#seedsaving — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #seedsaving, aggregated by home.social.
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Beans did great this year, we ate loads, froze some and they just kept coming.
Peas are done, we let some dry for seeds and tore out the plants and supports.
The last two surviving sweetcorn cobs were the largest and so got plucked and peeled to dry for seeds.
Also got seeds from the two tobacco plants that popped up randomly after we dug over the former greenhouse for the first time. Nobody here smokes, but I'm kinda curious to experiment with them.
Cucumbers are done too.
Even managed to save a few hazelnuts from the mad squirrels this year.
Just pumpkins, sunflowers and apples left now. And the apples are pretty sour still. Not enough sun. Endless rain.
#Homestead #Harvest #Garden #Beans #Peas #Sweetcorn #Tobacco #Pumpkin #Cucumber #Hazelnuts #SeedSaving
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Beans did great this year, we ate loads, froze some and they just kept coming.
Peas are done, we let some dry for seeds and tore out the plants and supports.
The last two surviving sweetcorn cobs were the largest and so got plucked and peeled to dry for seeds.
Also got seeds from the two tobacco plants that popped up randomly after we dug over the former greenhouse for the first time. Nobody here smokes, but I'm kinda curious to experiment with them.
Cucumbers are done too.
Even managed to save a few hazelnuts from the mad squirrels this year.
Just pumpkins, sunflowers and apples left now. And the apples are pretty sour still. Not enough sun. Endless rain.
#Homestead #Harvest #Garden #Beans #Peas #Sweetcorn #Tobacco #Pumpkin #Cucumber #Hazelnuts #SeedSaving
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Beans did great this year, we ate loads, froze some and they just kept coming.
Peas are done, we let some dry for seeds and tore out the plants and supports.
The last two surviving sweetcorn cobs were the largest and so got plucked and peeled to dry for seeds.
Also got seeds from the two tobacco plants that popped up randomly after we dug over the former greenhouse for the first time. Nobody here smokes, but I'm kinda curious to experiment with them.
Cucumbers are done too.
Even managed to save a few hazelnuts from the mad squirrels this year.
Just pumpkins, sunflowers and apples left now. And the apples are pretty sour still. Not enough sun. Endless rain.
#Homestead #Harvest #Garden #Beans #Peas #Sweetcorn #Tobacco #Pumpkin #Cucumber #Hazelnuts #SeedSaving
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Beans did great this year, we ate loads, froze some and they just kept coming.
Peas are done, we let some dry for seeds and tore out the plants and supports.
The last two surviving sweetcorn cobs were the largest and so got plucked and peeled to dry for seeds.
Also got seeds from the two tobacco plants that popped up randomly after we dug over the former greenhouse for the first time. Nobody here smokes, but I'm kinda curious to experiment with them.
Cucumbers are done too.
Even managed to save a few hazelnuts from the mad squirrels this year.
Just pumpkins, sunflowers and apples left now. And the apples are pretty sour still. Not enough sun. Endless rain.
#Homestead #Harvest #Garden #Beans #Peas #Sweetcorn #Tobacco #Pumpkin #Cucumber #Hazelnuts #SeedSaving
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Beans did great this year, we ate loads, froze some and they just kept coming.
Peas are done, we let some dry for seeds and tore out the plants and supports.
The last two surviving sweetcorn cobs were the largest and so got plucked and peeled to dry for seeds.
Also got seeds from the two tobacco plants that popped up randomly after we dug over the former greenhouse for the first time. Nobody here smokes, but I'm kinda curious to experiment with them.
Cucumbers are done too.
Even managed to save a few hazelnuts from the mad squirrels this year.
Just pumpkins, sunflowers and apples left now. And the apples are pretty sour still. Not enough sun. Endless rain.
#Homestead #Harvest #Garden #Beans #Peas #Sweetcorn #Tobacco #Pumpkin #Cucumber #Hazelnuts #SeedSaving
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Don't let your summer harvest end! 🌱 Turn this year's success into next year's garden by saving your own seeds. Our new blog covers the 5 easiest vegetables to start with, from tomatoes to beans.
