Dear friends of Seed Savers

The best vegetable seeds are those given by one friend or family member to another. “Here, try these seeds, they grow well around here!” This simple gesture is the modus operandi of our eighty Local Seed Networks (LSNs) around Australia. Jude and Michel at The Seed Savers’ Network hope that you will join a seed group or create one around you. This may help you to grow from local seeds and eat more diversely = nutritionally. Find out how more about Local Seed Networks

Local Food Anyone?

Local Seed Networks circulate locally adapted varieties. These varieties are the basis of local food. They have been circulated in the local community for donkeys’ years and grow well in the area. They don’t necessarily have names.

Hardiness

Local varieties generally grow pesticide-free because they are attuned to local climates and regions. Some rainfed varieties bred by farmers manage to give a crop without irrigation and even tolerate insect damage and salinity.

Real Social Networks

At LSN garden visits and meetings, everyone learns from one another; everyone gets lots of unusual seeds and cuttings and makes new garden friends. Seeds are sometimes pushed deep into your pocket, so watch out. None if this is a commercial enterprise by any stretch of the imagination. When you grow vegetables and fruit, what do you do with the excess?? LSNs exchange produce as well. None of this is calculated in the GDP!

Go Perennial

Local Seed Networks are the perfect source of vegetative propagules: artichoke slips, asparagus crowns, mulitiplying onions, potato tubers. Then there are the fascinating unusual tubers such as:
• the super profilic oca (Oxalis tuberosa);
• the trendy health food, maca (Lepidium meyennii);
• achira (Canna edulis) to make arrowroot;
• arracacha, the Andean parsnip, a tuber for delicious soups;
• nashua, the tuberous sister of nasturtiums;
• yacon (Polymnia sonchifolia) the “pear of the earth”, sweet only when stored.

Michel and Jude Fanton Report
We have just returned from two months in Rajasthan, India, and one month in Malaysia so we have colourful news and videos on seedsavers.net. There is even an environmental video made by Channel 10 where we are speechless.
Recent media coverage:-
• “Our Seeds” on Manhattan cable TV
• Japanese Asahi TV – early March
• The Age Epicure 9/3/10
• OK Magazine 20/3/10
• Reader’s Digest, Health Smart - soon

We are giving workshops in Victoria 10th and 11th April. See our website for details. www.seedsavers.net