatum | cup plant | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Sisyrinchium montanum | blue-eyed grass | Ger | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Solidago caesia | blue-stemmed goldenrod | Ger/Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Solidago flexicaulis | zig-zag goldenrod | Hen/ Kon/Ger | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Solidago juncea | early goldenrod | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Solidago ptarmicoides | upland white aster | Sha | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Solidago ptarmicoides | upland white aster | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Solidago rigida | stiff goldenrod | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Solidago speciosa | showy goldenrod | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Solidago sempervirens | seaside goldenrod | Sha | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Symphyotrichum cordifolium | heart-leaved aster | Kon | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Symphyotrichum laeve | smooth aster | Hen | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Symphyotrichum lateriflorum | calico aster | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Symphyotrichum novae-angliae | New England aster | Hen | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Symphyotrichum oolentangiense | sky-blue aster | Ger | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Symphyotrichum puniceum | swamp aster | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Thalictrum pubescens | tall meadow rue | Hen | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| W | Tiarella stolonifera | foamflower | Sch | Oro-Medonte, ON | |||||||
| W | Triosteum aurantiacum | orange-fruited horse gentian | Sch | Oro-Medonte, ON | |||||||
| W | Turritis glabra | tower mustard | Sch | Oro-Medonte, ON | |||||||
| Verbena hastata | blue vervain | Sha | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Verbena hastata | blue vervain | Dam | Puslinch, ON | ||||||||
| Verbena stricta | hoary vervain | Ger | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Verbena urticifolia | white vervain | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Verbesina alternifolia | wingstem | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Vernonia gigantea | tall ironweed | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Vernonia missurica | Missouri ironweed | Kon | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Vernonia missurica | Missouri ironweed | Wal | Waterloo, ON | ||||||||
| Vernonia noveboracensis | New York ironweed | Hen | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Veronicastrum virginicum | Culver's root | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Zizia aurea | golden Alexanders | Jan/Ger | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Shrubs | |||||||||||
| Cephalanthus occidentalis | buttonbush | Mil | Shrewsbury, ON | ||||||||
| Hypericum kalmianum | Kalm's St. John's-wort | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Lindera benzoin | spicebush | Mil | Shrewsbury, ON | ||||||||
| Spiraea alba | meadowsweet | Tan | Oakville, ON | ||||||||
| Staphylea trifolia | bladdernut | Kon | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Trees | |||||||||||
| W | Acer saccharum | sugar maple | Ell | Clarington, ON | |||||||
| W | Betula pumila | dwarf birch | But | N Bruce Peninsula, ON | |||||||
| Cercis canadensis | redbud | Tan | Oakville, ON | ||||||||
| Cercis canadensis | redbud | Beh | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| Diospyros virginiana | persimmon | Mil | Shrewsbury, ON | ||||||||
| Gymnocladus dioicus | Kentucky coffeetree | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Ilex verticillata | winterberry | Mil | Shrewsbury, ON | ||||||||
| Magnolia acuminata | cucumber tree | Zed | Campbellcroft, ON | ||||||||
| Ptelea trifoliata | hop tree | Tan | Oakville, ON | ||||||||
| Sorbus americana | mountain ash | Mil | Shrewsbury, ON | ||||||||
| Vines | |||||||||||
| Dioscorea villosa | wild yam | Sha | Toronto, ON | ||||||||
| W | Smilax herbacea | smooth carrionflower | Sch | Oro-Medonte, ON |
Our donors are our heroes!
The following donors contributed to the 2025-26 Seedex:
Alf – Alford-Purvis, Sundaura
Beh – Beheshti, Sayeh D
But – Butler, Michael
Dam – Damstra, Emily
Edg – Edgar, Kathy
Ell – Ellis, Susan
Ger – Gerry, Kathy
Hen – Henriques, Miriam
Jam – Jamieson, Heather
Jan – Jan, Catherine
Kon – Kong, Alice
Mil – Miles, Cindy
Nat – Natalizio, Lilian
Pae – Paes, Deborah
Sch – Scharf, Sara
Sha – Shannon, Stacey
Tan – Tanaka, Ali
Wal – Walker, Meagan
Zed – Zednik, Jane