Native Seeds/SEARCH is a non-profit conservation organization based in Tucson, Arizona. Since 1983 we have been a major regional seed bank and a leader in the heirloom seed movement. Our seed bank is a unique resource for both traditional and modern agriculture. It includes 1,800 varieties of arid-land adapted agricultural crops, many of them rare or endangered. We promote the use of these ancient crops and their wild relatives by distributing seeds to traditional communities and to gardeners world-wide.

This summer we will be recruiting four temporary interns to help with conservation work at the Native Seeds/SEARCH Conservation Farm in Patagonia, Arizona. Activities this year include the regeneration (growing, documentation and seed-saving) of a diverse assortment of over 100 at-risk crop varieties, as well as the growout of numerous other varieties for seed distribution or research. This is a fantastic opportunity to become inimately involved with the preservation of the Southwest's rich agricultural heritage, learn farming and seed-saving techniques, and live in a place of stunning natural beauty.

Due to the large number of corn and squash accessions we will be growing this year, controlled pollination is necessary to maintain the genetic isolation of each variety. This year we are growing 40 squash, 11 gourd and 16 corn varieties that will all need to be hand-pollinated. Physically, the work is not very demanding, but it is very time consuming and must take place early in the morning and later in the evening to ensure the viability of the pollen. We will also be growing a number of common beans, tepary beans, runner beans, lentils, chiles, cotton, amaranth, tomatoes, sunflowers, and many other crops. In addition to working at the farm, you will have the opportunity to work at our seed bank in Tucson so that you can get a well-rounded experience in seed conservation.

The upcoming session of Seed School takes place over 5 consecutive Saturdays beginning June 16th, 2012.

Join NS/S Executive Director Bill McDorman and special guests for an immersion into a new regional and sustainable seed production and distribution system. Bill is a 30 year veteran of the seed industry who has recently joined NS/S as Executive Director. Bill has founded three seed companies and co-founded several nonprofits.

Course Details

Summer Saturdays (June 16, 23, 30; July 7, 14)
NS/S Conservation Center
3584 E. River Road, Tucson, AZ

Early bird special: Register before May 25 for only $500!

Tuition: $600.
Deposit to reserve a spot: $200.

Proceeds benefit Native Seeds/SEARCH.
Full payment is due two weeks prior to the starting date. Space is limited - sign up early!
Register and submit your deposit online or call 520-622-0830 ex 100.

Scholarships available for Native Americans, educators and those who are passionate but on limited income. Scholarship payments due May 25th.

Register

Payment can also be made by mailing a check payable to Native Seeds/SEARCH, 3584 E. River Road, Tucson AZ 85718. Indicate "Seed School Summer 2012" on your check and include contact information and phone number.

"The Unhealthy Truth about GMOs Hidden in our Food" with Melissa Diane Smith

May 21, 2012
5:30-7:30 PM

Join us for another thought-provoking Salon as we welcome Melissa Diane Smith of the GMO Free Project of Tucson for an eye-opening look into GMOs. Melissa will discuss the basics about genetically modified organisms (GMOs) hidden in many foods and the health risks associated with them. The event will include the short film "Hidden Dangers in Kids' Meals" and nutritionist Melissa will explain steps you can take to avoid GM foods.

Native Seeds/SEARCH Salons happen every third Monday of the month at our Retail Store at 3061 N. Campbell Road, and have a little something for anyone who has ever wielded a fork or pitchfork. Bring your juiciest ideas and appetite for mind-watering conversations.

A ground-breaking collaboration of farmers and organizations in southern Arizona has been awarded a two-year, $50,000 grant by the Western SARE (Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education) program to revive the production, milling, distribution, and marketing of the oldest extant grain varieties adapted to the arid Southwest: White Sonora soft bread wheat and Chapalote flint corn.

Native Seeds/SEARCH, the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona, Hayden Flour Mills, Santa Cruz Valley Heritage Alliance, Cultivate Santa Cruz, Tubac Historical Society, Amado Farms Joint Venture, and Avalon Organic Gardens and EcoVillage will work with small-scale beginning farmers as well as low-income tortilla makers and bakers in the proposed Santa Cruz Valley National Heritage Area to increase our region’s food diversity and food security in the face of climate change and an evolving agricultural landscape.

Cereal grains are fundamental to the diets of most people in the Southwest, yet local production and processing of regionally-adapted grains is a missing element in efforts to increase our region’s food security and to offer staples to low-income populations at risk of hunger. Through a diversity of complementary approaches, the funded project aims to address this gap by re-introducing Chapalote corn and White Sonora wheat into sustainable food production regimes in the arid Southwest; establishing fruitful exchanges of information among producers, millers, bakers, and other stakeholders; and ensuring that the use of these heritage grains reaches food-insecure families in our region and that they are enlisted in producing value-added products as new sources of income.

