Another reason to save seeds

heirloom broomcorn seed from Dancing Bear Farm

The seed industry, like so much of our economic system, has become increasingly consolidated and controlled by corporations.  Dr. Phil Howard, a Professor at Michigan State who is known in the food systems world for his infographics, has released a new image showing this consolidation:

(click on image to enlarge)

Small-scale, open-pollinated, organic seed growers can be important activists in resistance to this consolidation because they often sell to independent heirloom seed companies and are preserving unique varieties that larger corporations care little about.  Thanks seed savers!

North Georgia

We harvested and began processing the North Georgia winter squash seed crop this past week.

 

 

Wet seed processing at DBF

Seeds!

We are now in the time of year that I’m calling “harvest”- not because harvest doesn’t happen before or after this time, but because much of our time is spent harvesting crops. The summer fruits (like tomatoes and peppers) are ripening with increasing frequency. In addition to edible crops, we’re doing a lot of seed harvests. I’ve described a few different methods of seed harvest and cleaning, but so far they have all been seeds that require a “dry” processing. I’ve now learned about seeds that require a “wet” processing.

We use wet seed processing for our tomatoes, melons, and cucumbers. These crops produce seeds that are enclosed in gelatinous sacks; the seed must be released from the flesh (using water- hence the term “wet”) in order for it be cleaned and dried.

Cucumber seeds in their casings

The process for wet seeding at DBF (with some recent photos) is basically as follows:

Step 1: Harvest crop at full maturity.

Green Apple cukes with mature seeds

Step 2: Remove seeds (with attached flesh) from the fruit. In melons and cucumbers, this involves cutting them in half and using a spoon to scoop the seeds out. In tomatoes, this involves smashing the tomatoes by hand to release the seeds from the inside.

Scooping seeds out of Rich Sweetness melons

Scooping seeds out of Green Apple cucumbers

We use a bat to smash Sun Gold tomatoes

Step 3: Mix seed-pulp mixture with water in a tall bucket.

Step 4: Let the seeds sit in the juicy water. Over time, this mixture of flesh and water will ferment and eat away at the gel casing surrounding the seeds. Tomatoes ferment for a few days, while melons and cucumbers ferment for about one day.  Viable seeds will sink to the bottom of the bucket, while nonviable seeds will float to the top.

Tomatoes get a crusty, moldy layer when fermenting (the fruit flies love it)

Step 5: Pour the water, nonviable seeds, and other residue out of the bucket.   When poured out properly, the viable seeds will remain at the bottom of the bucket and everything else will drain out. This process normally takes multiple pours, refilling the bucket with water each time.

Cleaning tomato seeds

Pouring water & nonviable seeds out of seed bucket

Step 6: Clean remaining seeds with water and let them dry completely.

Rinsing tomato seeds

DBF's seed drying racks

Step 7: Package seeds for next year's planting and for sending off to seed companies.

Rich Sweetness melon seeds ready to send to the seed company

Recent photos

Seed crops

green grape tomatoes, rich sweetness melons, sun gold tomatoes, chimayo peppers, marigolds:

 tulsi:

lettuce drying in the barn:

Ukranian tomato:

processing chimayo peppers:

black corn:

Food crops (including tomatoes & watermelon, for humans and other animals)

cherry tomatoes:

bulk tomatoes:

watermelons:

 

Wylie eating watermelon:

 

chickens eating watermelon:

Farm Tours Part 2

It’s time for another installment of Rogue Farm Corps farm tours.  I’ve been enjoying these farm tours and the topics discussed by the farmers.

Animal Husbandry & Dairy @ By George Farm

After having experience working in restaurants and interning on other farms in the Rogue Valley, Tyson and Johnny decided to start their own farming venture.  They plan to focus on rotationally grazed animals and currently have a raw milk herdshare as well as many laying chickens.  Raw milk cheese will soon become a sizable component of the business as well.  It was neat to learn about how animals can be used for a healthy whole-farm system.  I also stayed to watch some of the evening milking of the cows and goat in order to learn the basics of milking.

a chicken pen for rotational grazing

eclectic chickens

milking time

Rise Up!/Full Bloom

Full Bloom is an intentional community in the Little Applegate Valley started by a group of people who met when they were apprentices at the Zen Center in Marin, California.  The community owns land that they garden and farm on.  As an important income source, Full Bloom also runs Rise Up! Bakery, an artisan bread business that focuses on using organic and local flours (they make very tasty bread).  Some members of the Full Bloom community have years of experience in collective living and had some useful advice on what makes communities successful.

Medium-Scale Production & Post-Harvest Handling @ Blue Fox Farm

Blue Fox Farmhas over 30 acres of land.  They keep at least 15 acres of that in production at one time and focus on building the soil on the rest of the land.  While Blue Fox started their business by selling at farmers markets, to restaurants, and through a CSA, after having kids they switched to a different system.  They now sell the majority of their produce as wholesale to local food coops and to Organically Grown (a regional organic produce distributor).  Because of the move towards wholesale operation, it is important for Blue Fox to have their GAP (Good Agricultural Practices) certification, which involves having special procedures in harvest and post-harvest handling to mitigate food borne pathogens.  Learning about their post-harvest handling procedures reminded me of my work last summer with Adelante Mujeres, where I helped construct and harvest and post-harvest handling guide for La Esperanza Distributor.

greenhouse peppers

wash & pack station

extra large salad spinners

Apple Orchards @ Thompson Creek Organics

This orchard is run by a couple that had little agricultural experience prior to buying the property (which came with an orchard), and now they run a successful agricultural business!  Thompson Creek has 7.5 acres of apple trees of many varieties.  Over time, they have grafted new varieties onto existing trees that have varying ripening times, taste, and pest/disease resistance.  In addition to selling fresh apples at markets and to independent grocers and cooperatives, Thompson Creek also sells apple cider.  They’re now starting to move into the realm of hard cider, a good value-added product.

touring the fields

apple scab (a common fungus problem)

an extra big cider press

Medicinal Herbs @ Herb Pharm

Herb Pharm was founded in 1979 and is now a relatively well-known liquid herbal extract company.  They have a 25 acre farm in Williams that supplies the majority of the herbs needed for the tinctures, which are made just down the road.  Other herbs are purchased from local farms, and some herbs that do not grow in the southern Oregon climate and must be sourced from other locations around the world.  The naturally-occurring medicinal properties in herbs make them a potentially high-value crop and they can also be farmed in sustainable ways. 

an herb pharm tincture

As we start into the final stretch of the season, there are a few remaining classes including Business 101, Permaculture & Biodynamics, and Seeds (at DBF!).