ON THE WEEKEND of Aug. 8-9, the beloved Seed Savers Trade will have a good time its fiftieth anniversary of preserving our seed heritage with festivities at its homebase in Decorah, Iowa. I wished to have a good time Seed Savers right here a bit of, too, by studying extra about a few of their participatory applications that we gardeners might help with, together with one referred to as ADAPT, the place gardeners trial varieties from the Seed Savers seed financial institution in their very own gardens and supply suggestions on their efficiency to assist Seed Savers perceive the adaptability of those varieties to totally different environments across the nation.
I talked to Mike Bollinger, Seed Savers’ government director, and Sydney Weldon, their evaluations and trials supervisor, who leads the ADAPT program, a community-driven trialing initiative, that connects gardeners and farmers throughout the U.S. with distinctive open-pollinated crops from Seed Savers’ intensive seed financial institution.
I believe most each gardener is aware of Seed Savers for its seed catalog of irresistible open-pollinated varieties. However Mike and Sydney instructed me about different initiatives like ADAPT and extra that we are able to all have interaction with.
Learn alongside as you hearken to the Aug. 4, 2025 version of my public-radio show and podcast utilizing the participant under. You’ll be able to subscribe to all future editions on Apple Podcasts (iTunes) or Spotify (and browse my archive of podcasts right here).
‘participatory preservation’ with seed savers alternate
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Margaret Roach: Hello, Mike and hello Sydney; glad golden anniversary to you. In a earlier episode of the podcast, I featured one widespread ingredient of Seed Savers Trade, its authentic element that’s merely referred to as the Trade, form of a large digital seed swap the place individuals can share varieties they’re rising and stewarding with each other. However that’s on no account the one participatory community-science program or participatory program at Seed Savers, or the one method to become involved.
So I wished to speak about extra of them. I discover it very fascinating that even so long as I’ve recognized Seed Savers, I didn’t find out about all of those dimensions. So I do know Seed Savers has the most important non-governmental seed financial institution within the U.S. with one thing like 20,000-plus varieties, however you possibly can’t do it alone, this huge job of preservation of all this genetic heritage.
So Mike, perhaps you can begin us off by reminding us of the mission of Seed Savers, after which additionally clarify about what I imagine you name “participatory preservation,” why it issues; applications like those we’re going to speak about right now.
Mike Bollinger: Yeah, yeah, it’s an awesome query and I feel that it actually goes again to the sort of founding ethos of Seed Savers Trade and the best way that I’ve all the time heard Seed Savers Trade referenced, and particularly within the context of the Trade, as “a individuals’s group.” And so this work was all the time about individuals coming collectively and sharing seeds with one another, and sharing tales and heritage, in an effort to have the ability to maintain these communities vibrant and resilient, with the thought finally that the extra folks that have been rising out these seeds of their gardens, the safer that they have been.
And so that is actually, the ADAPT program is a extremely unimaginable element of that as a result of it’s one other method to meet individuals the place they’re. And in order we have been fascinated by our strategic priorities as a company, that first precedence or focus space is community-based biodiversity preservation.
And never everyone seems to be a seed saver. I really feel like seed saving is one thing that could be a ability that goes past gardening. And so the fantastic thing about the ADAPT program is basically I feel that we’re not asking individuals to avoid wasting seed, and also you don’t need to be a seed saver so as to have the ability to take part on this actually useful science-based work that Sydney is facilitating and managing by way of this program.
Margaret: So Sydney, let’s dig into a bit of bit about what ADAPT is; how does it work particularly as one instance of Seed Savers Trade’s participatory preservation efforts? What occurs? How do individuals become involved in it?
Sydney Weldon: Yeah, so like we talked about, ADAPT is sort of a nationwide crop selection trialing program underneath our community-science umbrella right here at Seed Savers. And so we invite of us from all around the nation, neighborhood gardens, seed libraries, gardeners, farmers, researchers, growers of all kinds to trial these varieties from the seed financial institution. We give attention to flowers and meals crops.
