Wanna hear/meet me in person? I'm shorter than you think.
I'll be speaking about the adventure of my Front Yard Vegetable Garden in Niagara Falls on Sunday, February 9th at the Seedy Saturday event. More on that in a minute. But first ...
One of the first posts I did on the Art of Doing Stuff was a post on how to grind your own ground beef. It was a reaction to the movie Food Inc. And doingies. Those things in meat that go "doi-nngggg" in your mouth sometimes. Or crunch. Or simply won't chew away no matter how long you try.
The focus of the movie is the business of food. Hence the clever title, Food Inc. One of the main focuses of the film is seeds. Or the lack of them due in part to the government and believe it or not, one seed company. Monsanto.
Monsanto is most well known for their genetically modified corn seed. It produces corn with a flavourful punch of sweetness and pesticide! The company has created corn that has pesticides bred into every cell of every kernel. So if certain bugs happen to try to eat the corn, they will die. Because the plant itself is a pesticide.
Now, normally this sort of thing wouldn't bother me. Honestly. I'm aware of what I eat and actually eat really well. But I'm not a zealot. Do what you can, when you can. That's my motto. So, with regard to the frankencorn I'd figure, well ... I don't eat that much corn. If that uncooked pork hamburger I ate in Antigua in 1990 didn't kill me, this corn sure isn't.
But then came the bees.
My friend Russell is a beekeeper. One who keeps bees. Last spring he got 2 colonies of bees and brought them out to his fields. One colony did fine. They thrived. The other colony ... did not. Tiny little bees, alive, but unable to do what they do. Gather pollen and make honey. There was something wrong with them.
photo stolen from Jesse Senko's website Homemade Crackers. Profile of Russell.
When Russell contacted the guy he bought the colony from he was told that particular colony of bees had been drinking from puddles in a corn field. A corn field that was planted with pesticide infused corn seed. After rain, the pesticide within the cells of the corn, leached into the dirt and therefore the puddles on top of the dirt.
All the bees that came to one of those puddles to drink, became very sick in a very weird way. Stammering. Shaking. Stumbling. The man who sold Russell the colony of bees suggested he burn them and come back for a new colony.
Russell didn't have it in him. He took the bees home to his backyard to try to nurse them back to health. They didn't make it. They didn't die directly from the puddle water. They just failed to thrive. They didn't reproduce, lay eggs or get strong. They couldn't protect themselves. They were overrun by ants. They were weak and didn't reproduce.
Eventually, Russell had no choice but to kill them. They were sick and miserable.
All because of genetically modified corn.
And it's not an easy fix. For one thing very few seeds are allowed to be sold legally for commercial sale. Very few. It's costly and a long process to get any new seed onto the list. It's big business and the small farmer just doesn't have the money or the clout. So they're forced to grow food they may not necessarily want to grow.
Because of this, heirloom or heritage seeds have been lost at a rapid rate. They are the seeds of plants that have been around for generations. But they've been pushed away and in some cases lost forever in favour of commercial seeds. Vegetables that grocery stores want to buy are perfectly uniform, picture perfect, unmarked food. Someone decided a tomato should be perfectly round, bright red and have the ability to travel thousands of miles without bruising. So ... that's what we have to choose from at the grocery store. Oddly, not a whole lot of thought seems to be given to how it will taste. Presumably because we shop with our eyes not our mouths. Unless you're me in the grape aisle.
Where was I going with all this?
Ah yes. Seedy Saturday.
Seedy Saturday is an event held by different organizations and people all across Canada for the sole purpose of selling and exchanging open-pollinated and heritage seeds.
The very first was organized in 1990 by Sharon Rempel in Vancouver, British Columbia and it's spread across Canada and into parts of the UK since then.
Most events have seeds and gardening related stuff for sale as well as a big table where you can drop off the seeds you've saved and pick up a packet of someone else's seeds for free. Along with the seeds, there are vendors and workshops and speakers.
As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, I am one of the featured speakers at the Niagara Falls Seedy Saturday Event this year. I'll be giving a photo presentation of last year's project of ripping out my front yard and putting in a vegetable garden. I'll cover how I did it, how many plants I grew, which ones I'd grow again and how to grow a few of the less familiar vegetables like Sweet Potatoes and peanuts. I also have a small Art of Doing Stuff gift for everyone who shows up.
If you plan to come you might wanna show up wearing a tee shirt with your Twitter handle or Gravatar picture on it so I know who the hell you are.
Not in Southern Ontario? Check here for a Seedy Saturday event coming up in your area.
Have a good weekend!
