by Ande Finley

for Locavores

Welcome to this new Locavores forum for issues on food sustainability as seen within the wider context of our community’s transition to energy and economic independence.  As space permits, we’ll also include what’s fresh at local farmstands, post seasonal recipes, and talk about upcoming events.

Join the Locavores for their next inspiring film “Cafeteria Man” about charismatic chef, Tony Geraci and the greening of the Baltimore City schools lunch program, Jan. 29, 4:30pm, at Port Stanley School.

With the smells and tastes from our Thanksgiving table still lingering, winter begins to close in, and out come the seed catalogues with all those luscious color pictures of summer’s bounty.  Territorial Seed and Uprising Organics used to be the only Northwest companies with seeds tested for our maritime climate.  Now we have Ana Malinoff’s Greenheart Gardens on the shores of Hummel Lake.

A few weeks ago over forty people packed into the library conference room for Ana’s Seed Saving workshop sponsored by the Lopez Community Land Trust.

“I’m a baby in the seed saving world,” Ana told the group, having started her small scale seed production only five years ago.

She confesses that her expertise is based on several years of hands-on experimentation, intuitive trial and error, and the help of some very informative books.  But she encourages all gardeners to incorporate seed saving into their seasonal routine.

Healthy food systems require healthy seed systems.  Improving and protecting this fundamental natural resource must be a priority, beginning with revitalizing the public seed systems that once served our communities.  Since 1980, multinational agrichemical companies have gained control and now 50% of the global seed industry is in the hands of just four companies.

And with the 1980 Supreme Court decision allowing patents on living organisms, farmers were effectively deprived of their traditional roles as seed stewards.  Introduction of genetically modified plants or GMOs into North American agriculture poses a real threat to organic food production.

To address this critical issue, the LCLT provided space at their newest housing development, Common Ground, for a community Seed Library.  Protocols have been developed to assure quality control for seed contributions and create procedures for checking out seed.  This gives Lopez a strong shot at building back a diverse, open source local seed system.

“Garden plants adapt to our specific conditions,” Ana said during the workshop.  “In a way, they become native to our island.”

In season, you can find Greenheart Gardens’ seeds at Blossom Natural Foods, Sunset Hardware, the Farmer’s Market, and on San Juan, Shaw, and Orcas as well.