🌱 Seed Swap

Inspiration

During the pandemic, we saw how gardening brought people joy, peace, and a sense of connection to nature. But not everyone has access to all the seeds they want to grow. At the same time, many home gardeners often have leftover seeds they’re willing to share. We wanted to build a platform that makes it easy — and fun — for people to connect locally and trade seeds, all while personalizing their experience through gamified avatars and virtual gardens. Think of it as a wholesome, community-driven twist on a trading app, rooted in sustainability and friendship.

What it does

Seed Swap is a web app that lets users:

🌟 Set up a customizable animal avatar profile
🪴 Create a seedbank with seeds they own and are open to giving away
🌸 Build a virtual garden that reflects what they grow in real life
📍 Input their location and max swap distance to find local gardeners
🔎 Browse either:
- A Postings Page where users list seeds they have available
- A Local Users Page that shows nearby users and their seedbanks
💬 Message other users to coordinate swaps
🌿 Get feedback on how compatible the incoming seed is with their existing garden

How we built it

Frontend: Built with React, styled using CSS
Backend: Node.js + Express.js
Database: MongoDB (with Mongoose) for storing users, seeds, messages, and swaps.
Messaging: Implemented a basic messaging system via backend storage.
Artwork and icons: Hand-drawn using Procreate

Challenges we ran into

Designing a complex framework to represent users, gardens, seedbanks, messages, and swaps.
Learning about routing in React
Balancing functionality with customization features like avatars and virtual gardens.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

💡 Designed and built a web app from scratch.
🐾 Created a charming and cute user experience with avatars and visually pleasing, hand-drawn graphics.
🌼 Built a platform that has real potential for social good and sustainability in the agriculture realm.

What we learned

Exploring React frontend with a Node.js/Express/MongoDB backend.
Creating a clear and engaging user flow — from onboarding to swap confirmation.
Importance of breaking complex features into manageable components (and staying sane in the process!).