Wind Dancing Llama
2nd post for me today, YIKES. We have a very short growing season here in Colorado so I want to start seeds indoors. If we plant outdoors in early June, when should I start my seeds indoors for tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, peppers, etc. Thank you!!
Cat
Check out these websites for the best planting times for your area:
http://www.almanac.com/gardening/planting-dates/
&
http://www.2bseeds.com/plantingschedule.shtml
They're both very helpful.
Feral Turtle
Excellent post Karen! It is very scary to see what is being done to our food supply! Being surrounded by a farming community, it is sad to see health and safety overshadowed by greed and lifestyle. We also have to deal with the gas companies raping our land and damaging water supplies. Where are the Gov't agencies in all this? In the back pockets of big industry. Hopefully more gatherings of people trying to preserve our land, will speak out. Cheers to you for taking part in such an important event!
Rachel Schindler
Ok. Now I am freaked out on the seeds that I have to plant. Where can I buy open pollinated and heritage seeds in the states for my garden? And good luck with your speech.
Debbie R
Sometimes you just have to use common sense, and it seems you have done that. Thanks for the info!
Janet
Thanks for this post....I'm really interrested in this. Have been reading lately about Monsanto's purchase of a bee research company....suggesting that they are genetically modifying bees now too - bees that can withstand the chemicals they sell to farmers. Meaning (if this is true) that not only would Monsanto own most seeds (and therefore food) but also the ability to pollinate the resulting crops. This is really scary stuff.
Cathy
Great post. Makes me want to totally stay away from corn. My husband is the true beekeeper in the family, but I quickly realize that I need to take over the nurturing of the little stingers. I have to admit, the more I learn about beekeeping the more I want to learn. Will be starting bee school in March. I agree, that Karen should take up beekeeping.
Patti
So, I knew some of this stuff about the Monsanto family, but I honestly did not know about all the laws about seeds. I heard that the problem with Monsanto is also that, since their plants and seeds are pesticides, thy take over other fields which have different kinds of corn - they are too strong.
Bad news, all around, if you ask me!
Anyway - Karen, I think this is awesome, and super interesting (I hope you share more of this on your blog). I would SO be there in Niagara Falls, because I LOVE my garden and Niagara Falls is fun (check out the Crystal Maze - it's legit!) and you're awesome, but I'm going bridesmaid dress shopping with my future sister-in-law. :( Good luck!
Nancy Blue Moon
I so wish that my bank account would let me come..I would love to hear you speak about the garden..Is there any way that you could have it video taped so that we could see it online??..That is some scary corn you are talking about..Definitely going to try to grow my own this year after reading this..I detest companies that think of nothing but their profits irregardless of what it does to the planet and every living thing on it..Also..I do love going to the Falls..so many fun things to do there..Good luck and have fun!!
nancyeileen
fantastic post and veeeerry informative.
I hope youi know what a wonderful service you're providing with ALL of your posts.
We all love your humor and I love your humor even MORE when I have to think about a second then say OOOHH!!! I get it!
But your features like today have such incredible informative, educational impact.
Thanks again, I admire you!
Raymonde
Thank you for the link to all the Seedy Saturdays (and sundays). I'm sending the link to many of my friends all over Quebec!
If you want to know what Monsanto is really up to, (corn is just the tip of the iceberg) watch the documentary "The world according to Monsanto". You can watch it online here:
http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/the-world-according-to-monsanto/
And then, share that link as much as you can, our ignorance is their main weapon...
Lisa
Love the post!
Question - so I buy seeds when they catch my eye, at the hardware store or Home Depot. Should I not be doing that?
What about seeds like lettuce and basil, where I don't get around to saving the seeds?
Jennifer
Karen:
While this is a very interesting anecdote, that is just what it is, an anecdote. It is easy to forget that correlation is not causality and anecdotes are not data. While the GM corn (I'm assuming it contained the BT) could be the issue, it could also be any number of other things. While I usually really enjoy your articles, I think it is helpful to include actual science and well designed double blind, studies from peer reviewed articles about the same issue.
People used to believe that night air caused illness because they started getting sick when they opened their windows at night. Of course, with further study, we found that it was actually mosquitoes transmitting disease that caused the illness, not "night air." It is really easy to get scared from anecdotes that are untrue - as well as those that are true. People thought you could get AIDS from just being near someone with AIDS.
For the record, I don't like heritage tomatoes - they taste like dirt to me. More heritage tomatoes for everyone else! Give me some good hybrid Cherubs - yum! Same with sweet corn. Give me a good super sweet variety any day over a heritage cob that tastes like field corn.
