Seed saving is a passion of mine, my approach, although somewhat haphazard, has been a fun way to be a part of the cycle of the plants.

It’s mid winter- and that hard frost that wasn’t hitting us, did this week. Well what you can call hard for the NW region of the states. We just received a box of seed ordered through Seeds of Change, and i happened to begin to sort through the various wooden and metal bowls on top of the fridge. I discovered basil tops gathered last fall, set into a bowl to dry!

The seed was still in the plant’s ‘husk’, so i began to rub the seed husks in-between my palms, oh my- i had not been prepared for the intoxicating smell that was to be a part of the process- rich aroma of dried basil in the midst of winter …yum….the husks began to fluff up as i worked it, and the seeds made their way to the bowl. When it seemed i had done a complete job here, i worked the fluff a bit in my fingers, hoping the seed would use it’s weight to fall to the bottom of the bowl. Then i began a gentle wind with my breath to encourage the fluff out of the bowl and onto my kitchen floor. As i proceeded, the seed, heavy at the bottom, became more evident. A few of the husk’s remained, only because the seed had not been worked out of them. after finishing this- i realized the next step would be to sweep the floor!  The floor sweepings made their way to the compost bucket, the seeds in a paper envelope- marked and ready to plant next month.

I’m looking forward to the transition my kitchen will make as it becomes a ‘green-house’ for most of our seedlings.  Tim and Maria-Jose will nurture the chiles in their apartment. Becky will be nurturing tomatoes in hers.

This is the first year to have a continual documentation of this process, and i am so excited at the varying experiential knowledge we will bring to this- i do think that we’ll be learning a fair amount from the kids!!!

Blessings!  Linda