Get all the tips here:
https://vegplotter.com/blog/save-your-summer-top-5-seeds-to-collect -
So you rinse it, seal it in a bag with barely damp sphagnum, and set it at the back of the refrigerator for ninety to a hundred and twenty days. In spring you plant it an inch down in a deep pot. Five to seven years later, fruit no corporation ever priced.
Bi socair — be still.
What are you growing that won't pay off for years?
#Foraging #Pawpaw #Gardening #SeedSaving #NativePlants #Herbalism #FoodAsMedicine #Gàidhlig #MastoDaoine #Druid #Folklore #Solarpunk #Cooking
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So you rinse it, seal it in a bag with barely damp sphagnum, and set it at the back of the refrigerator for ninety to a hundred and twenty days. In spring you plant it an inch down in a deep pot. Five to seven years later, fruit no corporation ever priced.
Bi socair — be still.
What are you growing that won't pay off for years?
#Foraging #Pawpaw #Gardening #SeedSaving #NativePlants #Herbalism #FoodAsMedicine #Gàidhlig #MastoDaoine #Druid #Folklore #Solarpunk #Cooking
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Master Gardener Spotlight: The Need for Seed – MSU Extension https://www.allforgardening.com/1929694/master-gardener-spotlight-the-need-for-seed-msu-extension/ #biodiversity #ControlledPollination #F1 #gardening #GardeningMontana #GeneticDiversity #heirloom #hybrid #Montaña #OpenPollinated #SeedLibrary #SeedSaving #SeedSharing
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#Gardens that Nurture #Culture
Spring 2022
Excerpt: "Growing one’s own food became more appealing and, in some cases, a greater necessity to many in this pandemic era. #NativePeoples have long tended gardens that have provided their communities with #sustainably grown foods, #MedicinalPlants and #NaturalMaterials. Today these much-needed sources of local, healthy foods are also places to cultivate and preserve #CulturalTraditions.
" 'Even some Native cultures—like #foraging cultures—that didn’t historically garden now see it as a helpful use of land and time and money because they can efficiently produce the kinds of foods that people need to stay healthy,' said Elizabeth Hoover. Of #Mohawk and #Mikmaq descent, she is an associate professor of Environmental Science, Policy and Management at the University of California in Berkeley. Researching this trend, she drove 20,000 miles in 2014 to talk with dozens of #AmericanIndian gardeners and food advocates.
"In western North Carolina, David Anderson works as the horticultural operations supervisor at the #JessieOwleDugan #NativePlant and Greenhouse Facility of the Eastern Band of #Cherokee Indians. The complex includes three #greenhouses, 30 raised growing beds, a 3-acre nursery and 5 acres of fields dedicated to producing crops specifically for their seeds. It also has 330 acres of field that can be leased to enrolled tribal members who wish to garden or farm.
"While the facility does generate funds for the tribe, it also preserves culturally important species to get them into the hands of tribal members to plant. It focuses on growing traditional plants, such as #grapes, #elderberry, #WildStrawberries, #blackberries, #huckleberries sochan and #cohosh. In 2021, the greenhouse also grew #hickory saplings, which once mature, can to provide wood that can be used to make stickball sticks, artworks and other traditional projects. 'We serve our community with plants for home, for farmers, and for restoration,' said Anderson."
Read more:
https://www.americanindianmagazine.org/story/gardens-that-nurture-culture#SolarPunkSunday #TraditionalFoods #NativeAmericans #CulturalPreservation #GrowYourOwnFood #Resilience #FoodSecurity #HeirloomPlants #SeedSaving
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How to Recreate a Pioneer Garden at Home https://www.allforgardening.com/1893750/how-to-recreate-a-pioneer-garden-at-home/ #AppleTrees #compost #EdibleLandscaping #EspalierTechnique #flowers #FoodGardens #FruitTrees #garden #gardening #GardeningTips&Hacks #gardens #HeirloomCrops #herbs #landscaping #MikschGarden #OldSalem #PeachTrees #RaisedGardenBed #SeedSaving #SingleBrothers’Garden #VegetableGarden #vegetables #WinstonSalem
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Excerpt from Seed Saving: Introduction by the #SeedSavingExchange
"Know Your Plants
Know whether your parent plant is a hybrid or open-pollinated variety.
Open-pollinated varieties are like dog breeds; they will retain their distinct characteristics as long as they are pollinated (or “mated”) with the same “breed”/variety.
