The Free Library is opening a plant cutting swap station. Here’s how it works.

Come in for a book, and leave with a free plant to grow — that’s the concept behind the Free Library of Philadelphia’s first plant-cutting swap station. It’s set to open the Saturday after Earth Day (Apr. 24) at the Chestnut Hill branch, designated as the pilot location.

“Plants are emotionally nourishing and therapeutic in and of themselves, and after a year of isolation, this is a form of communal cooperation that I think will create a greater sense of community,” says Ross Forester, 74, a library volunteer who’s spearheading the project. “You could have just one plant, take a cutting and bring it to the library, and then exchange it for another cutting, and eventually build a completely diverse interior landscape for yourself.”

Forester credits the idea to Plantacea, a plant store in Baltimore with a plant-swap wall where customers exchange cuttings for free. He saw a post about the wall in the Philly Plant Exchange Facebook group, and immediately started making plans to bring the concept to his own community.

“I just thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if people could exchange plants as well as take books out at their local library?’ ” says Forester.

After presenting the idea to a handful of library branches citywide, all of which were on board, he asked the Philly Plant Exchange if anyone was interested in contributing cuttings. The post got more than 400 responses.

“There was a ton of interest in the project,” says Forester. “My hope is that it’ll develop a greater appreciation for the role of plants in the modern urban environment. One day, I’d like to bring the idea into the school system, into the classroom.”

Interested in participating?

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The “swap station” is essentially a series of wooden display boards that Forester designed to fit roughly 40 test tubes, each filled with water to hold plant cuttings.

You’re invited to bring a cutting from any kind of plant in exchange for any of the cuttings already in the test tubes. “It’s a perpetual plant-swap station that will hopefully replenish itself,” says Forester.

The display hangs on a wall and atop shelves inside the Chestnut Hill library’s horticulture wing. Each test tube is numbered, so you can label what type of plant you’re contributing on the station’s clipboard. You can also share information about the plant’s ideal environment, like how much light and water it needs. There will be plastic bags available with dampened paper towels for you to wrap your cuttings to take home.

Due to the pandemic, the library is currently open for curbside pickup only. For the time being, the plant-cutting swap station will operate on a weekly basis. The tentative time window is Wednesday afternoons, but you’re advised to call ahead or visit libwww.freelibrary.org/locations/chestnut-hill-library for specific dates and timing (to be posted soon). When regular hours resume, the station will become available during all library hours.

On April 24, opening day, the library is welcoming guests from 2 to 4 p.m. The first 30 people who bring cuttings get to take home a wooden base made by Forester to hold test tubes. There will also be planting activities for kids in the library’s “children’s garden,” make-and-take activities for families, story-time sessions, and children’s gardening book giveaways.

“There are so many benefits to starting a hobby like this, and it’s just another way to promote community and the sharing of resources,” says Chestnut Hill’s branch manager Prather Egan O’Donnell. The library is also seeking fern cuttings to plant in its perimeter garden.

If the pilot at the Chestnut Hill Library goes as planned, Forester plans to open plant-cutting swap stations at other branch locations, starting with the Fumo Family Library (South Philly), the Walnut Street West Library (University City), the Richmond Library (Port Richmond), and the Joseph E. Coleman Northwest Regional Library (Germantown). The plant stations are being planned for summer and early fall.

Forester is currently seeking volunteers to get involved with future plant stations. There are regular maintenance duties to keep the stations thriving, like changing out the water in the test tubes twice a week and cleaning up any loose dirt.

“I’m 74 years old, so I can’t be doing it forever, but I’d love to recruit volunteers to eventually take my place and carry it on,” says Forester. If interested, you can email him at rossforester@gmail.com.

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