Appendix to Seeds of Rebirth

This is additional information to Wendy Johnson’s “Seeds of Rebirth” article in the Spring 2011 issue of Tricycle.

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Seed CompaniesBaker Creek Heirloom Seeds
www.rareseeds.com
2278 Baker Creek Road
Mansfield, MO 65704
417-924-8917Offers open-pollinated natural and non GMO seeds. I love this company. They recently opened The Seed Bank in an old bank building in Petaluma California. They offer an excellent selection of heirloom varieties.

Ecology Action—Bountiful Gardens
www.bountifulgardens.org
5798 Ridgewood Road
Willits, CA 95490
tel: (707) 459-6410

I have been connected to this company since it began. They offer untreated open-pollinated heirloom seeds and an excellent array of informative publications.

Fedco Seeds
PO Box 520, Waterville, ME 04903
(207) 873-7333
www.fedcoseeds.com/

Fedco Seeds is an excellent source for cold-hardy selections especially adapted to the Northeast climate. They offer a large selection of certified organic cultivars and regional heirloom varieties.

High Mowing Organic Seeds
www.highmowingseeds.com
76 Quarry Road
Wolcott, VT 05685
802-472-6174

Green Gulch Farm plants a wide range of varieties from this farm-based family owned company that offers certified organic, heirloom, and open-pollinated seeds.

J.L. Hudson Ethnobotanical Catalog of Seeds
www.JLHudsonSeeds.net
Star Route 2, Box 337
La Honda, CA 94020
(no telephone)

Amazing catalog with seed stories. This catalog cannot be described – just order it!

Johnny’s Selected Seeds
www.JohnnySeeds.com
Foss Hill Road
Albion, Maine 04910-97310
tel: (207) 437-4305

Employee-owned producer and merchant, Johnnie’s offers a wide variety of certified organic seeds.

Navdanya
www.navdanya.org 

Navdanya is a network of seed keepers and organic producers spread across 16 states in India. Navdanya has helped set up 54 community seed banks across the country, trained over 500,000 farmers in seed sovereignty, food sovereignty, and sustainable agriculture, and helped set up the largest direct marketing, fair trade organic network in India. The founder, Dr. Vandana Shiva, is an internationally renowned scientist, author, eco-feminist and activist. The author of many books, her most recent is Stolen Harvest: The Hijacking of the Global Food Supply.

Native Seeds/SEARCH
www.nativeseeds.org
526 N. 4th Ave.
Tucson,AZ 85705
tel: (520) 622-5561

A non-profit organization that conserves and distributes diverse varieties of seed from the American Southwest and northwest Mexico.

Nichols Garden Nursery
www.nicholsgardennursery.com
1190 North Pacific Highway
Albany, OR 97321-4580
tel: (541) 928-9280

This family-operated business has been offering open-pollinated and hybrid seed appropriate to the Pacific Northwest for decades.

Rene’s Garden Seeds
www.reneesgarden.com
6060 Graham Hill Rd. Suite A
Felton, CA 95018
tel: 888-880-7228

Some of my most trusted garden colleagues have worked at this small seed company, which offers heirloom, open-pollinated and hybrid seeds.

Seed Savers Exchange
www.seedsavers.org
3076 North Winn Road
Decorah, IA 52101
tel/fax: (563) 382-5990

This preeminent non-profit organization is dedicated front and center to preserving and offering access to a vast range of heirloom seeds.

Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
www.southernexposure.com
PO Box 170
Earlysville,VA 22936
tel: (804) 973-4703

This wonderful company emphasizes seed varieties adapted to the mid-Atlantic region. No GMO seeds.

Territorial Seed Company
www.TerritorialSeed.com
PO Box 157
Cottage Grove, OR
tel: (541) 942-9547

Focusing on the Pacific Northwest, Territorial Seed specializes in organic, open-pollinated seeds appropriate for cold climates.

Turtle Tree Seeds
www.turtletreeseeds.com
Camp Hill Village
Copake, New York 12516
888-516-7797

For inspiration, please research the work of the Camp Hill Village movement. They have an excellent lunar calendar called “Stella Natura” which comes out of their Kimberton Hills biodynamic farm. The website iswww.camphillkimberton.org. Turtle Tree offers biodynamically grown and Demeter certified non GMO seed.

Wild Garden Seed
www.wildgardenseed.com
Shoulder to Shoulder Farm
Box 1509
Philomath, OR 97370
tel: (541) 929-4068

Deep gratitude to the work of Frank Morton and the extended team of extraordinary growers and seeds people based in this organic seed company in the Pacific Northwest.

The Safe Seed Pledge

“Agriculture and seeds provide the basis upon which our lives depend. We must protect this foundation as a safe and genetically stable source for future generations. For the benefit of all farmers, gardeners and consumers who want an alternative, we pledge that we do not knowingly buy or sell genetically engineered seeds or plants. The mechanical transfer of genetic material outside of natural reproductive methods and between genera, families or kingdoms poses great biological risks, as well as economic, political and cultural threats. We feel that genetically engineered varieties have been insufficiently tested prior to public release. More research and testing is necessary to further assess the potential risks of genetically engineered seeds. Further, we wish to support agricultural progress that leads to healthier soils, genetically diverse agricultural ecosystems and ultimately healthy people and communities.”

Here is the full text of sarajane’s seed poem (Sarajane Snyder)

all life moves from seed to seed

10,000 years ago the first farmer ancestors were born.
and they were born of seed.

think of a seed:
—a spark, speck, a dash, a peck, a pip—

a living plant being!
10,000 years ago, a wild kernel foraged

still & silent, coiled in masterful casing
oily, dense & rich

yet foraged not for eating,
but for burying in the earth.

foraged not for roaming,
but for settling.

the ripe kernel, now buried,
awaits the perfect balance of elements

fire heats, wind moves
water wets, earth is solid

and it springs forth! no longer still,
life energy shoots up & out, roots down & in

creation is unleashed

green stalks thrust upward, buds unfurl into flower, fruits swell with seed;
seed drops, is buried, awaits, and springs forth!

stalks thrust,  flowers unfurl, fruit swells,
seed drops, is buried, awaits, and springs forth!

thrust unfurl swell
drop bury await spring forth!

again and again and again
the earth inhales winter and exhales spring,

cultivation of plants and culture of man become inseparable,
we bring in our gods, our dead, our poetic sensibilities,
we bring in our keen senses, our powerful minds, our clever tools.

we bring in our greed, our wars, our impatience,

and now, on this day of seed sowing,
we bring in our deep memory, our  oldest urge for wild abundance,
and we sow seeds in the name of life
in the name of interconnectedness
and in the name of all beings.