Hybrids, which are created by crossing plants of two different varieties, generally do not produce offspring with the same traits as the parent plant. Seeds saved from open-pollinated varieties, on the other hand, will produce plants identical to the parent.
Seed Savers Exchange offers only open-pollinated varieties through its online and print catalog and on The Exchange, its gardener-to-gardener seed swap.
So what are #OpenPollinated varieties, and what is their lifespan? Open-pollinated varieties are like dog breeds; they will retain their distinct characteristics as long as they are pollinated (or “mated”) with the same “breed”/variety.
This means, with a little care and planning, the seeds you produce will be true-to-type, keeping their distinct traits generation after generation as long as they do not cross-pollinate with other varieties of the same species.
Know your plants’ lifespans.Open-pollinated varieties can be annual, biennial, and perennial.
Plants that flower, set seed, and die in a single growing season—like lettuce, tomatoes, and peppers—are called annuals.
Biennials, such as carrots and onions, don’t flower until their second growing season after they have gone through a cold period called vernalization.
Some long-lived plants, like apple trees and asparagus, are perennial, surviving and flowering for many years.
Know your plants’ specific name (genus and species).
A long green vegetable with several slices
The ‘Armenian’ cucumber, commonly sold as a cucumber, is actually a melon.In biology, a genus is a taxonomy rank that groups together closely related species. For example, tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum) are closely related to eggplants (Solanum melongena). In this case, Solanum is the genus that both tomatoes and eggplants belong to.
A species is a group of individuals that are able to reproduce together. All tomatoes belong to the species lycopersicum and are able to cross-pollinate (or transfer pollen between plants) with each other.
In the garden, most crops are different species from one another, but not always. There are several species of squash and two distinct species of kale—meaning some varieties of these crops are not able to cross-pollinate with each other.
On the other hand, Cucumis melo, commonly categorized as a melon, also contains some varieties that are sold as cucumbers (like ‘Armenian’) because fruits of the variety are unsweet and sometimes pickled.
Planting just one variety in a species will help ensure you save pure seed. But if you want to save seeds from more than one variety, knowing your plants’ scientific name will help you determine which ones may cross-pollinate. To save pure seed, you want to prevent cross-pollination between two different varieties in the same species.
The squash commonly grown in the Seed Savers Exchange gardens at #HeritageFarm, for example, could fall into one of three species: Cucurbita maxima, C. moschata, and C. pepo. These species won’t typically cross-pollinate.
On the other hand, Brassica oleracea includes broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, collards, kale, and kohlrabi, all plants you might think wouldn’t cross-pollinate but actually do. Read up on the cross-pollination habits of the plants you are saving seeds from to ensure you won’t run into issues."
Learn more:
https://seedsavers.org/learn/seed-saving/#know-your-plants#SolarPunkSunday #CrossPollination #Gardening #CommunityGardens #SeedSaving #KnowYourPlants
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#PleasantvilleNY - #SeedLibrary
"#GrowYourOwn garden with the help of our Seed Library—a collection of quality, regional flower and vegetable seeds that you can 'check out' for free at the Main Library.
What is a Seed Library?A Seed Library is a collection of flower and vegetable seeds that you can 'check out' for free. Some Seed Libraries include seeds that have been saved by library patrons, or seeds donated from nurseries. We might have those sources one day at Mt. Pleasant Library, but for now we have seeds purchased from quality regional seed producers in #Maine and #AccordNY.
The purpose of a Seed Library is to encourage #SustainableGardening and #biodiversity by providing free access to seeds. These initiatives empower community members to grow their own food; learn #SeedSaving skills; preserve local, rare, or #HeirloomPlant varieties; and reduce reliance on #CommercialSeedCompanies. This helps combat seed #monocultures that threaten the world's food supply.
How does our Seed Library work?
- Go to the Gardening Special Collection at the Main Library and browse our Seed Library binder which includes details about each type of seed we offer.
- Help yourself to up to 5 seed packets per visit.
- Fill out a short form listing which seeds you took and if there are any seeds you want to request so that we can keep our Seed Library well stocked.
- Go and plant a garden!What kind of seeds do we have?