And so by way of this system of us, they hear from me within the lifeless of winter, early January, to determine which crop trials we’re providing that yr. And they also choose which crop varieties they’re interested by, and from a larger record of types that we’re trialing in that yr, contributors will obtain three totally different varieties. And we ask that they develop them side-by-side in the identical rising situations, and that they attempt to purpose for at the least three vegetation of every selection.
And so we use this platform referred to as SeedLinked. It’s an online and cellular platform that we’ve been partnering with since 2018, and their contributors are capable of log their observations of those varieties within the backyard. They’re issues like vigor and yield, illness resistance, drought tolerance—which is very essential today, at the least right here in Northeast Iowa.
And one side of SeedLinked that I simply actually get pleasure from is the stay community-feed characteristic. And so of us are capable of share photographs of how issues are performing. They’re capable of ask for rising recommendation. People are having points with raccoons and deer [laughter], and so of us are capable of remark and allow them to know what they’re doing of their gardens and what’s been working and what hasn’t been. They’re capable of share their backyard tales, and maybe most excitingly to me as somebody who grows greens all day however doesn’t essentially have the zest to cook dinner within the evenings, persons are sharing actually lovely recipes of how they’re making ready their bounty this season, which has been actually inspiring.
Margaret: And talking of participatory preservation, we should always shout out SeedLinked usually. I imply, that’s simply an unimaginable instance and also you’re one of many form of I don’t know if the phrase is companions or contributors or nevertheless to explain it—collaborators in SeedLinked—however that’s been an unimaginable factor to see get going the previous few years.
Mike: Yeah. Nico Enjalbert lives simply over an hour from right here, and I’d name him all of these issues: a associate, a collaborator, and a buddy. It’s actually that interplay has facilitated this program being nice in addition to simply a variety of concepts and inspiration about learn how to have interaction with neighborhood and with individuals to assist facilitate us studying extra about how crops carry out in several components of the nation and in several microclimates.
Margaret: Proper. And that’s so essential, particularly in these rapidly altering instances. You’re in Iowa, and even when you had the manpower and the acreage and no matter to develop out each single a type of treasures in your seed financial institution, as wanted, to maintain a viable provide of each single one, no matter, these seed would solely be tailored—since seeds are alive and adaptive to the place they’re grown and so forth over time—I imply, you’d have a pressure, the Iowa pressure of the whole lot [laughter]. However you wouldn’t know, and your observations would solely be, “Hey, this didn’t work effectively for us,” or, “Hey, this was sooner than we thought, or later than we thought to supply,” or as you stated earlier than, drought. All of these items, the observations, can be very site-specific to 1 place, and that’s not going to assist the preservation of those varieties, or assist individuals round a bigger space develop them, to know which of them to develop.
Mike: Yeah, and I feel the participation and development in that, I feel speaks volumes to the magnitude of curiosity on this program. Sydney, perhaps you need to speak a bit of bit about what number of contributors we have now and what these distribution packets seem like?
Margaret: And what are among the wild and loopy belongings you’re rising [laughter], that they’re all trialing, what sorts of crops?
Sydney: So this yr we have been capable of associate with the USDA to sort of broaden our influence. And so between the 2 of us, we’re internet hosting 15 trials. ADAPT is internet hosting amaranth, candy corn, eggplant, spring radishes, crimson okra, which has been so beautiful-
Margaret: Wow.
Sydney: …snow peas, beefsteak tomatoes, Siberian kale and melons. So we attempt to provide a various vary of crops, issues which can be warm-season, cool-season. If you happen to don’t have a variety of rising area, we all the time attempt to embody crops which can be good for containers or smaller areas. We additionally like to supply issues like roots, foliage, fruits, flowers. We attempt to get a range of these as effectively.
And so final yr, in 2024, the ADAPT program had 650ish contributors that have been rising crops from the seed financial institution of their gardens. And this yr between ADAPT and the USDA, we have now 1,462 of us throughout the nation from Alaska, Hawaii, Iowa, clearly, all around the nation—Maine, California. And so we’re actually capable of see how these varieties are performing in all totally different sorts of environments.
