691: Seed Harvesting.

A chat with an expert on seeds.

 

At least ten times a year we have a live Seed Saving Class with Bill McDorman, the former Executive Director of Rocky Mountain Seed Alliance, Ketchum, Idaho. He got his start in the bio-regional seed movement while in college in 1979 when he helped start Garden City Seeds. In 1984, Bill started Seeds Trust/High Altitude Gardens, a mail order seed company he ran successfully until it sold in 2013. 

Come join us for the next live class, or catch up on our previous classes through our podcast episodes.  Either way you will expand your seed knowledge and gain new perspectives on your food system.

Register anytime for the next event.
Register Here for the Monthly Seed Saving Class with Live Q&A

In This Seed Chat:

This is the July 2022 class discussing seed harvesting.  Before you know it, all your crops will be going to seed. Rather than deadhead and “clean everything up,” learn how to be your own best seed detective. What are the characteristics of the plants from which you should be saving seed? How do you decide when and how to harvest your seeds? What are some simple strategies that can be applied to most plants when saving for seed? What are the benefits from saving your own, locally cultivated and adapted seed?

 


CHAT HIGHLIGHTS:

– Get your seeds from as close to your own yard as possible – Start with open pollinated, non-hybrid seeds if you buy – Interesting ideas for things to look for when saving seeds – The explosive process of dehiscing – Wet processing seeds – Solving the problem of seeds sticking to a paper towel when drying seeds – Don’t worry about the seeds that fall.  They will often reseed themselves. – What to do before collecting seeds on state or national land – Knowing when to harvest seeds – The seeds that Bill bought – You don’t need to know the name of the plant! – Seek by iNaturalist – an app to help identify plants, birds, animals, and insects – Reading about the history of seed saving:  Look for books by William Woys Weaver and The Seed Detective published by Chelsea green – Tomatoes are a great start – here’s how to do it – Can you pick up the seeds that fell on the ground? – What is the best thing to store seeds in? – Dry card – an exciting new seed saving tool! – Letting potatoes flower and go to seed – How many varieties needed to create a good grex – Show us some love at urbanfarm.org/donate
 Click Here for the Great American Seed Up
Click here for Seed School Online

www.urbanfarm.org/seeds22jul

*Disclosure:
Some of the links in our podcast show notes and blog posts are affiliate links and if you go through them to make a purchase, we will earn a nominal commission at no cost to you. We offer links to items recommended by our podcast guests and guest writers as a service to our audience and these items are not selected because of the commission we receive from your purchases. We know the decision is yours, and whether you decide to buy something is completely up to you. 

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