Seed Savers Exchange
Encyclopedia
Seed Savers Exchange, or SSE, founded by Kent Whealy
and Diane Ott Whealy, is a non-profit organization based in Decorah, Iowa
, that preserves heirloom plant
varieties through regeneration, distribution and seed exchange. The mission of SSE is to preserve the world’s diverse but endangered garden heritage for future generations by building a network of people committed to collecting, conserving, and sharing heirloom seeds and plants, and educating people about the value of genetic and cultural diversity. Since 1975, Seed Savers has produced an annual yearbook of members’ seed offerings, as well as multiple editions of The Garden Seed Inventory, and The Fruit, Nut and Berry Inventory. SSE also publishes Seed to Seed: Seed Saving and Growing Techniques for Vegetable Gardeners.
SSE protects crop diversity
, which is the biological basis of agriculture. Each year, 1–2% of crop diversity is lost and more than 75% of genetically diverse crops present at the beginning of the 20th century are now gone. Plant breeders need heirloom varieties to confer resistance to evolving diseases and pests and to help plants better adapt to global climate change.
and Diane Ott Whealy, SSE has preserved many lines of seeds. The organization has gained more than 13,000 members worldwide, passing on more than one million seed samples and distributing over 20,000 varieties of endangered seeds.
Headquartered in Decorah, Iowa, Seed Savers' Heritage Farm, an 890 acres (3.6 km²) certified organic farm, is called the “most diverse farm in the world” by ethnobotanist
Gary Paul Nabhan
. At Heritage Farm, more than 25,000 rare fruit, vegetable, and plant varieties are regenerated, refrigerated and preserved in a central collection. A herd of Ancient White Park Cattle is also maintained on the farm. SSE offers educational programs and exhibits through the Lillian Goldman Visitors Center and houses the Robert Becker Memorial Library. The farm is open to visitors from April through December. The annual conference, held the third weekend of July, is open to members and the public.
In December 2007, Seed Savers Exchange made an inaugural deposit of nearly 500 varieties to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault
that opened on February 26, 2008 in Svalbard
, Norway
. The only citizen-led group in the United States to contribute to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault for opening day, SSE intends to send 9,000 seed varieties to the vault by 2012 for safety duplication as part of a global effort to preserve the world’s biodiversity from man-made and natural disasters. The Svalbard Global Seed Vault is under the leadership of Cary Fowler
, Executive Director of the Global Crop Diversity Trust
, and former board member of Seed Savers Exchange.
Kent Whealy
Kent Whealy and Diane Ott Whealy founded the Seed Savers Exchange, a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of the seed lines of heirloom plants and to the sharing of such seeds both through sales and by facilitating exchanges among member gardeners. The organization works to...
and Diane Ott Whealy, is a non-profit organization based in Decorah, Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
, that preserves heirloom plant
Heirloom plant
An heirloom plant, heirloom variety, or heirloom vegetable is a cultivar that was commonly grown during earlier periods in human history, but which is not used in modern large-scale agriculture...
varieties through regeneration, distribution and seed exchange. The mission of SSE is to preserve the world’s diverse but endangered garden heritage for future generations by building a network of people committed to collecting, conserving, and sharing heirloom seeds and plants, and educating people about the value of genetic and cultural diversity. Since 1975, Seed Savers has produced an annual yearbook of members’ seed offerings, as well as multiple editions of The Garden Seed Inventory, and The Fruit, Nut and Berry Inventory. SSE also publishes Seed to Seed: Seed Saving and Growing Techniques for Vegetable Gardeners.
SSE protects crop diversity
Crop diversity
Crop diversity is the variance in genetic and phenotypic characteristics of plants used in agriculture. Crops may vary in seed size, branching pattern, in height, flower color, fruiting time, or flavor. They may also vary in less obvious characteristics such as their response to heat, cold or...
, which is the biological basis of agriculture. Each year, 1–2% of crop diversity is lost and more than 75% of genetically diverse crops present at the beginning of the 20th century are now gone. Plant breeders need heirloom varieties to confer resistance to evolving diseases and pests and to help plants better adapt to global climate change.
Achievements
Founded by Kent WhealyKent Whealy
Kent Whealy and Diane Ott Whealy founded the Seed Savers Exchange, a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of the seed lines of heirloom plants and to the sharing of such seeds both through sales and by facilitating exchanges among member gardeners. The organization works to...
and Diane Ott Whealy, SSE has preserved many lines of seeds. The organization has gained more than 13,000 members worldwide, passing on more than one million seed samples and distributing over 20,000 varieties of endangered seeds.
Headquartered in Decorah, Iowa, Seed Savers' Heritage Farm, an 890 acres (3.6 km²) certified organic farm, is called the “most diverse farm in the world” by ethnobotanist
Ethnobotany
Ethnobotany is the scientific study of the relationships that exist between people and plants....
Gary Paul Nabhan
Gary Paul Nabhan
Gary Paul Nabhan is an agricultural ecologist, ethnobotanist, and writer whose work has focused primarily on the plants and cultures of the desert Southwest. He is considered a pioneer in the local food movement and the heirloom seed saving movement....
. At Heritage Farm, more than 25,000 rare fruit, vegetable, and plant varieties are regenerated, refrigerated and preserved in a central collection. A herd of Ancient White Park Cattle is also maintained on the farm. SSE offers educational programs and exhibits through the Lillian Goldman Visitors Center and houses the Robert Becker Memorial Library. The farm is open to visitors from April through December. The annual conference, held the third weekend of July, is open to members and the public.
In December 2007, Seed Savers Exchange made an inaugural deposit of nearly 500 varieties to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault
Svalbard Global Seed Vault
The Svalbard Global Seed Vault is a secure seedbank located on the Norwegian island of Spitsbergen near the town of Longyearbyen in the remote Arctic Svalbard archipelago, about from the North Pole. The facility preserves a wide variety of plant seeds in an underground cavern. The seeds are...
that opened on February 26, 2008 in Svalbard
Svalbard
Svalbard is an archipelago in the Arctic, constituting the northernmost part of Norway. It is located north of mainland Europe, midway between mainland Norway and the North Pole. The group of islands range from 74° to 81° north latitude , and from 10° to 35° east longitude. Spitsbergen is the...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. The only citizen-led group in the United States to contribute to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault for opening day, SSE intends to send 9,000 seed varieties to the vault by 2012 for safety duplication as part of a global effort to preserve the world’s biodiversity from man-made and natural disasters. The Svalbard Global Seed Vault is under the leadership of Cary Fowler
Cary Fowler
Cary Fowler is the executive director of the Global Crop Diversity Trust, based in Rome, Italy. Previously, Fowler was Professor and Director of Research in the Department for International Environment & Development Studies at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences in Ås, Norway. Fowler holds...
, Executive Director of the Global Crop Diversity Trust
Global Crop Diversity Trust
Global Crop Diversity Trust is an independent international organization which exists to ensure the conservation and availability of crop diversity for food security worldwide...
, and former board member of Seed Savers Exchange.
Notable advisors and members
- Amy P. GoldmanAmy P. GoldmanAmy P. Goldman is a gardener, author, artist, philanthropist and advocate for seed saving, and heirloom fruits and vegetables. She is one of the foremost heirloom plant conservationists in the United States...
- Cary FowlerCary FowlerCary Fowler is the executive director of the Global Crop Diversity Trust, based in Rome, Italy. Previously, Fowler was Professor and Director of Research in the Department for International Environment & Development Studies at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences in Ås, Norway. Fowler holds...
- David Karp