This yr we distributed nearly 10,000 packets of seed to of us, and in whole with all of these individuals and all the trials that they signed up for, there’s nearly 3,300 particular person trials being carried out. [Above, and top of page, processing seed packets for the ADAPT program at Seed Savers Exchange.]
Margaret: Wow. Now, you listed among the issues which can be being trialed this yr. If you look—once more, I feel I stated the quantity is greater than 20,000 sorts of seed within the seed financial institution there within the assortment, so to talk—how do you resolve what to trial? What are the components in deciding what to trial?
Sydney: It’s sort of a sport of Tetris. [Laughter.] Yeah. I’m historic trials that we’ve achieved previously, and I feel most significantly, I’m trying on the amount of distributable stock that we have now. Not the whole lot within the seed financial institution has sufficient seed to have the ability to provide on the Trade or which can be required for 1,400 individuals to take part. And in order that’s actually one of many issues that I’m fascinated by.
I discussed the area concerns, and having a range of crops for individuals to trial, and I additionally wish to sneak in some extra uncommon crops or crops that people will not be as aware of. In 2024, we did a sorghum trial with Gradual Meals USA. That was a partnership that we had, and I simply love sorghum. I like crops which can be multipurpose, versatile, drought-tolerant. Each amaranth that we’re trialing this yr and sorghum dry down actually fantastically. And amaranth, you possibly can eat the greens. Some are extra grain varieties, the place you harvest the bigger seeds and incorporate them right into a porridge or use them as a gluten-free various.
And so I actually need to open individuals’s eyes to the totally different sorts of issues they will develop of their backyard. I imply, all of us love a beefsteak tomato, however yeah, simply getting individuals inquisitive about issues that may provide a variety of curiosity within the backyard and within the kitchen. [Above, sorghum gone to seed. Below, amaranth ‘Green Giant.’]
Margaret: To take part, I don’t have to know learn how to save seed. I’m not going to ship seed again to you. You’re strictly wanting my observations concerning the selection and the way it carried out and so forth. Do you do style checks as effectively, by the best way? Do individuals let you know the way it tasted? Did they try this, too?
Sydney: [Laughter.] Oh, completely. O.Okay. We’re super-interested in how do you want this selection. We’ve been listening to from a few of us within the ADAPT program instantly through e-mail, and one participant, Doreen, we’re good companions and he or she is letting us know that the ‘Golden Ponderosa’ beefsteak tomato is completely scrumptious. One in every of her cooks that she works with over in Pennsylvania purchased up her entire provide for final week.
Margaret: Oh!
Sydney: Yeah. He didn’t look after the opposite ones, however he completely beloved the ‘Golden Ponderosa,’ and in order that’s superior data for us. One in every of our objectives with ADAPT—we have now many, however one in every of them is to gauge neighborhood enthusiasm and take a look at that efficiency knowledge. And hopefully that informs our regeneration priorities right here for the seed financial institution, and in addition informs which varieties we put into our bigger catalog that has a a lot bigger attain. We need to share varieties that style good and carry out effectively, and hopefully get individuals excited to proceed rising and attempting new issues, and hopefully sooner or later feeling a deeper reference to these varieties and stewarding them themselves.
Margaret: If individuals need to become involved, it sounds just like the signups occur within the new yr, however is there like a waitlist, so to talk? Is there a spot that we can provide a hyperlink to or someplace the place they are often looking out for that or…?
Sydney: Completely. We have now our 2026 curiosity signup, and in order that’s on our web site.
Margaret: Nice.
Sydney: Yeah, of us can join subsequent yr’s trials proper now. As quickly as we closed trials in January, I put the curiosity hyperlink up for the following yr. Folks can simply get on the record instantly.
Margaret: Good. So Mike, different participatory issues like this, as I stated, I’ve talked on a earlier episode concerning the Trade itself, a form of huge seed-swappy sort of factor, however different issues that you just need to shout out a bit of bit?
