Operational Info
Scale of Operations: 4 acres
Climate: USDA zone 5a
Distribution: Contract sales, Other
Certifications: Organic
Crop families experienced with in seed production: Aster, Basil, Beets, Borage, Cabbage, Calendula, Celery and celeriac, Chamomile, Chives, Cosmos, Cucumbers, Daisy, Dill, Dry beans, Eggplant, Garden beans, Garlic, Grain, Hollyhock, Kale, Lettuce, Marigold, Marjoram, Mint, Mustards, Nasturtium, Onions, Other, Parsley, Peppers, Phacelia, Poppy, Pumpkins, Sage, specialty greens, Sunflower, Thyme, Tomatoes, Wheat, Winter squash
Is seed in any quantities available for purchase? Yes
Instructions for purchasing: Contact via email at daniel (at) blackbirdrise (dot) com or Instagram DM (at)blackbirdrise to arrange a production contract or to purchase spec seed we have in stock.
We specialize in medicinal and culinary herbs, flowers, perennials, northeast natives and wet-seeded vegetables adapted for northern latitudes.
In addition to bulk seed production, we do stock seed production/selection and breeding projects for seed companies.
Open to contracting for seed production?: Yes
Bio
Blackbird Rise has been producing certified organic seed crops, perennials and grafted nursery stock in Central Maine since 2012. We raise organic seed on contract for a number of regional seed companies, sell bulk seed direct to growers and gardeners, select stock seed, and conduct on-farm breeding related to our passion for bioregionally adapted crops, medicinal and perennial herbs, and native plants for pollinator habitat.On a typical season we do 10-20 contract grow outs and another 20-30 varieties in small quantity on spec. Though our crop types range widely, 90% of our contract seed lots are 10lbs or less, with some as small as a few grams for very tiny-seeded niche crops. We have experience processing small seeded herbs and flowers and other fiddly odd ball crops, and have assembled a decent compliment of seed cleaning equipment, hacks and tricks in the process..
