The Seed Farmer Podcast

Sarah Kleeger runs Adaptive Seeds alongside Andrew Still in Sweet Home, Oregon. Their journey began twenty years ago with the Seed Ambassadors Project, a massive seed-finding expedition through Europe that saw them return to the U.S. with over a thousand rare varieties that had almost no commercial presence in North America.

In this episode, Sarah shares what it's like growing over 380 crops in a year while balancing trials, stewardship and producing seeds for the catalog. We discuss OSSI (the Open Source Seed Initiative) as a way to keep seeds in the public domain. And we get into contract seed growing and how Adaptive Seeds tries to incentivize quality and share the risk with their grower network. We also touch on the impacts of wildfires and smoke seasons on both farmers and the seeds themselves.

In the deep dive, Sarah and I get into her favorite crop: Amaranth. We cover why amaranth is such a climate-adaptable grain, how to determine the perfect moment to harvest the seed, and Sarah's threshing machine of choice.

And of course we talk about the cats of Adaptive Seeds.

Enjoy the conversation!

Support the Seed Farmer Podcast

http://spreadsheet.farm/supportpodcast

Episode links

Adaptive Seeds Website

Adaptive Seeds on Instagram

OSSI - Open Source Seed Initiative

News Links

Fundraiser to support Saved by Seeds: Embracing Diversity, Adaptation, and Diversity. Chris Smith's upcoming book.

Stay in Touch

Follow the Seed Farmer on instagram

Get my weekly seed newsletter

Order Tourne-Sol seeds (Canadian orders only)

Get my new book The Seed Farmer

https://danbrisebois.com/seedfarmerbook/

❤️ Thanks for listening!

Let's head over to my library and take a look at the books that have most influenced my journey as a seed grower. Whether you are just starting out or looking to develop your own farm-original variety, these are the titles I return to time and time again.

🌱Basic Seed Books

• How to Save Your Own Seeds by Seeds of Diversity Canada

• Seed to Seed by Suzanne Ashworth

• The Seed Garden by Micaela Colley and Jared Zystro (Editors: Lee Buttala and Shanyn Siegel)

🥕Advanced Seed Books

• The Organic Seed Grower by John Navazio

🌸Plant Breeding Books

• Breeding Organic Vegetables by Rowan White and Brian Connolly

• Breed Your Own Vegetable Varieties by Carol Deppe

✍️One more seed book …

The Seed Farmer by Dan Brisebois (I might be a bit biased on this one, but this is the book I wrote to fill the gaps I found in the others!)

So, those are my 6 favorite seed books (plus one of my own). I hope these resources inspire you to harvest some seed this year.

Enjoy the minisode!

Support the Seed Farmer Podcast

http://spreadsheet.farm/supportpodcast

Stay in Touch

Follow the Seed Farmer on instagram

Get my weekly seed newsletter

Order Tourne-Sol seeds (Canadian orders only)

Get my new book The Seed Farmer

https://danbrisebois.com/seedfarmerbook/

❤️ Thanks for listening!

Jesse Frost operates Rough Draft Farm in Kentucky with his wife, Hannah Crabtree. Jesse is also the author of The Living Soil Handbook and hosts the No-Till Growers Podcast. As a writer and farmer, Jesse approaches plant breeding as a creative process; a rough draft shaped by the unique terroir of his land.

In this episode, Jesse shares how he moved past the seed intimidation of his early years to a more integrated approach, and simply looking for seed opportunities within his existing market rotations. We discussed the evolution of the Topper Popper pepper, a project that actually began at Tourne-Sol (where I farm) and that Jesse refined on his farm. Jesse gets into how to find the capacity for seed work without sacrificing production and being patient with your farm's evolution. And how all you need is a pocket full of rubber bands to become a plant breeder.

In the deep dive, Jesse and I get into Sweet Potatoes. How to harvest them, how to cure them, and how to propagate them as slips without scurf.

Enjoy the conversation!

Support the Seed Farmer Podcast

http://spreadsheet.farm/supportpodcast

Episode links

Rough Draft Farm on instagram

Rough Draft Farm website

No Till Growers on instagram

No-Till Growers website

Stay in Touch

Follow the Seed Farmer on instagram

Get my weekly seed newsletter

Order Tourne-Sol seeds (Canadian orders only)

Get my new book The Seed Farmer

https://danbrisebois.com/seedfarmerbook/

❤️ Thanks for listening!

