We growing many different things in Western North Carolina to explore what could be grown in a more diverse food and farming system. In our farm work we explore emerging crops for this region as well as variety trials for traditional crops. Diversity and experimentation is at our core!
Crop Stories is our way of speaking about, educating and celebrating the crops that we are working with. Crop Stories includes a crop-specific event series, a crop-specific magazine and a supporting podcast, with a high degree of synergy between these three platforms.
Β Collective responsibility, sharing of knowledge and seed, protection from private enclosure, and distributed, polycentric governance are key features of Seed Commons. Equitable and open-source seed work is at the center of everything we do.
The Utopian Seed Project grows a wide range of crops and varieties with the aim of increasing agrobiodiversity into the food and farming system. We host food focused events and partner with incredible local chefs to showcase the crops weβre working with.
This project traveled across 12 states and interviewed over 50 farmers, community gardeners, seed savers, seed growers and seed advocates. The footage was weaved together to tell the story and seed saving of six southern crops: corn, okra, southern peas, collards, sweet potatoes and squash.
Our emerging seed growers collective had our first Community Seed Processing Day, cleaning seeds from local seed growers. The equipment we have in our mobile seed processing trailer will help scale seed growing in the region, making it more realistic for farmers to grow and sell seeds π
#seedgrowing #seedfarmers #seedsaving #seeds #seedcleaning
Winged beans (Psophocarpus tetragonolobus) are forming pods. This is a good example of finding the right variety. Last year we had beautiful lush foliage (which is edible) but not a single flower. The variety had a day length trigger on flowering that meant it frosted before we got flowers. This year @laughingspringsfarm shared a variety described as day length neutral and we have late season flowers and pods forming. This southeast Asian legume is prized for its nutrition, multipart use and disease resistance. Excited for the tastings to come!
#wingedbean #legumediversity