Much of Mexico has been devastated by a combination of prolonged drought and cold snaps. A recent NY Times article discusses the crisis, as do many others. The Tarahumara have been hit particularly hard. Please consider donating to the Red Cross for immediate food aid to Mexico (there are instructions for designating that your donation goes toward relief for Mexico).

In addition to immediate food assistance, the Tarahumara need seeds. Native Seeds/SEARCH will be donating as much seed of Tarahumara corn, beans, and other crops as we can. We will also be doing seed increases of Tarahumara varieties this summer so that we can provide more extensive assistance next year. Please consider donating to the Red Cross for immediate assistance, and then please consider donating to Native Seeds/SEARCH to help support our seed growouts for the Tarahumara. If you are a farmer and would like to help, please email us.

If you’ve seen one seed catalog, you’ve seen them all… right? Well, allow us to break the mold. The new 2012 Seedlisting from Native Seeds/SEARCH is brimming with groundbreaking, eye-popping surprises. It is now available for download and will be hitting mailboxes shortly. Take a look!

A Bounty of Uncommon Beauty

From the vibrant purple-silk Hopi Sweet Corn to a rainbow of delectable tepary beans, the heirloom varieties we offer are the jewels of any garden. Mouths water at the sight of our panoply of native chile peppers, with spices and flavors to suit any palate. And jaded gardeners need look no further for inspiration than our Hopi Short Staple Cotton, Paiute Devil’s Claw, or Teosinte, the ancient progenitor of modern corn. You won’t find seeds like these from “the other guys!”

Extra, Extra — Seed All About It!

Thumbing through the lush, full-color pages of the Native Seeds/SEARCH Seedlisting is like dancing through the fields of our ancestors. Gathered from indigenous tribes and kept alive through our nonprofit conservation organization and seed bank, these rare and coveted seed offerings are available nowhere else.

But wait, there’s more—as if our bonanza of heirloom beauties wasn’t enough! This year’s seedlisting introduces Tucson Seed, a new line of desert-hardy varieties of common garden vegetables. Now you can grow Native Seeds/SEARCH carrots alongside your chiltepines, or sow arugula with your amaranth—all selected for their performance in arid conditions.

Happy growing!

We are proud to introduce our newly-designed 2012 seed packets, which feature color photos and helpful historical, cultural and seed saving information. We are gradually phasing them in and welcome your feedback.

The NS/S Seed Library opened its drawers to the public on January 15th, to much excitement. Located inside the Native Seeds/SEARCH Retail Store, this community seed reserve is the first of its kind in Arizona. Come sign up for free and check out what all the buzz is about!

Seed libraries function similarly to book-lending libraries. People “check out” seeds, grow them in gardens, and keep a few plants in the ground to go to seed. The saved seed is then “returned” to the library, ideally in more abundance than what was borrowed. As this process continues year after year, the seeds in the library become more productive and hardy by building up adaptations to local growing conditions. The concept is taking off across the country with more than 30 seed libraries currently underway.

Everybody's talking about this exciting innovation in community resilience and local biodiversity. Our own Deputy Director Belle Starr and NS/S board member Martha "Muffin" Burgess recently made an appearance on the KVOA morning news discussing the new seed library. Watch the video here.

The Native Seeds/SEARCH Seed Library is located inside the NS/S Retail Store at 3061 North Campbell Avenue in Tucson. Docents are on hand to help answer questions and assist with using the library. Membership is free, and all are welcome to join, grow, and save their seeds. Come check it out!

When our ancestral gardeners needed seed, there were no glossy catalogs to leaf through. They acquired their replanting stock through the time-honored practice of seed saving, a tradition that stretches back some 10,000 years. We encourage a return to this lost art as a vital step toward reconnecting humans with seeds—the source of all sustenance.

To assist gardeners in making seed purchases that allow for seed saving, we’ve developed Seed Watch. This wallet-sized booklet demystifies often-confusing terminology and serves as a seed buyer’s guide to making choices that support genetically diverse, small-scale bioregional agriculture. Thanks to a generous grant from the Southwestern Foundation in Tucson, we’ve printed 30,000 copies of Seed Watch to freely share with other soil-loving seedheads from nonprofits, educational groups and community organizations. Contact Belle Starr for details and requests: belle@nativeseeds.org