The Utopian Seed Project
Celebrating diversity in food and farming through crop and variety trials in the Southeast.
The Utopian Seed Project is a hands in the earth non-profit committed to trialing crops and varieties in the Southeast to support diversity in food and farming. Our utopian vision is to create an engaged network of growers, gardeners, farmers, foodies, cooks and chefs to help educate and celebrate this diversity. We are based in Asheville, NC and are working towards an overarching vision to create food sovereignty in the face of climate change through diverse and regenerative agriculture.
Crop Trial Focus Areas
Exploring Varietal Diveristy in Southern Crops
We are conducting crop variety trials for traditional southern crops to explore the diversity on offer. It’s exciting to realize that the genetic diversity within many crops can give us culinary and climate resilient opportunities.
Tropical Perennials Grown As Temperate Annuals
We are experimenting with growing crops that are native to the tropics, but with some additional care can thrive and provide diverse food in our region. This is an exciting area of crop research with some incredible culinary and potential.
Promoting Underutilized Edibles as Food Crops
We are growing and assessing some of the many wild, native and underutlized food crops yet to be explored or fully appreciated. With some simple selection or breeding work, many of these crops could offer great culinary promise.
In 2020, The People’s Seed joined forces with The Utopian Seed Project. The People’s Seed is the legacy organization of a legendary seed and farming advocate, Tony Kleese. Tony recognized the need to develop a new system for a fair and open seed industry to ensure a sustainable, climate adapted food system for the future. Learn more about our ongoing work HERE.
Flowers at the farm!
1. Achira (aka Canna edulis) is flowering on our variety that we started from seeds from @feels_like_far. We're assuming it's a diploid form of Canna edulis because it reportedly grows true to seed. Picture 2 is the seed pods forming, so I guess we'll know more next year!!
3. Marshmallow (Althaea officinalis) from @experimentalfarmnetwork
4. Tinker Ridge Musk Mallow (Malva moschata) also from @experimentalfarmnetwork
5. Minghong 8234 Kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinum) - this one is interesting because only one plant is producing flowers (the rest aren't even budding) and another has totally different leaf form. Also from @experimentalfarmnetwork !
6. Final picture is Sesame (Sesamum indicum) grown from seeds we've saved but originally from Monticello.
#seedsaving #farming #flowers
Sporting my vintage @sowtrueseed tshirt while checking in on this Blue Ridge White Capped dent corn I've been working on with Sow True Seed. Original seed came from the USDA and displayed some large, heavily rowed cobs. I've been selecting for the biggest cobs and healthiest plants (we had pretty severe lodging in the beginning). This is only year three, so early days, but it's fun to work with such a big plant 😊
I've also got a tasty white WNC Market Greasy Bean climbing these stalks 💚
Note: it's hot and I cycled here and it's hot 🥵
#corn #seeds #seedsaving #dentcorn #heirloom #heirloomcorn #tuspcorn #seedselection #plantbreeding #farming #beans #beanseed #greasybean
Some fun from the okra field with @lovesomegreen
The okra doesn't know that Jordan's Research Assistantship comes to an end in a few weeks 😢 It's just beginning to hit it's stride with this wet and warm weather!
Seeing Jordan happy in the okra field reminds me to thank Ira Wallace and @southernexposureseed for making this amazing opportunity possible for Jordan and our project, and a big thanks to supporting sponsors @row7seeds and the @nellnewman Foundation.