- Vegetables, such as Amish Paste Organic Tomato, Marketmore and 76 Organic Cucumber
- Herbs, such as Genovese Basil
- Flowers, such as Purple Stem Asters, which are a great source of nectar for #bumblebees and other #pollinators in the #HudsonValley, and #SpottedJoePyeWeed, which is a native, locally sourced perennial that supports #butterfly populations
Check out our Seed Library binder for the full list of seeds we offer!"FMI:
https://www.mountpleasantlibrary.org/index.php/collections/seed-library#SolarPunkSunday #SeedSharing #BuildingCommunity #LibrariesRule #GYO #GardeningForPollinators #SeedLibraries
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#ScotlandGrows - #ShetlandKale
by Cairi Balmain
"I want to draw your attention to a rare Scottish heritage vegetable called Shetland #Kail / #Kale. I have been eating lots of the young leaves recently and wanted to share my love of this not so commonly known vegetable, its history, why it’s so special, and why it should be a staple in Scottish vegetable gardens.
What is Shetland Kale?
Shetland Kale is one of the most productive crops grown in Shetland and officially is classified as a #cabbage. Traditionally, in Shetland the hearts were eaten like a normal cabbage, while the leaves were given to the cattle and this still continues on some #crofts today. I like to eat the young leaves as it is a waste letting them go tough when you do not have cattle to feed! When they are small and tender, the leaves taste nice and peppery and go very well with other types of kale in meals. I like to make kale crisps in the dehydrator or oven.
What is Its History?
Shetland Kale is the oldest known Scottish variety and has been grown in Shetland since the 17th century. Before the era of cheap oil, all #ShetlandCrofts grew crops including #oats, #bere, #neeps, #potatoes, and Shetland Kale. Due to the challenges of the weather in Shetland, seeds were sown in #PlantieCrubs: circular stone walled enclosures where the plants were protected from wind, frost, rabbits, and grazing animals. The seeds were grown successfully here, then were transplanted into kail yards, also made with stone walls to protect them from the near constant wind! There are still many ruined #KailYards visible in the islands, not used any more but part of the landscape heritage of Shetland.
Why Does it Need Saving?
Shetland Kale has been registered as a #ConservationVariety due to its decline in usage over the past thirty years, and until recently the seed’s survival was dependent on local crofters saving their seed and passing it on. Recently, however, there has been a resurgence of people wanting to grow the heritage seed. Shetland Kale Seed Producers Network has recently released seed that I bought from Planticrub, the local garden centre in Shetland. You can find information on Shetland Kale and where to buy it through the Shetland Kale Growers Seed Network. You also might be lucky and find it in a local #SeedSwap #SeedLibrary or meet.
How to Grow
Since not many people have, or have need of, a stone polycrub these days, sow the seeds like normal brassicas inside the house or greenhouse in March/April. Plant out with the other kale, cabbages, and broccoli in late April/early May and harden off in the usual manner. You can also grow them with successive sowings through the Spring and Summer to keep a constant supply. Shetland Kale takes up a lot of space, so space the plants well or they will take over!
I like to harvest a few leaves at a time off each plant when they are young and tender and leave the heart to develop into a cabbage to eat in the Winter. It makes a unique #kimchi! Shetland Kale is hardy so will survive the Scottish Winter fine outside. Shetlanders normally leave a few plants to go to seed the second year to see the beautiful yellow flowers come out and to harvest the seed. To save the seed from your own Shetland Kale and help save this heritage seed, harvest the pods when they have turned brown and slightly brittle, place on a cloth to prevent seed loss and thresh the pods by rubbing between the hands. Then store in a cool area."
https://scotlandgrowsmagazine.com/2020/10/22/shetland-kale/
#SolarPunkSunday #Scotland #TraditionalFoods #SeedSaving #EndangeredSpecies #GrowYourOwn #SeedSaving
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A #botanist searches for the #seeds of the rare #DeathValleySage
April 2, 2026
"For more than 15 years, botanist Naomi Fraga of the #CaliforniaBotanicGarden has been trying to collect seeds from the rare Death Valley sage, for safekeeping in a vault of native California seeds. Each time, she's come home empty handed. But this year, with the desert in the midst of a big bloom, she's trying again.
