Last Sunday, March 27th, OSA partnered with the Humboldt Permaculture Guild to help farmers and gardeners get ready for spring at the 13th annual Humboldt Seed and Plant Exchange in Manila, CA.
Hundreds of people crowded into the Manila Community Center on a rainy day to exchange seeds and plants, visit with OSA and other non-profits, listen to music, and attend workshops.
Jared Zystro, OSA’s California Research and Education Specialist, presented a Seed 101 workshop to attendees. He explained the basics of crop lifecycles, isolation distances, population size, and seed harvest and cleaning. Around 60 people attended the workshop. Don Tipping from Siskiyou Seeds followed up with a workshop on specific techniques for organic seed production, highlighting some of the innovative practices on his farm.
OSA also reached scores of community members at our table, sharing information on organic seed production and on OSA’s work. OSA also partnered with the local Adopt-an-Heirloom project at the event by providing information and handouts on seed saving for new seed savers.
OSA’s participation at events like the Seed and Plant Exchange helps to educate the public on the importance of sustainable seed systems. OSA was also able to educate gardeners and farmers on good practices for seed saving, and empower them to become seed stewards.
