seeds of life
Posted on | April 9, 2009 | No Comments
For nearly a year now, I’ve had a growing interest in heirloom gardening and seedsaving. My interest has been driven by several factors. Namely, global food security issues, biodiversity and permaculture, pre-industrial methods of agriculture, corporate monopolies and domination of the the food supply, and the declining nutrient value in the food supply. I’ve also followed (with growing interest) the GMO debate and how that parallels other issues like exporting capitalism.
In my observation and learning, I keep bumping into the name Vandana Shiva – especially as it relates to her work as a seed activist and a fiery critic of the Monsanto Corporation. Recently I came across an interesting article that summarizes a bit of why she so adamantly supports seedsaving and heirloom varieties.
This year, I got all excted at the first sign of spring and stocked up on heirloom seeds from Landis Valley Museum’s heirloom seed project. I plan to buy heirloom plants at their spring sale. What I’m even more excited about is some German Stripe tomato plants I started from seed. This has got to be one of the best tasting tomato varieties I’ve ever eaten. Last summer, a friend introduced me to them, and I saved a bunch of seeds. If all goes well, I’ll harvest my first crop of tomatoes from last years seed.
Tags: biodiversity > gmo > heirloom tomatoes > monsanto > permaculture > seed justice > seed patents > tomatoes