Seeds And Their People

Sama Mansouri of Reyhan Herb Farm grows foods from Iran in the San Francisco Bay Area, California for her community members in the Iranian Diaspora. She also shares seeds through our Truelove Seeds catalog, and we met up in January of 2025 to talk about some of her favorite food plants. In June 2025, Israel and the US attacked Iran, accusing Iran of violating their nuclear nonproliferation obligations. There were thousands of casualties, mostly civilians. Sama and I spoke again a week after the ceasefire to introduce this episode and I'm finally getting around to sharing it with you! Listen in to learn about the various Iranian herbs of Sabzi and many other vegetable friends, as well as some thoughts and tips on growing and saving seeds from them. Find seeds from Sama's farm, including the following, at: https://trueloveseeds.com/collections/reyhan-herb-farm REYHAN HERB FARM SEEDS IN OUR CATALOG (8/25): Bademjan (Iranian Eggplant) Laboo (Iranian Beet) Marzeh (Iranian Summer Savory) Pache Baghala (Gilani Bush Bean) Shambalileh Iranian Fenugreek "Medzmama" Arevatsaghik (Armenian Sunflower) LINKS: Reyhan Herb Farm THIS EPISODE SUPPORTED BY: Patreon.com/trueloveseedsScribe Video CenterWPEB, West Philly Community Radio ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Facebook | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden THANKS TO:

In late November, 2024, we finally recorded an episode featuring Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram's Garden and many of the voices of the farmers there. This podcast in many ways is an extension of their work to "Go Back and Bring Forward What You Left Behind" - which is a take on the meaning of the Twi word "Sankofa". Its corresponding Akan proverb is, “Se wo were fi na wosan kofa a yenkyiri.” In large part, this approach to farming, community building, and cultural preservation with a heavy emphasis on learning the practices and foodways of our ancestors inspired the genesis of Truelove Seeds and this podcast lifting up the voices of people sharing about their ancestral foods. So please enjoy this episode where you hear reflections from many of the farmers from Sankofa, including: Chris Bolden Newsome, Laquanda Dobson, Lailah Lindsey Glass, Maria Jose Garcia, Ty Holmberg, Keyone Carter, and Hajja Glover. FOOD PLANTS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: Collard Greens Siling Labuyo Pepper Sehsapsing Corn Okra Castor Beans Roselle Hill Rice (Trinidad) LINKS: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram's Garden THIS EPISODE SUPPORTED BY: Patreon.com/trueloveseedsThe No-Till Market Growers Podcast Networkthe Seed Farmer PodcastScribe Video CenterWPEB, West Philly Community Radio ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Facebook | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden THANKS TO:

In late October, 2024, we (Chris and Owen) walked down our Germantown, Philadelphia street to interview our friend and neighbor Ms. Valerie Erwin on her porch. We talked about traditional (and less traditional) Gullah Geechee foodways with a focus on rice, field peas, okra, cornbread, shrimp and grits, thyme, hog jowls, Nan-e berenji (a Persian rice cookie), duck confit with fried Hoppin' John, and much more. Of course, with Chris and Ms. Val on the same porch, there are lots of easy segues into the African influence on Southern food. We talked about her former restaurant, her work as a chef now, and we took a walk around her garden. Here is an excerpt from Ms. Valerie’s bio from Les Dames D’escoffier’s member directory (with some updates): Valerie Erwin is a longtime Philadelphia chef who, for 12 years owned the critically acclaimed Geechee Girl Rice Cafe. Valerie specializes in the food of the Low Country—the coast of South Carolina and Georgia—where her grandparents were born. During its tenure, Geechee Girl was featured on many major media outlets, including the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Philadelphia Daily News, Philadelphia Magazine, The Food Network, and NPR. For two years Valerie was the General Manager of EAT Café, a West Philadelphia neighborhood restaurant with an innovative pay-what-you-can model. Since 2020, Valerie has managed Farm to Families, a produce access program of St Christopher’s Foundation for Children. Valerie has served on the board of the Southern Foodways Alliance—the country’s premier institution for the study of food and culture. She now serves on the board of the Wyck Historic House Garden and Farm, a Germantown historic home, and the People's Kitchen Philly, a mutual aid kitchen. Valerie spends her time catering, doing business consulting, and working on food related projects with cultural institutions such as the Free Library of Philadelphia, and the Philadelphia Jazz Project. FOOD PLANTS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: Sea Island Red Peas Sea Island Okra Hill Rice (Trinidad) Corn Thyme LINKS: Valerie Erwin / Geechee Girl Cafe on Instagram Anson Mills, Columbia, South Carolina Kilimanjaro Restaurant, Philadelphia Black Rice, by Judith Carney Chef Edna Lewis Culinary Historian Jessica B Harris Culinary Historian Michael W Twitty Fish Pepper episode on Seeds and Their People THIS EPISODE SUPPORTED BY: Patreon.com/trueloveseedsThe No-Till Market Growers Podcast Networkthe Seed Farmer PodcastScribe Video CenterWPEB, West Philly Community Radio ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Facebook | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden THANKS TO:

This episode, recorded in late September 2024, features the voices and wisdom of East New York Farms youth leaders Jemel Thomas, Gaby, and Hope, as well as staff member Alexx Caceres as they talk about their community food work and seed keeping in particular. We were chatting moments before I (Owen) led a seed keeping workshop for an awesome group of community members and visitors where all had a chance to share knowledge, swap seeds, and shell several types of beans (this part was not recorded, sorry!) After Alexx, you hear from Ms. Marlene Wilks and her twin sister Ms. Pauline Reid while we sit at their farmers market table outside East New York Farms' gates during a bustling market. The two are from Jamaica and have been farming in East New York since 1990 and selling their Caribbean vegetables, herbs, and plants at this market since 2000. Several customers also share about their cultural foods: another Pauline from Jamaica, Molly from Senegal, and chef Desma Ross from Trinidad and Tobago. FOOD AND MEDICINE MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: Callaloo (Amaranthus spp.) Bitter Melon (Momordica charantia) Long Beans (Vigna unguiculata) Jamaican Pumpkin (Cucurbita moschata) Gungo Peas / Pigeon Peas (Cajanus cajan) Shado Beni / Culantro (Eryngium foetidum) Scotch Bonnet Pepper (Capsicum chinense) Cerasee (Momordica charantia) Moringa (Moringa oleifera) Guinea Hen Weed (Petiveria alliacea) Soursop (Annona muricata) Lemon Grass (Cymbopogon citratus) LINKS: East New York Farmers Market (homepage) East New York Farms (instagram) GreenThumb, City of New York Marlene Wilks at East New York Farms Pauline Reid at East New York Farms by Leave it Better New York gardens produce Caribbean treasures - New York Times / The Bulletin A Community of Growers How East New York Farms builds food security and provides jobs for its neighborhood. - Civil Eats In the Shadow of Slavery: Africa’s Botanical Legacy in the Atlantic World by Judith Carney THIS EPISODE SUPPORTED BY: Patreon.com/trueloveseedsThe No-Till Market Growers Podcast Networkthe Seed Farmer PodcastScribe Video CenterWPEB, West Philly Community Radio ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Facebook | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden THANKS TO:

This episode features a conversation in early July 2024 with Mohegan tribal members Sharon Maynard and Rachel Sayet about traditional Mohegan food. Sharon Maynard is a Mohegan elder and a Tribal Nonner. Retired after serving 12 years on the Council of Elders, Sharon’s interests include food sovereignty, seed saving, and decolonizing our diets. She has a BA in anthropology and an AS in food service management. Rachel Sayet (Akitusut) is a Mohegan writer, teacher, and indigenous food specialist. Rachel has a BS in restaurant management and an MA in anthropology. She has spent her adult life trying to cultivate awareness of Native New England. She worked for the Mohegan tribe for 8 years in their cultural department spearheading grassroots efforts in revitalizing traditional foods and diabetes prevention. FOOD AND MEDICINE MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: Maple, Birch Blueberries, Strawberries, Fiddlehead Ferns Milkweed, Sassafras, Elder, Boneset Corn, Beans, Squash, Sunflowers, Tobacco Succotash (Corn, Beans, Salt Pork, Salt and Pepper) Johnny Cakes (Journey Cakes) Yokaeg (traveling food made of dried, parched corn which has been ground finely with a mortar and pestle). Clams, Quahogs, Scallops, Shad, Salmon Fry Bread, Indian Tacos, Buffalo and Alligator Burgers Rachel's Johnny Cake Turkey Sandwich on America the Bountiful, PBS LINKS: Mohegan Tribe Rachel Beth Sayet, Indigenous Educator, Lightworker, Chef, Herbalist Wikôtamuwôk Wuci Ki tà Kihtahan (A Celebration of Land and Sea):Modern Indigenous Cuisine in New EnglandTantaquidgeon Museum Gladys Tantaquidgeon - in Memorium Makiawisug, or the Little People at Mohegan Hill Eastern Woodlands Rematriation Sherry Pocknett, Mashpee Wampanoag chef, Sly Fox Den Restaurant The Man Who Weeps, story by Dale Carson, Abenaki cookbook author, in Dawnland Voices 2.0 Strawberry Thanksgiving, by Paula Dove Jennings, Narragansett Sioux Chef, Sean Sherman, Oglala Lakota Sioux Yazzie the Chef, Brian Yazzie, Diné Rowen White, Mohawk/Kanienkeha:ka, seed keeper THIS EPISODE SUPPORTED BY: Patreon.com/trueloveseedsThe No-Till Market Growers Podcast Networkthe Seed Farmer PodcastScribe Video CenterWPEB, West Philly Community Radio ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Facebook | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden THANKS TO:

Join us and 15 of Karen Washington's dear friends, family, mentees, and collaborators in wishing her a very happy 70th birthday with this episode featuring food and plant stories about our Farmy Godmother. Karen has been instrumental in the creation and guidance of neighborhood organizations such as Garden of Happiness, La Familia Verde Coalition and Farmers Market, and Bronx Green Up, as well as Farm School NYC, Black Urban Growers, and the Black Farmers and Urban Gardeners Conference. She serves on the board of Soul Fire Farm, the Black Farmer Fund, and the Mary Mitchell Center and has been a part of so many others such as Just Food (where we first met) and New York Botanic Garden, and was once the president of the New York City Community Garden Coalition, organizing to protect the gardens from development. She is one of the four co-founders and owners of Rise & Root Farm in Chester, NY. More importantly, Karen is a fierce fighter for gardens and justice and loves her friends and families with gusto and grits. We hope these stories reveal her love and knack for investing in community and her life-long commitment to rising and rooting for justice. PEOPLE WITH KAREN STORIES IN THIS EPISODE: THIS EPISODE SUPPORTED BY: Patreon.com/trueloveseedshttps://bookkeeping.coop/home/ ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Facebook | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden THANKS TO: Patreon membersA Bookkeeping Cooperative

This episode is a compilation of recordings by seed geographer Chris Keeve and Truelove Seeds' business manager (and Owen's sister) Sara Taylor at our annual growers gathering at our Truelove Seeds farm in November 2023. They recruited party goers to their table where they mapped seed stories with strings and notes on a world map, and where they asked people to share about how their favorite seed became their favorite seed. There are a few recordings at the end that we added after the fact as well. SEED STORIES TOLD IN THIS EPISODE: PREVIOUS GROWERS GATHERING EPISODE: Seeds and their People - EP. 17: Mycelial Networks of Seed Growers & the Truelove Seeds Listening Project ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Facebook | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden THANKS TO:

This episode features an interview with Zee Lilani at Kula Nursery in West Oakland, California in January 2024. Zee grows Doodhi (Lauki/Bottle Gourd) and Kalonji (Black Seed/Nigella) seeds for our Truelove Seeds catalog as well as many varieties for Second Generation Seeds at her farm in Petaluma, California. In this episode, we hear how Zee left her work as a hydrologist, became a farmer, worked in food sovereignty and food security supporting other farmers, and then started her own nursery business focused on South Asian plants during the pandemic. During the partition of India, her family was displaced from the city of Surat, in the state of Gujarat, in India to Pakistan. Her work with plants familiar to her mother and grandmother bring Surat back to life many decades later, far from home. In her words: 'Kula Nursery is a grassroots urban nursery working within and for BIPOC communities to increase food sovereignty through gardening education and culturally relevant plant starts. The mission at Kula Nursery is to reconnect the diaspora with heritage food, strengthen food sovereignty among these communities, and promote cultural and biological diversity. As a heritage nursery, we believe the act of growing, tending to, and eating heritage foods encourages folks to reclaim their power within the local food system while simultaneously honoring and reconnecting to their ancestors, immediate family and community at large.' Basically, this interview is right up our alley at Seeds and their People, focused on how plants connect us to our people, power, place, ancestors, and community. SEED STORIES TOLD IN THIS EPISODE: Cuban Oregano, Indian Mint, Patta Ajwain, Coleus amboinicus Curry Tree, Murraya koenigii Night Blooming Jasmine, Raat Ki Rani, Queen of the Night, Cestrum nocturnum Mogra, Arabian Jasmine, Belle of India, Grand Duke of Tuscany, Jasminum sambac Henna, Lawsonia inermis Amla, Indian Gooseberry, Emblica officinalis Sugarcane, Saccharum spp. Taro, Colocasia esculenta Bindhi, Okra, Abelmoschus esculentus Doodhi/Lauki, Bottle Gourd, Lagenaria siceraria Kalonji, Black Seed, Nigella, "Onion Seed", Nigella sativa Krishna Tulsi, Ocicimum tenuiflorum Desi Girl Tomato, Solanum lycopersicum Lal Mirch Indian Pepper, Capsicum annuum Baingan Indian Eggplant, Solanum melongena MORE INFO FROM THIS EPISODE: Kula Nursery webpage Kula Nursery Instagram Kula Nursery at Truelove Seeds Second Generation Seeds (direct links to Kula Nursery varieties above) Diaspora Co. Seeds and their People - EP. 22: Gujarati Seeds and Flavors with Nital Vadalia-Kakadia Seeds and their People - EP. 2: Kristyn Leach and Namu Farm ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Facebook | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden THANKS TO:

Bryan O'Hara speaks about wholistic reasons for seed production on his vegetable farm, including working with natural processes such as growing winter annual crops for seed from summer to summer for better pest control and better flavor. He also discusses hybrid vigor and how to achieve this with genetically diverse populations of open pollinated plants, and explains how he selects for winter hardiness, more or less uniformity, earliness, flavor, and so on. In line with our theme of ancestral seeds, he talks about being both Polish and Irish and some connections to his farming practices through plants and ways of being and seeing. We end the episode with a traditional Irish song, Moorlough Shore, featuring Bryan on guitar, his daughter Clara O'Hara on vocals and flute, her boyfriend Sparrow Belliveau on Piano, and his brother Raven Belliveau on lead and backing violin. Bryan O’Hara and Anita Johnson have been growing vegetables at their three acre farm for over 30 years. Tobacco Road Farm produces high quality, nutrient-dense food using no pesticides and working with nature as much as possible in a close relationship. With an intensive focus on building the health of the soil, they use no-till natural farming methods. They also introduce indigenous microorganisms (IMOs) from the surrounding forest into their compost systems and foliar sprays to feed, protect, and invigorate their field soil and vegetable crops. Bryan is also the author of No-Till Intensive Vegetable Culture: Pesticide-Free Methods for Restoring Soil and Growing Nutrient-Rich, High-Yielding Crops. Tobacco Road Farm provides ten carefully selected open-pollinated seed varieties for the Truelove Seeds catalog, which are listed below: SEEDS GROWN BY TOBACCO ROAD FARM FOR TRUELOVE SEEDS: Ice-Bred Arugula Tokyo Bekana Wonnegold Turnip Polish Watermelon Mizuna Landrace Big Pink Tomato (not in episode) Vit Mache Presto Cress Vertissimo Chervil (not in episode) Claytonia MORE INFO FROM THIS EPISODE: Tobacco Road Farm at Truelove SeedsNo-Till Vegetable Intensive Culture from Chelsea Green PublishingSeveral No-Till Growers Network podcast episodes featuring Bryan O'Hara ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Facebook | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden THANKS TO:

Dr. Bryan Connolly is a botanist, horticulturalist, and professor of Biology at Eastern Connecticut University in Willimantic, CT, my (Owen's) hometown. His research interests include rare plants of New England, the nightshade family, the rose family, and cannabis. Before Eastern, Professor Connolly was a faculty member at Framingham State University in Massachusetts and also worked for the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife, University of Mississippi’s Medicinal Plant Garden, New England Wild Flower Society, and the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection. He is also involved in his family farm: Cobblestone Farm CSA in Mansfield Center, CT. Bryan appreciates his family's tolerance of his growing unusual plants, especially his wife Diane Dorfer, and he is sorry about the Erubia spines all over the yard a few years back. He thanks his son William for helping to take care of the spiny Erubia as well! In this interview we hear about Bryan's 33 year journey with seed saving, seed production, and plant breeding; his work with giving a boost and sometimes reintroducing native plants from New England to Puerto Rico; his work with students around growing cannabis for medicinal uses; and his trials and initial breeding work with some crops we shared with him, including pigeon peas, field peas, and roselle. SEED AND PLANT STORIES TOLD IN THIS EPISODE: Chenopodium formosanum (Taiwan) Grass Jelly (Taiwan, Indonesia) Erubia (Puerto Rico) Corpse Flower (Indonesia) Easter in August Cherry Tomato Minnesota 13 Field Pea Bo (Black-Eyed Pea Leaves) Mississippi Purple Hull Pea Northern Adapted Pigeon Peas Solanum chacoense (South America) Cannabis (specifically the beverage, Bhang from India) Chin Baung (Burmese Roselle Leaf) MORE INFO FROM THIS EPISODE: Bryan's ECSU professor bio Bryan's instagram: Northeastern Connecticut Botany Breeding Organic Vegatables, NOFA publication, by Rowen White and Bryan Connolly Organic Seed Production and Saving, NOFA publication, by Bryan Connolly Stewarding Indigenous Seeds and Planting by the Moon with Stephen Silverbear McComber, Seed Savers Exchange Ploidy (number of chromosomes in a cell) Ploidy, genetic diversity and speciation of the genus Aronia ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Facebook | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden

While visiting Greenville, Mississippi, we asked farmer and food justice elder Mama D (our mother, Ms. Demalda Newsome) to co-produce an episode about the farmers of the Delta. This is the first of multiple episodes about Black Farming Vibes in the Delta, we hope! FEATURING: 7:26 - Ms. Demalda Newsome interviews Kevion Devanté Young, CTE Diversified Agriculture instructor (Leland, MS) 23:21 - Owen Taylor interviews Mr. Rufus Newsome, Newsome Community Farms, Greenville, MS 49:20 - Owen and our son Bryan record animal sounds and talk about the surrounding farm fields, Greenville, MS 54:05 - Rufus and Demalda Newsome interview Mr. Elgin Johnson, farmer and wood seller in Greenville, MS SEED AND PLANT STORIES TOLD IN THIS EPISODE: Carolina Broadleaf Mustard Turnip Greens Collard Greens Mississippi Purple Hull Peas Mississippi Silver Hull Crowder Peas Cow Horn Okra Speckled Brown Butter Bean MORE INFO FROM THIS EPISODE: LinktreeSeeds and their People, episode 4YouTube, 2008Guardian article ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Facebook | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden THANKS TO:

Mary Menniti grew up with her Italian immigrant grandfather growing vegetables, figs, and tending sheep in her family's backyard. She created The Italian Garden Project to celebrate the joy and wisdom inherent in the traditional Italian American vegetable garden, preserving this heritage and demonstrating its relevance for reconnecting to our food, our families and the earth. Over the past few years, we have been connecting over our shared love of growing Italian American seeds and their stories, and are now collaborating on preserving on various farms and sharing her seed collection through our seed catalog. In this episode, we also hear the voices of Concetta Liberto, Antonino Machi, Fenice Mercurio, Charles Adornetto, Domenic Carpico, and Michele Vaccaro from interviews conducted by Mary. SEED AND PLANT STORIES TOLD IN THIS EPISODE: Figs Broccoli Rabe Poverella Pole Bean from Concetta Liberto Cow's Nipple Tomato from Mariano Floro Lunga di Napoli Squash Cucuzza from Antonino Machi Cucuzza seed saving with Charles Adornetto Fagiolina del Trasimeno Long Bean Vinny's Neapolitan Friariello (Frying Pepper) Ischia Eggplant Nepitella Fennel from Fenice Mercurio Black Fava (Mora de Precoce) from Nicola Ranieri Swiss Chard from Caro Simbula Sabatino’s "Peppe Insalata" LettuceFloriani Red Flint Corn MORE INFO FROM THIS EPISODE: Italian Garden Project (web)Italian Garden Project (IG)Italian Garden Project (YouTube)Italian Garden Project (Facebook)Bruno Garofalo's Bidente (Two-Toothed tool)Italian American Podcast on UnificationGrowers Grange Italian Heirloom CSA, Corbett, OREggplant Parmesan recipe by Cooking with NonaThe Feast of the Madonna del Sacro Monte, Clifton, NJ ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Facebook | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden THANKS TO:

Dr. William Woys Weaver is an internationally known food historian and author of 22 books including: Dr. Weaver lives in the 1805 Lamb Tavern in Devon, Pennsylvania where he maintains a jardin potager in the style of the 1830s featuring over 5,000 varieties of heirloom vegetables, flowers, and herbs. He is an organic gardener, a life member of Seed Savers Exchange, and for many years served as a Contributing Editor to Gourmet, Mother Earth News, and The Heirloom Gardener. From 2002 to 2010, he lectured on Food Studies at Drexel University and is presently lecturing on regional American cuisine in connection with a non-profit academic research institute organized under the name The Roughwood Center for Heritage Seedways. Dr. Weaver received his doctorate in food ethnography at University College Dublin, Ireland, the first doctorate awarded by the University in that field of study. In the winter of 2013, Owen had just moved to Philadelphia. A friend introduced him to Dr. Weaver and he hired him to care for his gardens and the Roughwood Seed Collection. During his four years working with him, Owen was fascinated by slow walks through the garden where he could reveal 10,000 years of human history in each plant story. It was here that Owen first learned how to carefully select and midwife the seeds of these countless storied species. We started a seed catalog and grew for a couple other companies. Dr. Weaver’s work with seeds often connects and reconnects gardeners and farmers with seeds that help tell their own stories. One of the best examples is making the Horace Pippin peppers available to African American growers in the Mid-Atlantic, as well as Pennsylvania Dutch and Lenni Lenape heirlooms from Southeastern Pennsylvania. SEED STORIES TOLD IN THIS EPISODE: Hannah Freeman Bean Pippin's Fish Pepper Bowling Pin Paste Tomato Green Striped Maycock Weaver Pole Bean Shipova Mt. Ash Hybrid MORE INFO FROM THIS EPISODE: The Roughwood Center for Heritage SeedwaysRoughwood FacebookA Century of Don Yoder: Father of American FolklifeJames Weaver and Meadowview Farms, Bowers, PA ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Facebook | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden THANKS TO:

This episode features Nital Vadalia-Kakadia. Originally from the state of Gujarat in Western India, Nital has been fascinated by farming and food since she was a child on her family’s farm in India. These days, she tends to beautiful gardens filled with her ancestral Indian vegetables and herbs, as well as lush native pollinator plants, fruit trees, and cut flowers at her family’s home in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, not too far from our home in Philadelphia. She has introduced us and our community to many Indian seeds and so it was great to have this chance to visit her home and speak with her about her life, her beloved food plants, and even get a chance to share a delicious meal featuring bindhi, guar, curry leaves, amba, and so much more. You will also hear a couple voice recordings from Truelove Seeds apprentice Tika Jagad and her father Mr. Krutarth Jagad. And at the end, our son Bryan asks Nital and Dinesh’s son Soham a couple questions about his favorite traditional foods. SEED STORIES TOLD IN THIS EPISODE: Bindhi, Okra, Abelmoschus esculentus Guar, Cluster Bean, Cyamopsis tetragonoloba Curry Tree, Murraya koenigii Ratalu, Purple Yam, Dioscorea alata Lablab, Hyacinth Bean, Lablab purpureus White Eggplant, Solanum melongena Transkutukú Peanuts from the Shuar people of Ecuador, Arachis hypogaea Chana, Chickpeas, Cicer arietinum Pigeon Pea, Cajanus cajan Fenugreek, Trigonella foenum-graecum Surti Papri, Lablab purpureus Karela, Bitter Melon, Momordica charantia Lauki, Bottle Gourd, Lagenaria siceraria Luffa Jewels of Opar, Talinum paniculatum and Waterleaf, Talinum triangulare Red Amaranth, Amaranthus spp. Tomato, Solanum lycopersicum Mango, Mangifera indica Amla, Indian Gooseberry, Emblica officinalis Falsa, Sherbet Berry, Grewia asiatica Papaya, Carica papaya MORE INFO FROM THIS EPISODE: InstagramSistah SeedsRabbit Hole Farm, Newark, NJKula Nursery ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Facebook | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden THANKS TO:

In the first week of June 2023, I finally visited Haiqal's Garden in South Philadelphia to speak with Hani White and Syarif Syaifulloh about their beloved Indonesian food plants, food culture, and life stories. We met five years ago at Sky Cafe, an Indonesian restaurant where Hani curated a storied vegetarian meal for our group, and then took us a few doors down to Hung Vuong, an Asian grocery store where she gave us a tour of her favorite vegetables from Indonesia. Since then, her family has visited our Truelove Seeds farm, traded seeds and plants with us, and helped us identify one of the plants we purchased at the Cambodian market in FDR Park: Kenikir or Ulam Raja! Finally, our son Bryan wanted to ask their son Haiqal some questions after reading the children's book featuring him and his dad - so he did! Listen to the end to hear their back and forth. SEED STORIES TOLD IN THIS EPISODE: Kenikir, Ulam Raja, King's SaladBitter MelonKaleBeetrootPurple Long Bean MORE INFO FROM THIS EPISODE: Haiqal's Garden (Facebook)Haiqal's Garden (Children's Book)Morning Circle MediaHardena RestaurantMural featuring Haiqal's Garden (top right) on Hardena RestaurantSky CafeHung Vuong Food Market ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Facebook | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden THANKS TO:

In late February 2023, Annabel Rabiyah and Amanda Chin of the Iraqi Seed Collective visited the Truelove Seeds office to help fill the first packets of Iraqi Seed Collective seeds (Iraqi Reehan Basil, grown by Experimental Farm Network), and prepare some of their other collectively-grown seeds for germination testing. We took the opportunity to record conversations with them about Annabel's work with Awafi Kitchen, which focuses on preserving traditional Iraqi Jewish food, and about their seed collective, which works with a wide array of gardeners and farmers from Iraq and the Iraqi diaspora in the US. At the end of this episode, you will hear from several other collective members who sent short phone recordings about their transformative moments being part of the collective, as well as a recording Annabel sent after returning from their family's first trip back to Iraq in 50 years. The episode begins with answering some listener questions about growing and cooking Mustard Greens, dealing with the Squash Vine Borer, and shelling peas with kids. SEED STORIES TOLD IN THIS EPISODE: Introduction: Broadleaf Mustard GreensSquash Vine Borer in Pennsylvania SEED STORIES: Aswad EggplantChamsurWinter MelonFlax MORE INFO FROM THIS EPISODE: 2023 Iraqi Seed Collective General Interest FormIraqi Seed Collective (Instagram)The Awafi Kitchen (Webpage)The Awafi Kitchen (Instagram)Beidth al Tbeet: Deconstructing the political history of an Iraqi Jewish meal (Youtube)Garrett WilliamsonPA Flax Project ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Tumblr | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden THANKS TO:

In November 2022, we visited Father Tom Mullaly at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Greenville, Mississippi. Chris's mother Mrs. Demalda Bolden Newsome grew up in this church, as did her family going back three generations. Chris was born and baptized there as well. Father Tom grew up on his Slovak family's farm in the summers, raising food for their winter pantry. For the past 50 years, he has been a pastor in southern Black Catholic churches, keeping gardens in community along the way. In our conversation, Chris and his mom also talk about the importance of the Black Catholic church to their family and community. SEED STORIES TOLD IN THIS EPISODE: Introduction: Speckled Brown ButterbeanCalendulaHoney Bean MORE INFO FROM THIS EPISODE: Sacred Heart Catholic ChurchNo-Till Intensive Vegetable Culture, by Bryan O'HaraItalian Garden ProjectCelebrating Saint Joseph Altars: Italian American PodcastStella Natura Biodynamic Planting CalendarSeventy Septembers, by Mary E. Best ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Tumblr | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden THANKS TO:

Heidi Ratanavanich invited their mom, Mae Sue, and aunties Na Na, Na Urm, and Na Toy from Thailand and Chicago to cook traditional Thai foods together for their Philadelphia friends and family and to visit their traditional foods growing at our farm. We were also able to talk about the family hotdog stand, Al's Drive-In, which serves hotdogs and Thai-inspired Chinese food. We are grateful to have recorded these beautiful moments with them for this episode! Heidi is a visual artist, carpenter, and educator. Heidi is interested in the intersection of food sovereignty, Thai/Chinese diaspora, ecology and economy. They are involved in the collectives FORTUNE and Television. Heidi apprenticed at Truelove Seeds for a season, tending to Thai and Chinese based plants with a special focus on Kra Praow (Thai Holy Basil) saved from their mom's home, Sappaya, Thailand. They were also part of a team that re-opened a small take-out corner store in West Philly called Golden Dragon. Golden Dragon will be closing its doors this month, though Heidi plans to continue their food sovereignty work and personal journey with ancestral food, including growing a Chicago-Style hotdog garden in 2023 with Zhong Shu Tomatoes, Thai white cucumbers, Chinese Celery, Sport Peppers, and more. SEED STORIES TOLD IN THIS EPISODE: Introduction: MilkweedEfo ShokoCallalooCoral SorghumCouve Heidi's Seed Stories: Krapao (Thai Holy Basil)Celtuce (Chinese Stem Lettuce)Prik Chi Fa (Pepper)EggplantCulantro/Recao/Foreigner Cilantro/Saw-Toothed CilantroRice MORE INFO FROM THIS EPISODE: Goodbye Golden Dragon, on Bunny Hop InstagramFortuneHeidi at TrueloveAl's Drive-InAl's on CBS NewsAl's in New York Times ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Tumblr | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden THANKS TO:

Chris Keeve is a former Truelove Seeds apprentice and current seed grower in Kentucky who drove out for our annual Truelove growers gathering at our farm on October 22nd, 2022 to deliver seeds and conduct interviews for their dissertation: the Truelove Seeds Listening Project. With Truelove business manager and web wizard Sara Taylor recording the audio and interjecting occasionally, they talked to growers about their involvement in our network, including occasional seed stories, testimonials, suggestions, and which seeds they'd bring to another planet. This episode is a compilation of some of the interviews. SEED STORIES TOLD IN THIS EPISODE: Korean Hong Gochu PepperPaul Robeson TomatoBitter MelonMississippi Purple Hull PeaCherokee Purple TomatoPotawatomi Pole LimaButternut SquashSeminole PumpkinKernza Grain MORE INFO FROM THIS EPISODE: Truelove Seeds Growers Gathering postChris Keeve featured on Seeds and Their PeopleCare of Creation Ministries, KenyaSeedEd FarmArcadia University Veteran Farmer ProgramAppel Farm Arts CampRowen White's Seed Seva Seasonal Mentorship Online CourseFood as Public work by Pantaleon Florez of Maseualkualli FarmPoor Prole's AlmanacStrawflower FarmExperimental Farm Network ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Tumblr | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden THANKS TO:

Akoth Ambugo spends part of her year back home in her family's rural villages in Kenya and part of her year in the United States as a nurse and gardener. While in the US, she is learning to keep seeds, grow nutritious food, and feed the soil. She hopes to revive traditional indigenous crop varieties and farming practices that are more in tune with the land and the health of the people. She recently wrote: "This thing that we do is a return. A return to a deep and sacred knowing of wild things. That we all begin and return as seeds. This land, these hands, and these hearts all feel like a sacred alignment, weaving to-gather together. Here there is no sense of if, just is. Here I breathe in hope and beauty. This is what the seeds teach me, learning the path of patience and humility. Of fire and water in balance. Of the sweetness of my sweat and the delight of feeling my body toil for sanctuary. I eat with more awareness and gratitude. Because of the seed. The revolution has always been here and it is in the seed." SEED STORIES TOLD IN THIS EPISODE: Apoth/Ewedu/Molokhia/JuteBo/Kunde/Field Pea/CowpeaChinsaga/Dek/Spider PlantSisalBesobela/Ethiopian Holy BasilHuacatay/Peruvian Black MintSpilanthes/Toothache PlantBambara Groundnuts MORE INFO FROM THIS EPISODE: Newark Adopt-a-LotMasanobu Fukuoka Natural Farm, JapanTagetes minuta as a natural dye in KenyaCowpea Extension ManualSeed Savers Network, Kenya ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Tumblr | Instagram | Twitter FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden THANKS TO: