Conserving Arkansas' Agricultural Heritage

[johno]

OZARKS BIO-REGION

CAAH - Conserving Arkansas' Agricultural Heritage

The University of Central Arkansas (my old school) started this program. Brian Campbell is in charge. We will be meeting face-to-face for the first time in a couple weeks, but we first spoke on the telephone when I was managing the Heirloom Seed Shop in Norfork. At that time he was just starting the program and looking for Arkansas heirlooms. Last year was their first annual seed swap in Mountain View Arkansas. I didn't make then, but plan to attend this time. (Possibly on film if my carpoolers don't mind...)

Anyway, here's a link to the CAAH website. There is a short video based on the first seed swap. I didn't realize how far they had progressed in such a short time. arkansasagro.wordpress.com/

[johno]

I participated in the Conserving Arkansas' Agricultural Heritage second annual seed swap in Mountain View, AR last Saturday. It was a wonderful event, and I'd like to share my experience and thoughts with you.

I found my way to the Folk Center easily enough, and then followed the sign to the proper building. Inside there was a room with comfortable furniture and refreshments (and they were fresh!) to the left, and a room full of seed savers to the right. I went right. Long tables covered in seeds and displays lined the walls, and round tables filled the center of the room, leaving just enough space for two abreast between them. It was not cramped, but not far from it. I found Dr. Campbell and introduced myself. He invited me to find a table and set up, but I opted to make my way around the room first. I found a corner to start in, and made the first of many good discoveries.

It’s possible I came over prepared. I brought with me a few hundred varieties of tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, corn, beans, squash, okra, cowpeas, and leafy greens. Never seemed to get past the first three, though, except for one pack of Red Rippers. I wish I had remembered to bring flower seeds… Most of the other seed savers brought larger quantities of fewer varieties. I may follow that example next year, to some degree. My binders with baseball cardholders holding seed packets (nine to a page) were a big hit – it’s always fun to watch an idea spread. It seemed like more of a seed share than a seed swap; most people seemed more interested in giving than trading.

One of my favorite discoveries was the Ozark Seed Bank from Brixey, MO (www.ozarkseedbank.org). They are maintaining several interesting varieties that do well in the Ozarks bioregion, including Orange Grape Tress tomato, a.k.a. Lycopersicon humboldtii.

Swapping seeds face to face is a much different experience than it is by computer. I’ve wanted to save and swap seeds since I first encountered the idea in an ad for the Seed Saver’s Exchange in Mother Earth News decades ago (or was it in Grit?), but back then I didn’t know that pretty much any old OP would have sufficed for a trade (whatever I had to trade then would be an heirloom by now, anyway...) My interest grew in 2002 when I discovered the Baker Creek catalog, but searching locally for seed savers to trade with never panned out. Then in 2006 I discovered seed trading on the Internet.

Since then I have traded hundreds if not thousands of seed packets. The volume and access seems limitless. You develop a rapport with the people you trade with, but you never meet [most of] them face to face.

The second annual Conserving Arkansas’ Agricultural Heritage seed swap is the first one I’ve been to. Sitting to talk and swap with actual human beings is a much more primal experience than trading online. More importantly, you are talking to interesting folks who have experience growing their seeds in your bioregion! That is priceless, when you consider that the vast majority of online trading friends do not have this particular advantage to offer. I thought the trade-off would be less to choose from, but I found quite a few rare varieties (plus I am comfortable knowing that they grow well here).

I was surprised when a filmmaker asked me to be in his documentary about the seed swap. But hey, I’m game.

The cinematographer, his assistant, and I met Saturday morning at the Heirloom Seed Shop, where they shot me buying seeds and talking about various heirloom gardening subjects. The new manager Chris was kind enough to open the store on her day off for us, and she provided some good footage as well. Later on, William the film student followed me for footage at the seed swap in Mountain View. Afterwards, somehow I found myself in a filmed panel discussion about the event. At the end, the filmmaker Zack asked us to state our names and titles in turn. I was last, and the only one without a title – it was then that I realized the caliber of my company. You’ll meet them when the documentary is online next month. I’m told there’s a good chance not all of my contribution will end up on the cutting room floor, so to speak.

The burning question: what did I find? Here’s a full list of the varieties I came home with (names as they appear on the packets):
Clark & Karr Family white half runner bean
John Hovis cornfield bean
Meier Family purple pole bean
Whippoorwill cowpeas
Bacello yard long bean
Anna’s Taiwan long bean
Purple podded longbean
castor bean
Great Burdock (gobo)
Nankeen cotton
Gold Coast okra
White Velvet okra
Evergreen bunching onion
Lunaria money plant (ornamental)
Musselburgh leek
Fuller’s Teasel (inedible)
Tomatoes:
Ethel Watkins
Hazelfield Farm Red
Orange Grape Tress (Lycopersicon humboldtii)
Stone
Super Sioux

I encourage all of you to look for seed swaps (or start one!) in your region. The trading we do online is very important for the spreading of genetic diversity, but trading with people in your locality will help you zero in on varieties that are highly likely to do well for you. Plus, doing some footwork in your own region just might turn up some new and rare varieties that you can keep from extinction and introduce to the rest of the world!