This minisode is about unexpected seed opportunities in your cold room.

And those opportunities are the roots you're storing in that cold room and haven't eaten yet.

Most root crops are biennials, and you might be able to plant these roots as second year biennials and get a seed crop this summer!

This is true for onions, turnips, rutabagas, winter radish, beets, carrots, parsnips, and more!

In this episode, we'll get into…

• How to choose the best roots from what you have in storage

• The importance of an intact growing point

• Tips for breaking dormancy in the spring

• What to if you're not totally sure what varieties you have in storage

• How many roots you should plant out

Enjoy the episode

Support the Seed Farmer Podcast

http://spreadsheet.farm/supportpodcast

Stay in Touch

Follow the Seed Farmer on instagram

Get my weekly seed newsletter

Order Tourne-Sol seeds (Canadian orders only)

Get my new book The Seed Farmer

https://danbrisebois.com/seedfarmerbook/

❤️ Thanks for listening!

Edmund Frost is a seed grower and plant breeder based at Twin Oaks Community in Virginia. He is the manager of Commonwealth Seed Growers, a cooperative seed company focused on regionally adapted varieties for the Southeast.

In this episode, Edmund shares the hidden realities of contract growing and his efforts to build a Seed Workers Union through the Seed Worker Organizing project to advocate for fair wages and better working conditions. We discuss the transition of Commonwealth Seed Growers into a co-operative model, the importance of self-advocacy when negotiating seed contracts, and how seed stewardship provides farmers with a resilient insurance policy against the disappearance of commercial hybrid varieties.

In the deep dive, Edmund and I get into Cucurbit Breeding. We cover the devastating impact of Downy Mildew since the 2004 pathogen shift and how Edmund uses vine tracing to select for truly resistant plants. Edmund also shares his exciting work crossing Korean and Brazilian genetics to create a summer squash that is naturally immune to Squash Vine Borers.

Enjoy the conversation!

Support the Seed Farmer Podcast

http://spreadsheet.farm/supportpodcast

Episode links

Common Wealth Seed Growers website

Common Wealth Seed Growers on instagram

Seed Worker Organizing website

Twin Oaks Community website

News Links

Visit LocalSeeds.org to support A Campaign to Raise Awareness of the Importance of Seeds.

Stay in Touch

Follow the Seed Farmer on instagram

Get my weekly seed newsletter

Order Tourne-Sol seeds (Canadian orders only)

Get my new book The Seed Farmer

https://danbrisebois.com/seedfarmerbook/

❤️ Thanks for listening!

This minisode is a conversation with Lucy Sharratt of the Canadian Biotechnology Action Network (CBAN).

I invited Lucy to talk about the new genetically engineered Purple Tomato. This the first biotech vegetable seed being directly marketed to home gardeners. It's important for folks in the seed world to be aware of this change and to start thinking about the potential long-term impacts on our shared seed commons.

Lucy and I dig into what this shift could mean for growing seed crops, sharing seeds, and the broader culture around open-pollinated seeds, and why this moment feels different from past biotech crops that were mostly limited to large-scale agriculture.

Lucy also shares what gardeners, eaters, and seed people can actually do if they want to have an impact.

Enjoy the conversation!

Support the Seed Farmer Podcast

http://spreadsheet.farm/supportpodcast

Episode links

CBAN's website

CBAN on instagram

News Links

Register for the OSA Virtual Open House Quarterly Call

Stay in Touch

Follow the Seed Farmer on instagram

Get my weekly seed newsletter

Order Tourne-Sol seeds (Canadian orders only)

Get my new book The Seed Farmer

https://danbrisebois.com/seedfarmerbook/

❤️ Thanks for listening!

Bonnetta Adeeb is a founding member of the Ujamaa Cooperative Farming Alliance, a program of the non-profit STEAM Onward based in Maryland. Bonnetta is dedicated to increasing the number of BIPOC seed farmers stewarding culturally meaningful crops and liberating seeds from "seed jail".

In this episode, Bonnetta shares her journey to find the Stone Mountain Watermelon, a variety mentioned in family lore that allowed her ancestors to purchase land after slavery. We discuss how the COVID-19 pandemic transformed a local gardening project into the Ujamaa Cooperative Farming Alliance, a regional network for seed production and training through the Ira Wallace Seed School.