We have 100 cultivars and are documenting their observable traits. Looking forward to sharing the database this fall. Next week is pod photo shoot 📸
If anyone wants to come help harvest okra then your work will be rewarded (with okra!). We also only have $25 and 4 days left on our micro fundraiser, so check that out too 💜
#okra #farming #okrafarm #farmlife #growokra #eatokra #moreokra #cropdiversity #varietydiversity #harvest #communitysupported
Super fun day today (didn't do much work... but lots of fun)! In the morning I drove out to Two Sided Farm in Mars Hill with @lovesomegreen to check on our okra planting and taro and southern peas. Then I cycled out to @gaininggroundfarm to meet @foodordeath_ - they are growing some Greasy Beans for Ashleigh and a variety of okra that I'm interested in. Then we both headed to @frannysfarm to meet @chefkatiebutton to talk through our upcoming panel discussion at the @chowchow_avl Trial to Table dinner on Aug 14 (@yucayekefarms and @thechefsfarmer will be joining us on that panel). Then Ashleigh and I walked around the farm looking at food options for her upcoming collaboration dinner with @hseanbrock and we checked out the Roselle greens (Jamaican Sorrel) and the Nigerian/Lagos Spinach aka Celosia argentea as possible ingredients. Then I cycled home and checked to see if my newly built solar dehydrator was working in the rain 🌧️
Didn't take many photos but here's Ashleigh Shanti harvesting some test greens of Celosia and Roselle!
#farming #eating #trialtotable #celosia #sorrel #kindofwork
@lovesomegreen and I are pretty sure this is the butt and hindlegs of Ptilothrix bombiformis aka Rose-mallow Bee aka the Okra Bee.
A solitary east coast native ground dwelling bee that helps out with okra pollination (and many other mallows). We'll try to get a better shot 📸
Hanging out in our okra row at Two Sided Farm!
#okra #okraflower #okrabee
Some photos from the farm today!
1. Sesame is starting to flower.
2. 5 rice varieties are in various stages of grain production. Exciting considering they've been growing in very dry weather with no irrigation!
3. Togo cassava for @yucayekefarms
4. Some of the peppers from @simon.fraher
5. Buckwheat and sunflowers (about to bloom) for beauty
6. Taro is finally putting on some growth
7. Cown Corn for @sowtrueseed is starting to cob
8. Celosia to the left and Roselle to the right!
#experimentalfarm #tuspsesame #corn #cassava #croptrials #taro #farming #gardening #seeds #seedsaving
We're in the thick of our growing season at the moment and don't have a lot of time for fundraising. That's one of the things that makes our Patreon supporters so valuable - a broad community base of monthly micro-donations that truly help us in the work we're doing 💚
If you're interested, check out the link in our bio. We have levels starting at $3 a month.
#communitysupported #philanthropy #patronage #patreon #fundraising #nonprofit #501c3
Winnowing a heavy seed like these southern peas is so satisfying and really easy. The heavy seeds fall into the container while all the lighter chaff (and any dud seeds) get blown clear. One pass and we had super clean seeds!!
We're creating a seed saving educational series with a Southern SARE grant which will be full of info for on farm seed saving (working with Communal Studios for 📽️ skills).
#seedsaving #southernpeas #winnowing #seeds
Partnered up with @nowandzenfarm (@carolinafarms new Communications Coordinator) to help film some seed saving videos for her upcoming series with @organicgrowersschool.
It worked well for us because we're also working on a Southern SARE grant to create a southern crop and farm focused educational video series! More to follow on this 📽️
#seedsaving #saveyourseeds #seeds #heirlooms #openpollinated
As the vines of this year's Dioscorea alata (white yam and #ube) reach above our 20ft trellis, we're also working with last year's harvest to make ube flour in preparation for @thechefsfarmer's @chowchow_avl dish (one of them) that he'll be serving at our upcoming #TrialtoTable dinner @frannysfarm (ticket link via our bio).
Scroll through to see the beautiful transformation from mucilaginous tuber to lavender flour. This is a traditional crop in the Philippines and we've already been in contact with @salamatdough
who may need a local ube grower somewhere near Durham...
Thanks to Zoe for dehydration assistance.
#experimentalfarm #experimentalroots #tuspube #tusptrueyam #trueyam #dioscorea
The Experimental Farm Notebook
We’ll be publishing updates throughout the growing season so you can stay up to date with what we’re up to and how the experiments are going. This will be an informal narrative of our highs and lows, successes and failures, with photos and fun facts!
Thanks to our Sustaining Sponsors
