Select Page
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.
We are currently envisioning the future of the Heirloom Collard Project (@heirloomcollards) and want your feedback! If you are able, please help us create a collective vision for the Heirloom Collard Project by filling out the short survey linked in our bio.
By filling out this survey you will provide us with valuable insight and be entered to win a giveaway for some collard goodies.
Prizes include:
1) @workingfoodgnv canvas collard tote bag + packet of Utopian Ultracross seeds
2) Seeds + garlic goodies from @southernexposureseed
3) Collard poster from @utopianseedproject
4) Special collection collard seeds + Seed Garden book from @seed_savers_exchange
Your feedback will help us shape the future of the Heirloom Collard Project which we hope to be a community initiative. Feel free to share this survey with anyone you think might be interested.
Wishing you all a fruitful fall season!
All the best,
The Heirloom Collard Project Team
#Collards
It's always the best ones you slice in half! Excited to be digging the @newsproutorganicfarms sponsored purple sweet potato trial 💜
We have 9 different purples that we're looking at and will be measuring brix levels as well as good old taste testing!
New Sprout also have two of their own growers growing some of these purples, so hopefully we'll get some good feedback to share!
More to come.
#sweetpotatoes
#purplesweetpotato
Look at the difference between A. caillei (West African Okra) and A. esculentus (Common Okra) in the late season. A. caillei is still fully green leaved and flowering, but most A. esculentus are long done!
#Okra #westafricanokra #tuspokra
I've gone a bit crazy making okra petiole straws, they're the perfect byproduct from harvesting and using the leaves, which are the byproduct from growing okra for the pods! Use the whole plant 💚
#thewholeokra #okra #tuspokra #seedtostem
Kind of a new twist on, corn on the cob...!
I also wonder if this counts as a germination test?
#Corn
Chayote (Sechium edule) aka Mirliton. Many people fail to grow chayote this far north because most varieties don't start flowering until way too late in the season. We've been growing this variety for a few years and it begins flowering towards the end of August and can be very productive!
This year Michael Fortune (@gardenus_maximus) grew this variety as part of our Growing Partner work to get more farmers on board with some of the crops we're working with. Many people ask about buying chayote and I'm pleased to say that Michael has surplus to sell direct.
These are large, fully grown fruit, suitable for winter storage and planting next year (each fruit contains a single seed - it'll sprout over the spring / winter, and you plant the whole thing in May!). He's selling at $5 a fruit or 3 for $12. Collection in West Asheville.
Email: greenhillurbanfarm@gmail.com to arrange payment and pickup.
#Chayote #mirliton #tuspchayote
Harvesting some okra leaves for @thechefsfarmer plus petioles for okra straws!
#Okra
Celosia argentea aka Laos Spinach. Last year I left these beautiful flowers on the plants for too long and the seeds were all gone by the time I pulled them in for seed saving. This year I have learned my lesson and I'm snipping off the partially dried flowers as they develop, there's still lots of beauty in the field but I'm also managing to save a lot of seeds! I'm pretty hopeful that these will make it onto my patreon thank you list this winter.
#celosia #laosspinach #communitysupported #patreon
1. Moody Okra (A. caillei)
2. A. manihot (Aibika, Bele)
3. A. tetraphyllus, maybe A. manihot subsp tetraphyllus var. tetraphyllus
4 + 5. A. moschatus subsp moschatus (ie not the pink flowering one!) finally flowering
#Okra #okrafamily
Today we harvested cassava with board member Brandon Ruiz (@yucayekefarms). Brandon knows and loves this plant and it was fun to dig roots, strip leaves and talk about food and recipes and culture. Brandon is going to document a few different preparations, which we'll share with you all once they're online! If anyone local wants to cook with the leaves then I have plenty to share...
#cassava #manihot #yuca
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
