Selecting Seed for Your Vegetable Garden: some things to think about

By Mykie Reidy

Before you turn the first shovel of soil or plant a flat of seedlings, in anticipation of bringing to life the abundance of fruits and vegetables that can offer both sustenance and joy, you must first have seeds. Whether you raise your own or buy nursery grown plants, the decision of what specific varieties to grow in your garden has surprisingly far-reaching purpose and consequence. While most gardeners understand that it is important to choose varieties suitable to the soil and climate of their region, few consider where their seeds come from and what kind of corporate practices they support with their purchasing power. If you are committed to sustainable gardening practices, you need to be aware of the prevalence of Genetically Modified (GM) seed, and why and how to avoid them.

Since GM seeds, according to the industry, can offer environmental advantages like crops that are more drought resistance, why are they a problem? The answer is complicated. First, while it isn’t clear whether there is any inherent danger in the foods grown from genetically modified seed, there are serious enough concerns that the Europe Union, for example, has considered banning them entirely. The clearest issue connecting food safety to GM seed and the companies that own them revolves around the disappearance of varieties (and for this there is undisputable proof) as more and more seeds become the intellectual property of just a handful of companies. These patented seeds, many of them developed, not for superior taste or quality, but for hardiness in shipping and to be resistant to disease or chemicals prevalent in factory farming, cannot be saved. And if the seeds accidently drift and sow, farmers can be sued for the illegal use of a company’s intellectual property. Many plants now contain a gene that prevents them from ever producing seed in order protect their patents. Varieties are becoming more scarce, many extinct, as the ownership of the seed stock of all nations, and hence the power over food resources, is concentrated in the hands of a few, very powerful companies.

What was once the gift of nature is now owned by the same conglomerate agribusiness ventures that brought us monoculture farming, with its heavy dependence on fossil fuel and chemicals. One company, Monsanto, has produced a sugar beet seed called Roundup Ready, genetically engineered to withstand the organophosphate herbicide the company also manufactures. This is the same company that also brought us Agent Orange and who continues to fight against any claims that its product has sickened people. Most of the sugar beets grown in the United States are Roundup Ready or other GMs. Genetically engineered seeds have been known to contaminate nearby fields, ruining crops for farmers who are trying to maintain organic standards. There are some food crops, canola, soy, and corn, are some of the main ones, that have been largely contaminated by GM infiltrates.

What does all this have to do with permaculture and sustainable backyard growing practices? It means that as a gardener dedicated to sustainable practices, you need to start with seeds that carry on the connection between the human inhabitant and the soil. You should think about supporting seed stock that will become extinct through the rapaciousness of agribusiness companies, unless caring stewards nurture their continuance. You should be concerned about growing varieties that are pollinator-friendly, which GMs are not. They are engineered to work in conjunction with synthetic fertilizers and toxic pesticides and hence have not been tested in soils where the object is to nurture the microorganisms that have a symbiotic relationship with the plants you grow. The possibility surely exists that the imported genetic material in the GM seed could imbalance that relationship. Permaculture should permeate and extend to your marketplace decisions.

Because a handful of these companies control nearly the entirety of the seed market, you must know where your seeds come from, what company produces it, and what its corporate practices are. Familiarize yourself with Heirloom varieties, seeds that have been saved through the years for their flavor and other superior qualities. They represent the collective wisdom of generations of growers. Organically grown seed, by law, cannot be genetically modified. You should also be aware that hybrid seed, the result of cross-pollination of different varieties of the same species, is not the same as a GM seed. But if you are buying hybrid seed, which often offer superior disease resistance and other desirable traits, make sure you are dealing with a company that isn’t also trying to monopolize the seed stock of the entire planet. Six companies should not have power over all the abundance of nature and the innumerable fruits of the earth.

Resources:

Books: Some of the information for the above article came from the following texts which are highly recommended.

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: Barbara Kinsolver with Steven L. Hopp and Camille Kingsolver

Deep Economy: Bill McKibben

Website: www.organicconsumers.org

Seed Sources: These are in no particular order of preference

Johnny Select Seeds: www.johnnyseeds.com

Seeds of Change: www.seedsofchange.com

Fedco: This company does not knowingly deal with GM seed and has a rating system for the companies that supply their seed. www.fedcoseeds.com

Ronniger’s Seed Potatoes: www.ronnigers.com

Seed Savers Exchange: www.seedsavers.org

There are lots of other quality seed companies. Look for organic or heirloom seed and you will be sure to avoid GM. Big companies will get into any trend, so you still need to make sure it’s a good company.

About The Author

Mykie Reidy is a writer, poet, and environmental activist. She has been involved in supporting organic food and sustainable farming for almost twenty years. For a good portion of that, most of the people she met in the Pittsburgh area thought she ate funny and her children grew up with junk food envy, which they have since recovered from. She is heartened to see that ideas about whole food and sustainable land use practices are finally becoming more mainstream.

She is the volunteer vegetable gardener for Mt. Lebanon Public Library, but her own garden is, like the economy, in need of recovery. After many years of happy home food production, her beautiful Siberian Husky puppy, Ari, laid waste to every ornamental and food producing plant in her yard. Illness and a shoulder injury have prevented her from setting things right. She is starting seedlings for her vegetable garden anyway.