[Scpg] LAST CHANCE!/6 Day Seed School at Fairview Gardens - February 17 - 22, 2013

Thu Jan 31 15:31:23 PST 2013

The Seed School needs more sign ups or they will 
have to cancel.  So if you are wanting to attend, 
but were waiting until the last minute to sign 
up, don't wait any longer!  email them now, they 
make a decision tomorrow whether to cancel.

Seed School - Fairview Gardens February 17 - 22, 2013 Goleta CA
http://shop.nativeseeds.org/products/ssfg13

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Join NS/S Executive Director Bill McDorman, Joy 
Hought MSc and special guests for a 6-day Seed 
School session at Fairview Gardens in Goleta, 
California. Seed School is for gardeners, 
farmers, herbalists, nurseries, CSAs, 
non-profits, government agencies and everyone 
concerned with regional, sustainable and diverse 
agriculture. Proceeds benefit Native 
Seeds/SEARCH. Click here to learn more about this groundbreaking course.

February 17 - 22, 2013
The Center for Urban Agriculture at Fairview Gardens
598 N. Fairview Avenue
Goleta, CA 93117

Early Bird Discount: Register before February 1 for only $600!

Tuition: $700
Deposit to reserve a spot: $200
http://shop.nativeseeds.org/products/ssfg13

Proceeds benefit Native Seeds/SEARCH. Full 
payment is due two weeks prior to the starting 
date. Space is limited - sign up early!

Payment can also be made by mailing a check 
payable to Native Seeds/SEARCH, 3584 E. River 
Road, Tucson AZ 85718. Indicate "Seed School - 
Fairview Gardens 2013" on your check and include 
contact information and phone number.

After making your deposit, please click here to complete your registration.
http://www.nativeseeds.org/index.php?option=com_rsform&formId=1

Seed School Details

As awareness grows around issues of food and 
sustainability, people everywhere are waking up 
to the vital importance of seeds. Now more than 
ever, we need small, bioregional seed operations 
to replace the “one-size-fits-all” industrial 
seed system. To answer this need, Native Seeds/SEARCH has created Seed School.

Think “Seeds First”

Seed School is a groundbreaking 6-day course 
designed to help participants create new regional 
and sustainable seed production and distribution 
systems. Students walk away from this innovative 
educational program with the knowledge and 
inspiration to start their own heirloom seed 
company, organize a community seed-lending 
library, and train others in the art and practice 
of seed saving. Seed School is for gardeners, 
farmers, seed savers, entrepreneurs, NGOs, 
policymakers and anyone interested in turning the 
tide on the industrialization of our food and agriculture.

Why Seed School?

When our ancestral gardeners needed seed, there 
were no glossy catalogs to leaf through. They 
acquired their replanting stock through the 
time-honored practice of seed saving, a tradition 
dating back some 10,000 years. But today most 
farmers and gardeners purchase their seed from 
“Big Box” chains and corporate seed companies. 
This dramatic shift has taken its toll. Over the 
past century, we’ve lost an alarming amount of 
biodiversity among our food crops and become 
dependent on an industrialized agricultural 
system that puts profits above all else. Seed 
School encourages a return to the ancient art of 
seed saving to reconnect people from all walks of 
life with seeds—the source of all sustenance.

We envision a vast network of thousands of small, 
bioregional seed companies and community-owned 
seed collections replacing the disempowering and 
ecologically destructive industrial system. By 
taking ownership over our seeds once again and 
rejoining the ritual of seed saving, we are 
replenishing our dwindling biodiversity, building 
up beneficial crop adaptations, and strengthening 
food security where we live. This is the way to 
true sustainability... and to healthier, better-tasting food!

What You’ll Learn

This first-of-its-kind course teaches the 
practical, detailed information necessary to 
recreate the genetic foundation for a truly 
sustainable agriculture. Seed School’s focus is 
to dissect the current world seed situation, take 
a hard look at its implications, and then help 
students gain the skills needed to construct new 
seed production and distribution models for both 
profit-making and nonprofit institutions.

Classroom time in this permaculture-inspired 
program is balanced with hands-on activities, 
group work, and consulting time with our expert 
instructors. For our Tucson courses, a field trip 
to the 60-acre Native Seeds/SEARCH Conservation 
Farm offers students a unique window into a 
professional seed conservation organization at work.

Topics covered during Seed School include:

Structure and History of the Seed Industry
The Magic of Seeds
Intro to Mendel's Genetics
Selection and Evaluation
Pollination
Breeding
Harvesting
Germination
Wild Seed - Production, Collection, Cleaning
Seed Exchanges, Libraries, Businesses
Click here to download the full Seed School syllabus.

Bill McDorman

Bill McDorman is the principal instructor for 
Seed School and the Executive Director of Native 
Seeds/SEARCH, a 29-year-old Southwestern seed 
conservation organization based in Tucson, 
Arizona. He is the founder of three seed 
companies and several nonprofits, and author of 
the 1994 book Basic Seed Saving.

Joy Hought, MSc

Joy Hought has a unique combination of expertise 
including 15 years teaching and developing 
curricula in the arts and sciences; 2 years in 
public broadcasting; and a graduate degree in seed science

A Fairview Gardens Program
Co-sponsored by Santa Barbara Permaculture Network www.sbpermaculture.org

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