Mike: We’re fascinated by engagement throughout or assembly individuals the place they’re, and I feel we have now quite a lot of methods to have the ability to try this. The ADAPT program is such a stupendous initiative, as a result of like we’ve talked about right here a bit of bit we’re not asking individuals to avoid wasting seed, we’re simply in search of observations and documentation and their suggestions. And that has actual worth as a result of so most of the issues that we’re rising out, we’d like that further data on.
With a set within the seed financial institution the dimensions that it’s, and so many types that got here in in these early years, the documentation isn’t all the time the place we’d prefer it to be. And so outdoors of being a extremely enjoyable program, it does serve actual worth to us on this work.
One other program that we have now that’s actually unimaginable is the RENEW program. And so what we’re doing with RENEW is we are literally asking individuals to look after a seed, and there was sort of a time the place Kent and Diane [Seed Savers’ co-founders Kent and Diane Ott Whealey], once they obtained began, have been actually sending seeds out to of us, having them develop and save the seed after which ship some again.
And I feel that generally that labored effectively and generally it didn’t. Issues may cross up, or there’d be a crop failure in a given yr. And in order that RENEW program is basically simply working with of us which can be interested by saving seeds which have a bit of little bit of expertise, however we’re simply sending them one selection.
Margaret: They need to have room for a bigger quantity in an effort to try this; it’s not simply rising one plant or one thing, are they?
Mike: Yeah. It’s not only one plant, however it’s not like an acre of squash or one thing like that.
Margaret: Proper, proper. So it’s a bit of bit greater scale than what we have been simply speaking about.
Mike: Yeah, precisely. And in order that’s fantastic, as a result of then that helps us do among the multiplication work that we’d like within the seed financial institution, too. After which that ties again to us with the ability to improve accessibility to issues which can be within the seed financial institution and on provide by way of the Trade. Then after all, it goes with out saying, you probably did an episode on the Trade, and that’s simply in contrast to another alternative to have the ability to have interaction with folks.
I imply, with so many individuals rising and saving their very own seed all throughout the nation and itemizing these, I imply to have, relying on the yr, someplace between 15,000 and 18,000 totally different varieties being record by gardeners from all around the nation, it’s sort of mind-blowing. And I feel that that’s one thing that, once more, even when you’re not saving seed, it’s a means to have the ability to join with of us which can be doing that. And in order that’s the fantastic thing about that digital Trade platform, too. And so I feel that that’s a extremely wonderful means to have the ability to take part and interact as effectively.
Margaret: Yeah. So are there any form of sneak peeks, Sydney [laughter]? What’s occurring moreover that one tomato, or from final yr’s, as an example? Had been there any actually huge hits, as an example, that no matter area or no matter, that have been winners in a variety of locations. Or some that, have there been observations the place solely in a single area or one other that one thing was a star? Any inferences that you just’ve drawn that you just need to shout out that ADAPT has confirmed to offer?
Sydney: In 2024, we have been capable of provide a cut-flower trial from the gathering. We don’t have a big assortment of flowers inside the seed financial institution, however of us have been actually enthusiastic about that trial. We had nearly 400 individuals join that. And never all the varieties have been nice reduce flowers, however individuals actually excited to see the range and invite pollinators into their yard and simply add a splash of colour. [Above, Ageratum ‘Ocean.’]
And this yr within the spring radish trial [below, ‘Dessert Cherry’ radish]—a variety of the trials are nonetheless getting going; proper now persons are simply beginning their greater harvest of issues—however earlier this season for the spring radishes, one selection actually stood out. It was extraordinarily bolt-resistant and tasted very well. It was referred to as ‘Helro.’ In order that’s only one that we’re enthusiastic about right here.