" 'It's a little bit of a gamble,' she says. 'But, you know, the plant's having a really good year. I feel hopeful.' "
#SolarPunkSunday #California #RarePlants #SeedVaults #SeedSaving #RareSeeds #DesertBloom #DeathValley #SuperBloom #PlantPreservation
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Transport Evolved Chicken and Garden Update: Nikki’s Got A New Stash! https://www.allforgardening.com/1657173/transport-evolved-chicken-and-garden-update-nikkis-got-a-new-stash/ #abutilon #BackyardGarden #Baldur'sGate #BG3 #BroadBeans #Broccoli #CaliforniaBellPeppers #celery #DanversCarrots #FavaBeans #garden #geraniums #greenhouse #HickenAndGarden #Karlach #Parsnip #PortlandNursery #RaisedBeds #SeedPotatoes #SeedSaving #SnowPeas #squash #SweetCorn #TelegraphCucumber #VancouverCentennial #WinterGardening #zucchini
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#PortlandME - #MOFGA Gardener to Gardener Conference
February 8 @ 9:00 am - 5:00 pm$125 - $200 (see sliding scale below)
Registration is still open! Walk-ins also welcome.
"MOFGA is pleased to present Gardener to Gardener: our inaugural one-day conference for gardeners!
Connect with and learn from prominent university faculty, agricultural scientists, service providers, farmers, and fellow gardeners — through speaker sessions, activities, and shared meals. Gardeners of all levels of experience, in Maine or in the broader northeast region, will find content suited to their needs, gardening goals, and experiences.
Tickets include:
Access to all Gardener to Gardener sessions
Access to lunchtime keynote speaker, Assawaga Farm
Access to exhibitor booths featuring local service providers, suppliers, and more
A catered lunch and coffee/snack break, featuring products from local organic farms and food producers
Complimentary Gardener to Gardener mementos, to use in your gardening life and remember the conference byView the Schedule
Conference speaker and activity sessions include:
Planning & Mapping Your Garden | Ivonne Vazquez, Bas Rouge Farm & Forge
Soil Health 101 | Rebecca Long, University of Maine Cooperative Extension
YardScaping: Soak up the Rain | Ali Clift, Cumberland County Soil & Water Conservation District
Seed Saving Ethics & Practical Tips for Veggie and Native Plant Seed Savers | Emily Baisden, Wild Seed Project & Heron Breen, Fruits of Our Labors
Grow Your Own Apothecary Garden: An Introduction | Emily Springer, Meeting House Farm
Unusual Backyard Fruit Trees | Dr. Becky Sideman, University of New Hampshire
Raising Chickens for Fun and Food | Patty Duffy, Agricultural Banker & Veterinary Technician (Retired)
Gardening for Pollinators Across the Landscape: From Garden to Forest | Erin Cocca, The Xerces Society
Make Your Own Garden Tools | Jack Kertesz, Maine Organic Farmers & Gardeners Association
Livestock First-Aid | Jacki Martinez-Perkins, Maine Organic Farmers & Gardeners Association
Garden Art | Jaime Wing, Winged Prints
Ergonomic & Accessible Gardening | Caragh Fitzpatrick, Maine AgrAbility
Farm in the Spotlight: Assawaga FarmGardener to Gardener runs alongside MOFGA’s annual Farmer to Farmer Conference. The dual conferences will share in lunch and the presentation from Assawaga Farm. If you’re a farmer who’s interested in attending Farmer to Farmer, learn more here.
Registration details:
In addition to accessing the concurrent sessions listed above, tickets include a catered coffee/snack break and lunch, featuring products from local organic farms and food producers. Tickets do not include lodging at the Holiday Inn by the Bay. If you would like to secure lodging at the hotel, please do so through their booking website here.
Gardener to Gardener tickets are priced on a sliding scale in order to keep the event as accessible as possible while covering MOFGA’s costs. The recommended price for MOFGA members is $150. The recommended price for non-members is $175. Learn more about membership here.
A portion of proceeds from our “Bounty” ticket sales will go toward supporting “Scholarship” tickets (free/by donation tickets) for those for whom the full price of registration is a barrier to attending. To utilize a scholarship ticket, simply click on the “Scholarship” option at checkout. Scholarship tickets are first-come, first-served; and more tickets will be made available, dependent on “Bounty” ticket sales and sponsorships from community partners. To inquire about this option, email [email protected].
