Safeguarding Next Year's Crop

by: Delbert Trew

One of history's most famous hunger catastrophes was the Irish potato famine of 1845-52. The famine caused the death of more than 1 million people; another million emigrated from Ireland during that time.  At that time, only a few varieties of potatoes existed for planting and all were subject to potato blight.  Today, most potato varieties are resistant to the disease and such famine could easily be prevented.

This and other historical famines are the main reason for establishment of the new "doomsday seed vaults" being built above the Arctic Circle to store millions of varieties of seed stock, both old and modern.

Before modern transportation methods made distribution of food easier, the U.S. government made an attempt to bridge the gap between surplus farm foodstuffs and needy city residents.  The USDA started the first relief program on May 16, 1939, in Rochester, N.Y., issuing blue- and orange-colored stamps to the needy.  The stamps could be redeemed for products like eggs, butter and dried beans.  The original program ended in 1943 after serving some 20 million people.  The surplus was then needed to supply the war effort.

Most old-timers who survived the Great Depression and Dust Bowl will tell you "our garden produce and home-canned food pulled us through."  Though few had money to spend, cellars and pantries with shelves of home-canned fruit, meat and vegetables kept hunger at bay.

Take a trip through small towns and rural communities today and you will see countless gardens growing food for families.  Evidently garden seed is in  great demand, as we hear gardeners complaining of lack of supplies to choose from and high prices.  A small envelope containing a dozen seeds or more can cost several dollars.

This is a long way from the old days, when all gardeners selected seed from prize varieties to dry and store for the next springs planting.  My grandparents kept seed in coffee cans, small glass jars and recycled paper envelopes, plainly labeled by seed type.  A day or two before planting, the seeds were soaked in water with Garrett's snuff added to prevent birds and worms from eating the seed after it was planted.

Lacking today's handy containers, early settlers raised various sizes of gourds, then harvested, cleaned and dried them to use as seed containers.  Somehow the gourds kept the seed dry, and insulated and safe from mold.  Because the gourds were suspended by twine from the rafters of a cellar or barn, rodents could not reach them and their bounty.  Some plants, like the dill used in pickling, were also hung by stalks and dried until needed.

I imagine the elders of that time slept a lot better on cold winter nights, knowing that next year's garden seed was safe and sound and ready for planting.

(Article taken from Farm Collector magazine)

Delbert Trew is a freelance writer, retired rancher ans supervisor of the Devil's Rope Museum in McLean, Texas. Contact him at Trew Ranch, Box A, Alanreed, TX 79002; (806) 779-3164; e-mail: trewblue@centramedia.net