And searching into the longer term, I’d actually love to do extra assortment documentation. A small share of the gathering has been evaluated right here on the farm or elsewhere, and so we’d actually like to interact the larger neighborhood on this work as a lot as potential. And SeedLinked has not too long ago obtained some up to date options as a result of their collaboration with the USDA, so we’re capable of get issues like phenology and morphology and measurements and issues like that. And so I’m actually hoping that the ADAPT neighborhood is interested by serving to us characterize these items. Like subsequent yr I’ve been digging into our database and it’s not confirmed but, however I’m actually excited concerning the potential of providing a poppy trial-
Margaret: That can be actually widespread. Oh my goodness.
Sydney: Sure. I do know. I’m so excited. We’ve obtained our germ tech proper now testing issues, and so we’ll see how that pans out. However I’d like to supply about 35 totally different styles of poppies for individuals to develop of their gardens and simply inform us what they’re. Yeah, there’s a seed steward out in Oregon, Frances Hoffman, and so they all got here from her. So I need to perform a little particular spotlight.
Margaret: Mike, different issues that perhaps individuals don’t know as effectively about Seed Savers that you just simply need to form of shout out? I imply, as an example, individuals might all know this, however I simply need to study increasingly more and extra concerning the apple assortment. I imply, it’s simply unimaginable, the historic apple assortment there, and but it’s not seed [laughter]; you don’t develop an apple tree from seed. Effectively, you possibly can, however it doesn’t precisely provide the identical genetics.
Mike: It’s not the identical. And Jamie Hanson, our orchard supervisor, is simply unimaginable and is constructing a neighborhood and community of oldsters all around the nation referring to the apple varieties that we have now and the 2 orchards that we have now right here.
I feel a part of the fantastic thing about that work is that, once more, the identical concept is that we are able to’t do the whole lot. We are able to’t be all issues to all people. And so on this community and within the communication with what Jamie is doing, we’re actually figuring out who’s caring for what areas are a few of these varieties greatest suited to be in, and ensuring that we are able to get that scion and people bushes to these locations. So that may actually assist us steward a set that’s acceptable for the place we’re at, and reduces redundancy. And so moderately than duplicating issues, we are able to work cohesively and as a staff, and the synergies that simply come out of working in neighborhood in that means is basically transformational.
I feel particularly as a nonprofit group the place you’re working with sources and so most of the nonprofits which can be doing work, to have the ability to have a concerted effort actually goes a great distance. And it takes extremely good individuals and employees. And I really feel actually lucky as the present government director at Seed Savers Trade, as a result of the staff of individuals we have now right here is simply distinctive.
Margaret: Effectively, I haven’t been on the market in a protracted, very long time. You talked about Kent and Diane earlier, the co-founders. I imply, I came over them, oh my goodness, so many many years in the past; I can’t even bear in mind [laughter], however when a variety of it was a dream and it’s come true, after which some. It’s simply so—I imply, simply actually tons to have a good time on this fiftieth anniversary. Tons to have a good time, and it seems like you might have a variety of very thrilling plans to maintain going towards the longer term.
So I need to thanks each, Mike Bollinger and Sidney Weldon from Seed Savers, for making time right now to speak. And glad anniversary. Have an awesome weekend, the eighth and ninth, with the convention and many festivities, so have enjoyable.
Mike: Yeah, thanks a lot for having us, and thanks to have the ability to share simply the significance of this community-based work inside your show right here. I do know you join with an unimaginable variety of individuals, so it’s an actual pleasure.
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MY WEEKLY public-radio show, rated a “top-5 backyard podcast” by “The Guardian” newspaper within the UK, started its sixteenth yr in March 2025. It’s produced at Robin Hood Radio, the smallest NPR station within the nation. Pay attention domestically within the Hudson Valley (NY)-Berkshires (MA)-Litchfield Hills (CT) Mondays at 8:30 AM Japanese, rerun at 8:30 Saturdays. Or play the Aug. 4, 2025 show utilizing the participant close to the highest of this transcript. You’ll be able to subscribe to all future editions on iTunes/Apple Podcasts or Spotify (and browse my archive of podcasts right here).