Registrants will receive email updates with the conference schedule, a list of ways to enjoy your time in Portland outside of the event, and other pertinent details about what to expect when attending Gardener to Gardener.
The Holiday Inn by the Bay’s conference space is ADA accessible. If you have any needs or questions related to accessibility, including interpretation or translation services, please email [email protected] and we will do our best to accommodate you.
Reach out to [email protected] with any general questions about the event."
To register:
https://www.mofga.org/event-calendar/gardener-to-gardener-2026/#SolarPunkSunday #MaineGardeners #MaineGrowers #SeedSaving #DIY #GardeningForPollinators #GardeningWorkshops
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Seed for Thought
Saturday’s mail brought the first of the season’s seed catalogs. And Saturday night it snowed. The snow was just a sugar coated dusting, but it was a reminder that winter is coming—eventually—because it is forecast to be as warm as 59F/15C by next Saturday.
But today is gray and very windy and below freezing, a perfect reason to lose myself for a little while in the seed catalog. Yes, yes, I know, the garden just finished up and James picked all the collards Friday and has them fermenting—collard kraut! It’s a thing!
My internet recipe searches told me collard kraut used to be very popular across the southern United States and some people say it is even better than sauerkraut. James has ours fermenting with some garlic and crushed red pepper. I’ll let you know how it comes out.
This is the first year I’ve ever grown collards in the garden, and they’ve been a great success. Not only did they grow well, but we enjoyed eating them too. The small leaves made it fresh into salads and as they got bigger they’d get sautéed with onions and eaten as a side dish or combined with other things like tofu scramble, lentil eggs, curry, or soup. The variety I grew was “yellow cabbage” and came from a Minnesota seed company called North Circle Seeds. I asked James whether he liked the collards enough to grow them again next year, and he said that while it took him a little while to figure out how to use them and get used to cooking with them, he did indeed like them and we should definitely grow them again. Noted!
I also grew Swiss chard for the first time this year and we liked that too. I grew “bright lights” and the plant stalks and leaf vein colors ranged from golden yellow to bright red. We generally ate the leaves while they were small, chopped up in salads, which added some lovely color. The bigger leaves sometimes ended up in a stir fry. This will also make it into next year’s garden. Yum!
Tasty and nutritious!It’s sunchoke digging time! I dug up the first bowl Saturday afternoon just from one small area in the chicken garden. There are sunchokes in the chicken garden because last year I was silly enough to plant two roots along the outside of the chain link fence thinking—actually I don’t know what I was thinking. At the end of last season I dug up half a bowl of huge roots and thought, there, I’ve got them all. Yeah, right.
This year I had even more sunchokes growing along the fence outside and inside the chicken garden. So I dug and I dug and I didn’t worry about pulling out runner roots I came across because I am sure in spring I will discover that they have spread even more.
The sunchoke patch in the main garden is enormous. There will be more bowls to come as James has time to preserve them and I have time to dig and as long as the ground is not frozen. In spring when the ground thaws I will be able to dig up more, and there will be more, because I will find out as they pop up where all the runner roots have gone to this growing season. It’s a good thing we like them.
My turn for Reaping What She Sows: How Women are Rebuilding Our Broken Food System by Nancy Matsumoto came up on Friday. So far I’ve read the first chapter, “Black Mutual Aid, From the Rural South the Urban Northeast,” and it is fantastic.
As with everything in U.S. history, Black farmers have been, and continue to be, discriminated against. You can read a very good and succinct history in this September 2019 Atlantic article (gift link), The Great Land Robbery: The shameful story of how 1 million black families have been ripped from their farms.
Matsumoto tells pieces of this history in her storytelling about a number of women farmers who have created cooperatives, training and helping Black farmers acquire land, seed, and fair prices through a cooperative distribution network. The women and their stories are inspiring and full of lessons on how to support regenerative farming outside a white-supremacist agri-capitalist system.
Matsumoto is familiar with cooperatives. Her Japanese grandparents were interred during World War II and her grandfather helped create a cooperative network in the internment camps. This network became the second largest consumer co-op in the United States. Given the political and economic situation in the United States currently, I suspect we will be seeing more cooperatives and mutual aid societies popping up all over the country in the coming years.