In the deep dive, Bonnetta and I get into Collard Greens. We cover using Ultra Crosses as a community breeding method, the necessity of cold snaps for seed production, and why Bonnetta describes collards as the Jazz of American Cuisine. We also explore how the rhythmic movements of harvest are like dancing.

At the end, Bonnetta also talks about the upcoming Seeds & Culture 2026 Conference on March 6-7 in Washington DC.

Enjoy the conversation!

Support the Seed Farmer Podcast

http://spreadsheet.farm/supportpodcast

Episode links

Ujamaa Seeds website

Ujamaa Coop Farming Alliance on instagram

Seeds & Culture 2026 Conference March 6–7, 2026 Washington DC. Columbia

Ira Wallace Seed School

Heirloom Collard Project

Steam Onward website

News Link

Northern Latitudes: Sourcing and Saving Seeds from Similar Climates

Stay in Touch

Follow the Seed Farmer on instagram

Get my weekly seed newsletter

Order Tourne-Sol seeds (Canadian orders only)

Get my new book The Seed Farmer

https://danbrisebois.com/seedfarmerbook/

❤️ Thanks for listening!

This minisode is a conversation with Rebecca Newburn of the Seed Library Network.

We talk about seed libraries: what they are, how they work, and how anyone (yes, anyone) can start one.

And we talk about the Seed Library Conference on February 14th, focused on helping people get started with seed libraries in their own communities.

Enjoy the conversation!

Support the Seed Farmer Podcast

http://spreadsheet.farm/supportpodcast

Episode links

The Seed Library Network's website

The Seed Library Network on substack

The Seed Library Network on instagram

Stay in Touch

Follow the Seed Farmer on instagram

Get my weekly seed newsletter

Order Tourne-Sol seeds (Canadian orders only)

Get my new book The Seed Farmer

https://danbrisebois.com/seedfarmerbook/

❤️ Thanks for listening!

Shannon Jones runs Broadfork Farm with Bryan Dyck in River Hebert, Nova Scotia. They grow vegetables and cut flowers for market.

I've been trying to get Shannon on the podcast since the beginning of the pod because Broadfork is a great example of how a market farm can integrate seed production into their vegetable and flower fields. And we finally found a time that worked for us to have a conversation.

In this episode, Shannon shares how she and Bryan choose the seed crops they grow and how they manage seed harvest through the season, and clean seeds in the off season. She also explains about how they sell some of their own seeds during their spring seedling sales.

In the deep dive, we explore growing Salad Turnips for seed. We start with why Shannon was looking for a Hakurei turnip alternative, then get into trialing different OP salad turnips to figure out which variety to work with, and finally cover planting, harvest, and cleaning.

We also talk about Bupleurum and Onions for seed.

Enjoy the conversation!

Support the Seed Farmer Podcast

http://spreadsheet.farm/supportpodcast

Episode links

Broadfork's website

Broadfork Farm on instagram

Freed Seed workshop: Botany of Seed Formation

Stay in Touch

Follow the Seed Farmer on instagram

Get my weekly seed newsletter

Order Tourne-Sol seeds (Canadian orders only)

Get my new book The Seed Farmer

https://danbrisebois.com/seedfarmerbook/

❤️ Thanks for listening!

Episode 50 of the Seed Farmer Podcast!!!! Wow!

Let's do something a bit different to pause and mark the occasion.

In this episode, I'm joined by my podcast producer, Molly Brisebois, for a behind-the-scenes conversation about how the podcast gets made, how it's changed over time, and what we've learned along the way.

We talk about how sharing seed stories and talking about seed work brings hope when it is so easy to feel hopelessness these days.

And we talk about the intimacy and the feeling of being "in the room" when listening to podcasts.

We wrap up the conversation with how Molly would approach being a seed farmer.

For those with a keen eye (or ear) for detail, you may have noticed Molly and I share the same last name. Molly happens to be my sister.

Enjoy the conversation!

Support the Seed Farmer Podcast

http://spreadsheet.farm/supportpodcast

News links

My crop planning course Farm Spreadsheets For All Seasons is open for registrations. It comes with a full set of crop planning and harvest management spreadsheet templates.

Stay in Touch

Follow the Seed Farmer on instagram

Get my weekly seed newsletter

Order Tourne-Sol seeds (Canadian orders only)

Get my new book The Seed Farmer

https://danbrisebois.com/seedfarmerbook/

❤️ Thanks for listening!