03.10.20 San Diego Seed Company

I often worry that the odds are stacked against us when I see the power and greed of big agriculture and the chemical farming industry. Then I meet Brijette, and I am reminded that the active, joyful resistance of one individual can make a meaningful impact, though I suspect that for her it is more like a budding revolution.

Brijette is a fireball of energy and can-do spirit. I met her for the first time in February at one of her engaging and informative Seed Starting workshops. Sharing all things starting seeds, Brijette jumps and dances, reminding me very much of a seedling full of energy sprouting from the earth. She demands active participation, because she knows that by repeating things and doing them with our hands, we learn more.

Originally from Kansas, Brijette fell in love with the California growing climate. In 2011 she began the San Diego Seed Company, and now it is the only certified organic urban seed company in the U.S. Last year they produced 60 pounds of seed and hope to double that amount this year. Her certified organic farm is a living laboratory of all phases of a plant’s life from seedlings in her greenhouse to rows of carefully labeled plants. Some are in full bloom like the fragrant sweet peas, some at the perfect moment of harvest like the Ethiopian kale, and, of course, many are going to seed. After all, that’s the point. She is actively involved in every level of seed production from trialing new seeds to breeding and educating others here and abroad. Her seed packets are clear evidence of her hands-on knowledge about each plant. On them, she writes specific instructions on how to take the seed to harvest. Everything is open-pollinated and heirloom which means these seeds reseed themselves, giving renewing power back to the community.

In the 1970s, there were hundreds of seed companies that served the southwest. Now just four own 90% of world’s seeds. Shouldn’t we be in the streets marching about this? Seeds are the beginning of all life. Each seed holds the promise of food for all living creatures. Some seeds, saved in the Egyptian pyramids over 2,000 years ago, have shown to be viable and able to produce plants. That is an incredible life force within one little seed. To copyright them is to tamper with a fundamental right of our shared human and animal kingdom. They are our collective heritage, not meant to be owned by four corporations.

Animals are an integral part of Brijette’s certified organic farm. Her cat followed her everywhere, at one point bringing an offering of a lizard, set free thanks to a distracting tummy rub. Her flock of hens give lots of eggs to friends and house sitters. But the feathered ladies will not be there indefinitely. Brijette says that when they stop laying, they will become soup. She believes in eating head to tail, nothing is wasted: that is the secret to regenerative farming. Animals play a central role, they enjoy a wonderful and free range existence, but they are also part of the food chain.

Brijette was especially gleeful when she showed me her Glass Gem popcorn, a translucent husk of multi-colored corn. I asked her a question that I imagine she gets all the time, do the kernels also become rainbow colored? No, they do not, but what fun to eat popcorn attached to the husk. Humans! We always want more.

She sent me away with Ethiopian Kale, fennel and sweet pea flowers. The Ethiopian Kale, from the mustard family, is like no other kale I have ever tried. She uses it for salads, wraps, stir-fry, soups and stews. I wish I could have made at least three of these options, but there is only so much time in one day, so I cooked a sauté. Truth be told, I wanted to keep the flavor and cooking simple to appreciate its flavor and it was so good that I just ordered a bunch of these seeds and more from the San Diego Seed Company.