I spent the last two days as a guest at the USDAs Griffen Campus where the S9 seed storage facility is housed. Amongst the many seeds in the collection are over 1000 accessions of okra. In 2012 they used a TD-NMR machine, which was described to me as something akin to an MRI machine for seeds, to assess the percentage of oil in the seeds by mass. The seed oil content ranged from 9% to 20%.
In 2021 I requested the top oil seed varieties (19-20% content) from the USDA and made crosses between them all. I ended up with around 40 successful crosses. Jordan Collins and Halsey Congleton we're helping in the field that year!
In 2022 we grew 10 of the F1 lines. In 2023 the @princetonseedfarm grew 1600 of the F2 population and the Conway Lab used an NMR to assess oil seed content so we could make selections for the plants that produced the highest seed oil yield. We repeated the process in 2024 (F3) and 2025 (F4). The lines were stabilizing. The project progressing. And then Princeton's NMR machine broke! There's no way to make the selections without the machine!
As we started casting around for a way to run the oilseed analysis @evarosebudthorn connected me with Dr. Tonnis at the Griffen Campus, who invited me to come use their machine! He's working with peanuts and sesame on fairly similar oilseed analysis and was extremely helpful. He seemed really happy that the seeds they curate and the paper they published had led to a tangible impact on the world!
Perhaps, soon to be tangible... We are one generation closer to a higher oil seed variety! I ran 393 samples through the machine. With a handful of samples clocking in around 27%. We'll grow these out for at least another two generations.
@oldnorthfarmwnc is going to grow the first test of bulk seed oil okra to start working out the process of growing okra for oil!
#okraseedoil
Our newest episode of The Crop Stories Podcast features Dr. Edward Davis’s piece on collard seed savers in the heart of the Collard Belt.
This quote by Miss Ira from the episode exemplifies the history of collards and the importance of these greens for African Americans, from the South to Chicago.
Listen to the full episode on our website or wherever you stream podcasts.
#collards #foodhistory #cropstories
Proud of the work our Culinary Director is doing in the community. Check out the Mother’s Day Brunch at @rhubarbavl supporting Transformation Village.
100% of ticket sales and 20% of food sales go directly to supporting the Transformation Village!
Here's the all star female team of chefs (all of them have worked with us on Trial to Table events and consistently cook amazing food, so this is going to be great!).
Michelle Bailey @baileycooks - Chef, AB Tech Culinary Instructor
Mallory Foster @mypalmalgal - Chef, Rhubarb
Jamie Crone @crone.jam - Chef, Food Experience Catering
Brooke Adams @chefbadams - Chef, Finest Deli
Terri Terrell @chefttlivinandlovin - Chef, Utopian Seed Project
Grab your tickets here: /cities/asheville-nc/venues/rhubarb/events/mothers-day-brunch-benefit-2026-05-10
We've just launched 3 new @appalachian_seed_collective collections to inspire your summer gardening plans! Check them out via the link in our bio.
The seed collective works with local farmers to grow the seeds that they know and love. You're not just supporting regional farmers, but also regional seed.
If you're going to Asheville Herb Fest this weekend, be sure to swing by @rabbitdenfarm . They've got some awesome plant starts and an Appalachian Growers Seed Collective seed rack!
#seedsthatknowthesouth
Open Call‼️
The Utopian Seed Project’s Crop Stories Program is working on our next publication, and this year, it’s all about Taro!
Following the success of our Southern Pea issue, we’re bringing back a crowd favorite. Our last edition featured the Vigna Monologues, an experimental collection of stories which explored the deep, personal connections writers have with different peas. It was so loved that we’re doing it again for Taro.
We are inviting authors to contribute to Taro Tales, to really demonstrate varietal differences and people’s connections with them. We are seeking short, evocative, and personal stories (100–150 words) centered around these specific crops.
The end date for this Open Call is April 27th, 2026. If you are selected, your Taro Tale submission would be due May 3rd, 2026. Follow the link in our bio to submit your proposed story!
#cropstories #taro #storytelling #crops
First picture is my single survivor broad bean (fava bean) after multiple -1 / -2 F nights. Even though I lost about 50-75 plants, it feels good to have one survivor! However my spring planted seed is flowering on a pretty similar schedule, which does raise the question about the worth of an overwintered fava bean in this region... It is always good to have live plants in the ground over the winter, and I have enjoyed interplanting between the garlic, which will benefit from the nitrogen fixation (a little trick I learned from @oldnorthfarmwnc ). So, I'm staying open minded and will certainly save this seed separately.
#broadbeans
“If we want to explore the edges of what’s possible... we have to keep good notes.” - Miss Ira Wallace.
Collards are more than just a delicious Southern side dish – they are a living map of resilience and community. In our latest Crop Stories Podcast episode, we discuss how the diversity of collard varieties survived through the hands of small-scale farmers and gardeners, particularly African American seed savers who kept these traditions alive after emancipation.
Join LuAnna and Ira Wallace as they debrief Mark Farnham’s Crop stories piece, “Your Quick Guide to Collards.” We’re talking about regional adaptation and breeding, the story of the “Tree Collard,” and why saving a specific seed for 50 years is an act of love for the future.
Take a listen at the link in our bio! And consider becoming a monthly donor to help us keep these stories growing.
#HeirloomSeeds #FoodSovereignty #CollardGreens #CropStories #SouthernHistory
Purple Ultracross in full flower. A few weeks ago we pulled out about half of the plants that were the early flowering plants. The remaining will flower and set seed. We generally expect to get mature seed around June, just in time to harvest, thresh, and winnow, and then plant again in July!!
#collards #purplecollards #ultracrosscollards
We have been growing Ube (Dioscorea alata) for about 5 years. The skin is purple and the flesh is varying shades of purple or purple/white marbles.
There is another yam of the same species that has yellow flesh, quite distinct from Ube.
This year, Dr. Carlos Iglesia from NCSU sent us 12 yams that each came from seed grown yams. That means there's genetic diversity between each yam and we can assess which ones do better in Western NC.
As we continue to explore crop diversity in our region, it's important to remember that there is also lots of diversity within each crop or species!
#yam #trueyam #yellowyam #rootsforresilience
Love this article by Daniel Walton about the @appalachian_seed_collective in @ourstatemag . There's a link in our bio if you have to learn more about the seed collective and seeds are available via our website.
“Most seed crops are grown in California, the Northwest, or the Northeast, and very few are grown for the Southeast,” Wallace says. “The seeds that you oftentimes buy in catalogs just aren’t really adapted for this region from the start.”
Now, Wallace is part of a group working to solve that challenge for other farmers and gardeners. He offers the Blue Ridge Butternut seed through the Appalachian Seed Growers Collective, a grassroots effort to grow, adapt, and share crops that are better suited for the fields of North Carolina and surrounding states. Their mission: Develop “seeds that know the South.”
#seedsthatknowthesouth #seedfarmer #seedcollective
AGSC Seed & Grower Spotlight!
featuring Promiscuous Pea (Vigna unguiculata)
🫛🤎🌱😈
A mix of Southern Peas that all started out with a history of cross-pollination (aka promiscuity) and have been grown together since 2022, shifting and changing slightly with each harvest. Plenty of diversity to pick out your favorites or grow a resilient mix of peas!
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Grower: USP, Leicester, NC
#regionalseeds #seedfarmer #seedcollective #seedsale #heirloomseeds