Throughout history women have been the seed keepers, carefully saving and preserving seeds from season to season and generation to generation. A few years ago I read a wonderful novel called The Seed Keeper by Diane Wilson. It is the story of a current day Dakota woman who is gifted a cache of seeds saved by her ancestors when they ran from being attacked by U.S. troops. It is a story of healing and renewal. I was reminded of this novel while reading the first chapter of Reaping What She Sows because one of the women she profiles is a seed keeper and works for Truelove Seeds, an heirloom seed company that offers culturally important seeds.
Of course I had to look at their offerings, and wow! If you want to read more about the company, The Sierra Club has a great article about them, The Preservation of Culture Begins With a Seed I am definitely going to try and grow green striped cushaw squash! And they also have Korean hong-gochu peppers so I can make kimchi and even collard-chi next year.
The next chapter of the book is about rebuilding the grain economy. Looking forward to learning even more!
While I am on the subject of seeds, I have been a fan of Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds and bought seeds from them many times through the years. But in the last few months I’ve found out that as wholesome as they advertise themselves to be, this is not the case. In 2019 they invited a white supremacist to speak at their spring planting festival. After much uproar, they uninvited him, but issued no statement of apology or anything that I was able to discover. I have also heard that they steal seeds from indigenous peoples and then rename them and don’t acknowledge where they really came from, though I am unable to find direct confirmation of that. However, just last year the tomato they had on the cover of their catalog turned out to be a recently released GMO variety they sold as non-GMO. They said their seed came from France and they tested it and the results were inconclusive. Nonetheless, they pulled it from their stock and destroyed all the seeds.
Along with just discovering Truelove Seeds, I learned a few months ago about Native Seed Search and there is also Bertie County Seeds I just found out about. I generally buy seeds from Fedco who tell you exactly where the seeds come from (corporate grower, independent farmer, etc) and also credit and pay indigenous communities for their seeds. There is also Seed Savers Exchange. And then, as I mentioned earlier, North Circle Seeds, a small independent Minnesota seed company that sells varieties that will grow in my climate.
I guess I am getting a lesson in seed keeping and seed companies that I hadn’t thought much about before. Seeds are more than hybrid, open-pollinated, heirloom, GMO, organic. It’s important to know their origins and to make sure the people who have stewarded them are acknowledged and compensated. For some reason I always believed this was the case, but it turns out to be otherwise.
#collardKraut #collards #cooperatives #firstSnow #NorthCircleSeeds #seedCatalogs #seedKeepers #seedSaving #seeds #sunchokes #swissChard #TrueloveSeeds
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#Wabanaki group restoring 245-acre farm in #SwanvilleME as food hub
#Niweskok, a Wabanaki-led #FoodSovereignty organization, recently bought the farm to aid its work reinvigorating traditional crops and land management.by Gillian Graham, May 8, 2025
"A Wabanaki-led food sovereignty organization recently acquired a 245-acre farm in Swanville, marking the return of Wabanaki stewardship to ancestral lands in the Penobscot Bay region.
"Niweskok: From the #StarsToSeeds, a collaboration of Wabanaki #FoodAndMedicine providers, has focused for years on reinvigorating #TraditionalCrops and #LandManagement strategies, distributing #TraditionalFoods and hosting workshops. But they did not have a permanent land base until buying the farm." 'Now, with this land, we have permanency of place — and the ability to continue this work for generations to come,' said #AliviaMoore, a #PenobscotNation citizen and Niweskok co-director.
"Niweskok (which translates to 'dried seeds for planting' in the Penobscot language) raised more than $1.8 million in just three months to buy the farm, which had been used to raise cattle and board horses. The group continues to raise money toward its $3 million capital campaign goal.
"Acquiring the land in January was a major step toward restoring the #PenobscotBay region as a Wabanaki food hub and allows Indigenous communities to reconnect with #TraditionalFoodways, #medicines and #ecological #stewardship. Niweskok sees the land as an intergenerational center where Wabanaki values of care, reciprocity and sustainability can flourish.