[pugs]

johno,

Sounds like lots of fun. I look forward to seeing the documentary.

Pugs

[grungy]

Remember us next fall after you have tried some of these Ozark beauties.

[ceara]

Oh wow it sounds like you had a great time!

I made a post on a local message forum to try to drum up interest in starting a seed swap group and I got zero replies. I guess I thought wrong about the locals, even though I've seen many Vesey's parcels change hands at the post office.

But it's an excellent idea to have anywhere.

[bunkie]

great thread johno! like val said, i can't wait to see your seed trade list next fall/winter! what a great find. i'm going to have to look around in our area for seed swaps...or maybe start one.

[johno]

Ceara, I'm glad to see you are trying to start a seed swap in your area. I know what you mean about zero interest - that's what I've been finding here in my town for years. That's the thing that I found to be so great about CAAH. I think they succeeded because they reached out a little farther to the entire Ozarks region instead of a smaller area like I was doing.

Funny story - I once emailed the local historical society looking for anyone who may have (or know of anyone who has) family heirloom seeds, and they referred me to myself... Which just goes to show how long overdue and important this program is. I had figured it was just too late. And in my town, I'm afraid the heirloom seed tradition is extinct except for people with new interest - in other words, there probably are no more farmers or home gardeners still carrying on the tradition of saving their family's seeds in this town with the line unbroken. At the CAAH seed swap, at least I found one (Meier Family purple pole bean) from nearby in the region. I found a few others from the South (mostly from Georgia), and I might have missed a few, but true family heirlooms from the immediate area are almost gone as far as I can tell. But the 2nd annual swap was quite larger than the 1st, and that's a good trend. Awareness will continue to grow in the next few years, so hopefully more will turn up before it's too late.

I gotta' say, Jere Gettle has done a great job of finding nearly extinct heirlooms in the Missouri ozarks.

I'll do my best to keep these "Ozark beauties" going and increase seed.

[moonlilyhead]

That's terrific, Johno. If I lived a bit closer, I would join in. I started a seed/plant swap with my Freecycle group down here in central AR. There have been a few heirlooms surface. This will be our third year and we have a LOT of fun! You're right. swapping face to face is a different experience indeed.

[johno]

Conserving Arkansas' Agricultural Heritage is based in the sociology department at the University of Central Arkansas. You should be able to do some trading and/or growouts from their seedbank if you talk to Dr. Campbell. Or here is their seed bank page: arkansasagro.wordpress.com/seed-bank/

What kind of heirlooms have you found with Freecyle?

[moonlilyhead]

There was a type of long bean, but I can't remember the name, now. The lady said she had gotten it from her mother who collected heirlooms. I'll try to find out what it was. I see her on Freecycle quite a bit.

[johno]

Zachary is 80% through editing and hopes for an April 1st 1st draft at this point.

[macmex]

Great thread Johno! I've kind of "bounced off of it" (glancing at it and then deciding to come back when I have more time) for a couple months. Time surely flies. Someday, maybe I'll go to one of those gatherings.

Two weeks ago the Oklahoma Gardening forum from Gardenweb had a swap/potluck down by Oklahoma City. I went. That's the first live gardening event I've attended in almost 27 years. Guess I'm chronically too busy. I met a good many fellow gardeners, in all stages of experience. I think I was the main representative as a seed saver. I took along about 5 or 6 beans, almost all Appalachian types, Jerusalem artichokes, some sweet potatoes, okra (Stewart's Zeebest: Louisiana Heirloom), Penny Rile Cowpea and Georgia Long (yardlong cowpea). Can't remember what else.

I had lost a bunch of tomato plants on April 14, to an unexpected frost. A couple folk learned of it and brought me replacements. It was truly heart warming.

George

[johno]

Thanks George. Sounds like it was a good thing you went to the Gardenweb swap. You brought some great stuff.

I have been lucky with frost this time around, but a couple of cattle trapsed through the garden a few days ago and trampled my Nepal tomato... At least that was the only one clearly killed. It's really great someone replaced your plants! See, gardeners are just good people.

Zach says he's hoping for a finished piece by mid May.

[grunt]

Johno: In future, if there is any part of the plant not mushed, try just sticking it back in the ground. I did that with the top of a Kewalo plant that I snapped off when planting out, and it rerooted itself and took off.

[macmex]

More than once I've carefully planted some tomatoes and stepped "back" to admire my work, ... and on top of one of them. They do bounce back surprisingly well. I've been amazed how many of my tomatoes, which were "killed" by the frost, have since sprouted anew. Still, it was truly wonderful to have some garden friends chip in to help out.

One of the varieties which did not get replaced was Sioux. Mine looked like someone had passed a blow torch over top of them. Yet, they bounced back. I put out 8 and gave away perhaps four. Sioux is becoming a favorite of mine, because it does so well in our summer heat. Seems to need staking, or else the tomatoes rot. But if staked, it's hard to beat. I hear that Sioux was Oklahoma's #1 favorite tomato in the 40's.

George