Pine Plains residents swap and save seeds at library workshop

PINE PLAINS — With cooler weather setting in and landscapes bursting with fall colors, Pine Plains residents heard a handful of seed-saving tips at a workshop held on Saturday, Sept. 29.

Beginning at 2 p.m., the workshop was held in the Community Room above the Pine Plains Free Library. Led by Mark Stonehill and Miriam Goller from Full Circus Farm in Pine Plains, the sparse turnout allowed for individual attention.

On a table at the front of the room, Stonehill and Goller displayed a collage of photos taken of the fruits and vegetables that currently grow at their farm as well as a stack of seed catalogs from Hudson Valley Seed Company (formerly known as the Hudson Valley Seed Library), Fedco Trees, Turtle Tree Seed and other like companies. The speakers provided seed samples from green string beans, poppies, hollyhocks and dragon’s tongue.

Over the next hour, Stonehill and Goller spoke of saving seeds, supplying helpful tips and anecdotes. They discussed how certain seeds can be reused and showed the countless little seeds hidden inside a poppy plant by gently crushing its center in the palm of their hands.

On the subject of possible pollinating between hybrid seeds, Stonehill explained that “you can’t take a seed and put it in the ground and get the same plant you expected.”

Using strawberries as an example, he talked about the diversity found in the world of plant production. Reviewing the stack of seed catalogs, he demonstrated how some of the local seed companies offer a varied selection of plants and produce for customers, from tiger paw aster and dark star zucchini to lemon drop hot peppers and steadfast spinach. The catalogs also feature stories about seeds with various traits, histories and production results.

In between tips for saving seeds and growing crops, attendees swapped anecdotes from their gardening experiences. In turn, Stonehill and Goller shared some of their practices on Full Circus Farm, including using two horses to plow the fields. By partnering with Hudson Valley Seed Company, the farm now sells organic fruit trees through the company’s seed catalogue. Looking ahead, the farm plans to try growing ginger, though Goller described it as a long-term process.

“One of the fun things about seed saving is the seeds are just beautiful,” Goller said as she exhibited dried beans in the palm of her hand.

She said the time to plant seeds truly depends on what one plans on growing.

“If you’re really saving seeds, you want to pick from your favorite plant and the ones that will do the best where you live,” she said.

“This is great — I feel I learned so much,” said attendee Lenora Champagne.

“It’s nice to get it from a person,” Stonehill agreed as he compared the benefits of learning about seed saving and selections from a live person versus online resources.

Given the convenience of purchasing seed packets instead of saving seeds, the group discussed how the culture of seed saving has changed. Toward the end of the workshop, the speakers invited attendees to take seed samples and catalogs home with them for more information.

The seed-saving workshop was made possible by the Pine Plains Free Library and the Pine Plains Seed Library. For more information on upcoming events at the library, go to www.pplibrary.org.