Moore said the land will allow Niweskok to go much deeper in its food production work. The group’s plans for the land include educational programming, #SeedSaving, #WildHarvesting and cultural camps."Moore said the land itself would determine the name of the farm. The farm was selected because it is close to the ocean and Penobscot territory.
'Penobscot people have been, through the process of #colonization and #genocide, thoroughly removed from coastal access,' Moore said. 'So for us to truly have healthful economies, healthful social structures and political systems, we need to be able to engage in our coastal ecology.'"The land, with access to the #GooseRiver, includes agricultural #fields, 140 acres of #forest, #wetlands and ponds. There are miles of riding trails through the woods, which Niweskok staff will map and decide which to maintain and whether more are needed for waterway access.
"Niweskok staff members have been preparing the soil for future planting and harvesting. Moore has been working on a 1-acre welcome garden that includes #perennials, #FruitTrees, #SweetGrass, #blueberries and other plants. Last week, she planted 70 #asparagus seedlings and 35 #rhubarb plants.
"Plans also are underway to spruce up a #farmstand where Niweskok will share #FreeProduce with neighbors.
"Moore has also been focused on working to restore the forests as #FoodForests — a process that will take years — and has started selective cutting to support existing #hazelnut groves and #BlackCherries.
"Niweskok will also create outdoor classrooms for community members to engage with the land, including demonstrations on plantings and #agroforestry techniques.
" 'An outdoor kitchen is one of our high-priority areas because so much of our time and how we want to support our community is being with our foods and outside as much as possible,' Moore said. 'Cooking over open fire is not only a way we want to engage with folks, but an important, culturally significant and really beautiful way to be together.'"Niweskok this month was awarded the #EspyHeritageAward from the #MaineCoastHeritageTrust, an annual award that recognizes those who make outstanding contributions to #LandConservation while inspiring others. It was the first time the award was given to an #Indigenous-led group.
"Angela Twitchell, director of partnerships and public policy for Maine Coast Heritage Trust, said Niweskok’s work to restore the Penobscot Bay region as a Wabanaki food hub is 'an inspiring example of how land conservation is evolving.'
"For decades starting in the 1950s, land conservation was centered on ecological and species protection and protecting lands from people and development. It has since evolved to center its work in community, Twitchell said.
" '(Niweskok’s) work embodies resilience and a deep commitment to healing and nourishing both the land and the community,' she said. 'The collaborative work between #LandTrusts and Niweskok stands as a model to be replicated.'
"Moore said the award acknowledges the leadership of Niweskok, and added that other incredible Wabanaki-led land work is happening in the region. Moore hopes the award indicates that Maine conservation groups will continue to find ways to support Wabanaki leadership in conservation.
"Having the land has been a 'beautiful invitation' for the #NonWabanaki community 'to support Wabanaki food sovereignty and be in support of our leadership in care of the land,' Moore said."Archived version:
https://archive.md/Ii0au#WabanakiConfederacy
#MaineFirstNations #LandBack #FoodSecurity #FoodSovereignty #sovereignty #Wabanakik #WabanakiAlliance #Decolonize #SolarPunkSunday #LandStewards #stewardship #NatureEducation #Foraging #Maine #IndigenousPeoplesDay -
This programme went out on Christmas Day on the radio in Ireland, a fine tribute to a great woman, proud of my contribution #seedsaving #foodsovereignty #seedsovereignty #irishseedsaversassociation #anitahayes #openpollinated #ClimateDiary
https://www.newstalk.com/podcasts/newstalk-documentary/groundbreaker-anita-hayes?utm_source=whatsapp&utm_campaign=article&utm_medium=web -
"Currently more than 60% of the world’s commercial seeds are sold by just four companies, which have led the push to patent seeds, orchestrated a global monopoly of certain GM crops such as cotton and soya and sued hundreds of small-scale farmers for saving seeds from commercial crops."
#HannahEllisPetersen, 2023
#CorporateGreed #GE #GM #patents #FoodPatents #seeds #SeedSaving
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I have #Lunaria, aka silver dollar, aka honesty, tattooed on me, but have not yet managed to get the plant to grow in my yard. I snapped off a few sprigs from plants spotted in my neighborhood, and just a few minutes of cleaning produced a generous amount of seeds. #SeedSaving
