The Story of Seed

  • Redwood Seeds Fall 2015- Edible Shasta Butte

    Follow our farm through the seasons for the next year with these quarterly publications in the Edible Shasta Butte magazine. Each edition highlights our seed farm and provides relevant seed saving information. http://ylamericanwebinc.com/aw_flip_books/edible/edible_Shasta_Butte_Fall_15/index.html#/1/ read more »

  • Farming with Child: Everything in rounds

    Being mom and farming at the same time is a busy and beautiful experience. Look around our yard and you will see: a big blue wheelbarrow and and a tiny red, Mama's shovel and Maisie's shovel, and yes, the ride on, steel, pedal, craig's list kid's tractor- that is the newest addition:) She wants to help and do everything we do. So whether planting seeds, forking beds or picking strawberries she wants to be right there. . Every thing in rounds. Cyclical. Now we read books, and now we water the garden, now we wheelbarrow fire wood, and now we... read more »

  • Summer Seed Crops: A Processing Guide

      Elisa and Sheena cut open and scoop seeds from winter squash   Wet Processing Basics- Smash or cut open fruit into a container. Some fruits will need a fermentation time specified below. Add water after fermentation. In most cases the good seeds will sink to the bottom of the container and the ‘gunk’ will rise to the top. Carefully pour the vegetable matter off until you remove as much as possible without losing seeds. Add more water and repeat until the water is clear and you have removed most of the debris. At this point you can experiment with... read more »

  • Saving Squash Seed

    Let's talk squash! Here are some basic seed saving facts about this plant.   1. There are 3 main species you can grow in your garden without cross pollination. Cucurbita pepo, Cucurbita moschata and Cucurbita maxima   2. Squash are outbreeders, meaning insect pollinated. 3. Squash will cross pollinate very easily. Isolation by distance or hand pollination are necessary to keep varieties pure. 4. It is a good idea to save seed from as many plants as possible. On a home garden scale that would be 5-20. So with these three facts in mind, let's have a look out in... read more »

  • Farming with Child

    Maisie planted the corn on the right hand side!   It is a good thing we are rich in seed I have realized lately. These past two weeks, really these past two months, we have been in planting season. Parenting does not stop when I have to go to work on the farm. Little Maisie now toddles, and almost runs, around the farm as we get our summer crops in the ground. Pre-baby, I remember speaking with other farming mamas I know and hearing the stories about their little ones...pulling up the freshly planted transplants, walking on the beds (oh... read more »