Kids are being urged to come to the Slow Food Earth Market in The Levee on Thursday morning in a bid to help keep local seeds flourishing.

They will be able to plant a pumpkin seed, in a seed pod, for free and take it home to produce their very own pumpkins.

Some will also receive a vegetable seedling to add to their veggie patch.

The fun will begin at 9am.

"It's the school holidays so it's a great time for kids to get involved in this activity," Earth Market Maitland chairwoman Amorelle Dempster said.

"They'll be able to get their hands dirty in the dirt and plant the pumpkin seed in a seed pod.

"We'll have a range of different varieties of pumpkin for them to plant and that will mean we'll be preserving them in backyards across Maitland.

"This project is about getting people to grow different varieties of pumpkin and we'll keep a track of who is growing what as well.

The project is being run in conjunction with Maitland Council's Seed Library. Participants must harvest some of the seeds to help expand the seed library.

The earth market kicks off at 8.30am and runs until 1.30pm.

You'll find a wide range of fresh vegetables from local farmers as well as eggs, meat, honey and other yummy delights.