Seed: The Untold Story!

[Nenuphar]

SEED: The Untold Story

If, like me, you are interested in heirloom seeds, seed saving, and the importance of agricultural diversity, you might enjoy checking out this documentary film project.

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/...cumentary-film

There is an embedded 5 minute video at this link that will show you more about this project.



~*~ Seed is not just the source of life. It is the very foundation of our being. - Vandana Shiva ~*~

[Nenuphar]

Hey there, Olgraybear! It's wonderful to see you!

[soleil]

thanks, will watch this!!
side question, are there any reputable seed banks for heirloom seeds? any recommended ones?

thanks!!

[Nenuphar]

Hi teradactyl,

Yes, definitely! In Canada, the biggest and most established is Seeds of Diversity. You can sign up for their free online newsletter, and their annual membership is reasonable ($25 or $40, depending on how you'd like to be involved).

Every year, they publish a catalog where members who have grown heirloom seeds make them available to other members. There is a small fee for the seeds but that is just to cover shipping and packaging costs. Also, on their main website, they have a lot of resources - a list of the seed companies in Canada, lists of Seedy Saturday events, a big library of information about heirloom seeds in Canada (including which are rare, etc), and the opportunity to "adopt" various heirloom varieties so they will be maintained in their seed bank. I would love to do this at some point, but will have to save my pennies, first.

Their website is: http://www.seeds.ca/en.php The site is also available in French.

Salt Spring Seeds in British Columbia is a great heirloom seed business and is also closely aligned with (or perhaps was the creating force behind?) the Seed and Plant Sanctuary for Canada. They maintain and catalog many heirloom varieties, and some they sell to the public, too. Here is the link for that site: http://www.seedsanctuary.com/

There are a number of wonderful heirloom seed businesses in Canada. My favourites are:

Heritage Harvest Seeds:

http://www.heritageharvestseed.com/

Salt Spring Seeds:

http://www.saltspringseeds.com/

Annapolis Seeds:

http://www.annapolisseeds.com/

The Cottage Gardener:

http://cottagegardener.com/



I have had great experiences ordering from all of these companies. Heritage Harvest have always included a free packet of seeds with my orders and have a great selection of some very rare dry bush beans.

Salt Spring Seeds stands out because of their friendly customer service, the excellent selection of medicinal herbs, and a page devoted to 1/2 price seeds. The fellow who owns SSS, Dan Jason, has always been friendly and generous with advice when I have emailed him.

I have a soft spot for Annapolis Seeds because it is based in Nova Scotia and I am from there originally, though I now live in northern BC. Annapolis Seeds was started by a young fellow named Owen Bridge when he was still in his teens. He regularly volunteers to give presentations about seed saving - in fact, he once hitch-hiked with all his gear from his farm (near Middleton, I think) into Halifax to give a presentation at one of the universities. My mother attended that and enjoyed it a lot. He seems like a very kind, gentle sort and obviously has a real passion for heirloom seeds and does what he can to share that with others.

I hope this helps!

[soleil]

thank you thank you thank you nenuphar!!!

[Nenuphar]

I love this seed bank, based in the USA (Petaluma, CA). It was originally the Sonoma County bank building, and is now the seed bank/store run by Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds. What a pretty setting, and a fantastic use for an old bank building!

http://rareseeds.com/petaluma-seed-bank (written article)

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=R-5SMgNO8v4

It looks like Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds is helping to back the SEEDS: The Untold Story documentary. Several of the "thank you" gifts for helping to support the project include packets of seeds from Baker Creek!

Their catalog is beautiful, too. It almost looks like a coffee table book:

http://www.rareseeds.com/flip-catalog/index.html (online flip-through catalog)

[Nenuphar]

Latest update from the creators of Seed: The Untold Story:


Dear Friends,

Just a few days ago we were below the halfway mark. Now we're 3/4 of the way to our goal! We are blown away by the power of community. Words can't express the gratitude Taggart and I feel to all of you for being a part of this.

We believe the power of the grass-roots can change the seed story we're telling to the next generation from one of loss to one of overwhelming variety. Let's do as Bill McDorman of Native Seeds/SEARCH says, and "Grow this diversity back." This starts with getting the word out to more people that seeds really do matter.

Here's where we're at so far:

75% to our goal of $50,000 to fund continuing production for SEED: The Untold Story.
We've gotten 6,825 likes on Facebook and our video has been watched over 6,866 times!
We've been featured as the Kickstarter of the Week on the front page of The Cultural Weekly and Organic Consumers Association has given SEED a shout-out in their widely read weekly e-newsletter.
There are an amazing 617 backers (that's you) backing this film...and 183 of you donated $100 or more, so you are set to receive SEED on DVD when we finish the film. Awesome.


The rest can be read here:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/...ary-film/posts

Updated January 15th - Film fully funded, and then some.

[Delight]

I am bumping this thread as it is Thanksgiving. What I give thanks for now is that we have untold varieties of free open pollinated seeds and healthy lively bees. I am pledging.

Our KS campaign helped us fund 90% of production and now we are still seeking our post-production budget. Your donation will be a huge help. Please visit: http://www.seedthemovie.com/ and click donate to make a tax-deductible donation through our non-profit Collective Eye Films.

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/...the-final-push

For 30 years, Taggart Siegel has produced and directed award winning documentaries that present vital perspectives rarely seen in mainstream media. QUEEN THE SUN: What Are the Bees Telling Us? (2010) received critical-acclaim during its theatrical and broadcast release and garnered over 10 international awards.

SEE QUEEN OF THE SUN HERE FREE

https://archive.org/details/QueenOfT...sTellingUs2010