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My Garden: Sylvia’s Seed Saving Class #3
Attending the seed saving class is one of the highlights of the month for me. Sylvia’s gardens are always picture perfect and it’s amazing to see the difference one month makes in her gardens. Of course my gardens change as well, but since I’m in them everyday I don’t see it so clearly.
Sylvia’s Garden’s
The agenda for our July class was to check on the progress of the grains and other plants that were going to seed.
Heirloom wheat
Also discussed were protecting crops from birds and animals. When you are saving your seeds the plants need to be protected from insects, birds and animals and to do this you want to use natural methods. Sylvia covers her grains and ties a string around them to keep the chipmunks out. She’s tried traps but once the grain is ripe the animals much prefer the grain to anything she can put in the trap.
Ripe wheat heads.
She also used a shiny bird flash tape, which the birds think is fire! I guess it works, as we didn’t see any birds in her garden.
Covered grain and bird flash tape.
We also talked about the various isolation techniques used when you want to save your seeds as well as maintaining variety purity and vigor. Plants can be isolated by covering them with row covers.
Using row covers to isolate plants.
They can also be isolated by only planting one variety.
Flowering lettuce.
I find the two hours well spent and I come away with pages of notes and a renewed interest in growing and saving my own seeds.
Our outdoor classroom.
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I love the pictures! She certainly has a beautiful garden…I’m a bit envious
I have saved some of my seeds from year to year, but have never found the time and energy to go to the lengths that Sylvia does! Sigh…maybe next year.
Thanks for sharing!
Lisa Lynn, Sylvia is a true inspiration! I am just glad she is willing to teach us what she knows!
Wonderful gardens. Wish mine looked so nice. Thanks for posting.
Does she grind her own grain for flour? I’d love to spend a couple hours in her garden.
She does grind some for flour. She’s also growing rice which doesn’t have to be in rice paddy! Trying to grow foods to feed people in Vermont!
I have never seen a live wheat plant, neither have I seen flowering lettuce. The outdoor classroom look very inviting.
I am learning a lot in Sylvia’s class, who would have thought of using log stumps as seats for a class!