Apr 30, 2015


by Dawn Morden, the Mountain Grove Seed Company

Seed saving is an integral part of agriculture. People have been saving seeds for thousands of years. Seeds from wild plants were collected and grown again and again over time. The plants evolved into the foods that we eat today. For example, the wild relative of cabbage evolved to become collards, and then later, cabbage. Cabbage plants then further evolved to form broccoli and cauliflower. Our ancestors saved their seeds; it is how they grew their food. These seeds were special.

Seeds are living organisms, they are alive. They adapt to the external conditions and climate of where they grow. As a result, saving seeds from your garden improves the performance, strength, quality, yield and resilience of your plants. Seeds are disappearing. Today, 19 types of vegetables have 25% fewer varieties than there were in existence 30 years ago. For example, there are now 97 fewer types of cauliflower then there were in 1981. Seed diversity is absolutely necessary for food security. Different varieties of the same vegetable perform differently from each other. The more seed diversity that exists, the better our chances are to grow our food successfully, especially in today's changing and unpredictable environment. Seed extinction is a real threat to our existence. There are over 50,000 species of plants at risk of extinction today.

Fortunately, there is increasing awareness with regards to the importance of seed diversity. Farmers and gardeners everywhere are working together to preserve our seeds, and our heritage. Seed banks, co-ops and libraries are being created by many communities locally, nationally and internationally. These community seed saving initiatives and regional seed systems are critical to food security, seed sovereignty and to our resilience as people on this planet. Locally, the Kingston Area Seed Saving Initiative is working towards creating a sustainable system of locally grown, quality seeds for farmers and gardeners. No single person can save every variety of seed. Collaborative efforts are imperative to the preservation of seed diversity. If each of us saves our seed from one variety of one vegetable each year, together we can save thousands of varieties from extinction. Saving seeds cuts costs of gardening, develops better seed, and allows us to participate in the glorious cycle of life. Seed companies often change the particular seeds they sell, and someday, you may be the only one who has the variety of seeds that you have been saving.

It is important to consider the type of seed you are growing when you are saving seeds. Seeds from heirloom and open pollinated plants will grow new plants exactly like the previous ones. These are the seeds that we need to save. Hybrids are mixes of different kinds of seeds. Seeds saved from hybrids will not grow plants that are the same. Use only heirloom or open pollinated seeds for seed saving.

To learn more about seed saving and how to grow, save, clean and care for your seeds, visit www.mountaingroveseed.com.

 

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