HEIRS.
As a punctuation to my recent musings on Antique Farming, Hannah and I planted some heirloom peanuts yesterday from Pearl River County, Mississippi. I'd received them from two of my seed-saving heroes, John Coykendall and Jeff Ross, the respective master gardener and farmer of the famous farm-to-table–to-bed resort, Blackberry Farm. But what could be more antique than heirloom seeds?––saved generation after generation by people trying to keep a special piece of diversity and culture alive. According to John, this particular peanut can be traced back to 1850, and we feel honored to be keeping it alive another year. Year 162.We have a great love for seed-saving and it will no doubt occupy much of the blog as the season goes on and as we plant and harvest our way through the year. Our shareholders will not only enjoy heirlooms of all shape and flavor––from colorful butter beans to wild tomatoes, popping sorghum to sweet potatoes––but by supporting us can also enjoy supporting this very important act of preservation. Hundreds of heirloom seeds go extinct every year, but Hannah and I, along with our lovely shareholders, can say with confidence that we're doing our part to carry on the tradition, keeping these antiques in use.- Jesse.
