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Purchase fresh produce from local gardens via Vinder

A Port Townsend based website connects gardeners with fresh veggie lovers.
This is what a typical Vinder transation looks like

It's called 'Vinder' -- rhymes with 'Tinder'.

And it hooks people up with garden fresh veggies that can't be found in a supermarket.

The website, which launched in Port Townsend, is more like another popular peer-to-peer site:

"People have called us the Air B & B of veggies," said founder Sam Lillie.

Lillie planted the seeds for this site during a post-college grad hike on the Pacific Crest Trail.

"I figured if I can get through that, if I can accomplish this, I can do anything I put my mind to."

What he put his mind to was growing Vinder into a nationwide service.

"Vinder is a peer to peer marketplace for homegrown produce. What we do is connect community members that have an abundance of food with community members looking to buy local produce."

Gardeners like Deborah Simpson use the site to share their surplus – in Simpson's case, it's tomatoes:

"I make sauce, I dry them, I can them, I freeze them and I still have too much!" laughed Simpson.

Buyers like Mark DeJarnatt, who can't garden because he lives on a sailboat - use Vinder to buy that bounty.

"The quality is just amazing," said DeJarnatt, showing off a bunch of kale and collard greens he just picked up from Simpson's garden.

Vinder doesn't charge gardeners. Buyers pay a 20 percent service fee. And the transaction takes place online.

But Vinder truly blossoms in the garden:

"That sense of community you get when you visit another gardener and get to talk to them about their produce, you get to walk in their garden, you get to get your hands in the soil. It's an all-around experience," said Lillie.

It's a site for buying fresh veggies, that can yield a surplus of connections.

"It's just a connection to the community and to the neighbors that we didn't have before. It's opened up a lot of friendships," said DeJarnatt, after getting a tour of Simpson's garden, along with the freshest greens money can buy.

Evening is your guide to Seattle and the Pacific Northwest. Watch it weeknights at 7:30 on KING 5 TV or streaming live on KING5.com. Connect with Evening via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or email: eveningtips@king5.com.

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