Thanks!
Karen
Thanks Jennifer! You're right. They used to think smoking caused lung cancer too. Silly alarmists. Oh! By the way, how long have you been working for Monsanto? ~ karen
Jennifer
Suprisingly, I don't work for a seed company but I did grow up on a farm. It took me a long time to get over it. Only this past summer, over 20 years after I left the farm, did I think "I might like to can some beans." I love the Jade variety and you can't get that at the store. Mom has slowed down her canning and we go through the jars she makes us pretty early in the year. We treat them like the treasures they are and worship them appropriately when we open them to eat.
I did a little research and found that they aren't blaming the GM corn but a coating on the corn containing neonicotinoids in addition to several other factors. The neonicotinoids sound very nasty and long lasting in the environment. I know (from growing up on that farm) that the coatings they put on seed are nasty and not to be messed with. Did you know, at least 20 years ago, seed corn for field corn, is purple due to the coating? I always thought that was weird.
Two pretty good, scientifically supported articles can be found at:
http://www.epa.gov/opp00001/about/intheworks/honeybee.htm
and
http://www.ars.usda.gov/News/docs.htm?docid=15572
Neonicotinoids (and yes, I have to look that up every time I spell it) are banned in several European countries.
So, in this case, it appears to be less GM (and not BT at all) and an external application of pesticides.
Anecdotes are great and can lead to good avenues to study but shouldn't be used for life decisions - or laws.
BTW, I'm very pro heritage seeds and lower pesticide usage. I'm not necessarily anti-GM. I don't feel like I have enough knowledge to think one way or the other.
Oz
"Teach the controversy" - a tactic used by vested interests to make sure society doesn't act against them. Try to create more uncertainty than there is. We see it with GMO foods, climate change etc.
There are PR companies with "persona management" software out there scanning for blog posts etc concerning topics of interest to their corporate clients. Using a plausible online persona they chime in the discussion with their viewpoints, to sway opinion, and failing that to give the impression that their stance has more public support than it really does.
As for "Jennifer" and her point:
It's hard to get peer reviewed studies about GMO foods because the firms involved treat them as trade secrets and in general refuse to open up to scrutiny. It is shocking and an indictment of our apathy that we've allowed our governments to not force transparency into this unprecedented modification of our food supply.
Heather
I wish you had a "Like" option
susan
ME TOO
Wind Dancing Llama
About 6 years ago, a friend was talking about all the bees in Texas dying and no one knew why. He was really concerned about what effect the demise of bees would have on agriculture. Your story makes so much sense. I love this blog; it has so much diversified information about things I love such as DIY, gardening, cooking ,etc. I'm so glad I found it. Thanks also to Heather t for the info about the book; I will look into it.
Cat
Not all the bees in Texas died, though the bee population did dwindle dramatically in 2008-10. The few beekeepers who managed to keep their bees alive did so because they live in areas where corn is not planted very much. The plantings that are around them are hay crops, like clover, alfalfa, and the like. The price of honey did go up :( but we've managed to get some of the population back. I'm not a beekeeper (I'm actually allergic to their stings, so I avoid them altogether), but I do keep up with them, because I totally LOVE honey.
Nancy
Thank you for your excellent post. You know scientists can say all sorts of things and they get so technical non-scientists often stop listening. (I worked 15 years with biologists). What you said about the bees and the GMC is so clear the problems with what we are doing to nature. And corn products are in everything. Very thoughtful.
Lynn
I was wrong. I said yesterday's post was the best but today's wins hands down. Such an important subject that truly affects everyone and many have no idea just how so. GOOD FOR YOU to be a speaker, to educate others while of course being your regular entertaining self. We have just put money down for our first Nuc to be delivered in the spring - our metropolitan hive will have other hurtles to manage I am sure but I hope that with this greater awareness, a positive change is on the horizon for the great offenders like Dow, Monsanto and the like. Go Karen!
Debbie Neal
What a story! I looked at the list of places for Speedy Saturday and saw that it is only in Canada! Is there and American version for those of us who do not live there?
Jules
So, I just learned today that Stoke Seeds is now owned by Monsanto. Which is pretty disappointing as they have been a standard for me for a long time.
What a world.
Mary Kay
I'm right with you Karen. I think heritage seeds are the way to go - I got some from one of your sponsors and they were great. Do they have Seedy events in the US? I would love to come to Canada to visit but I need to get a passport and I'm not sure they will let me out and if they do I may have to come live with you cause they really might not let me back in (hee he).
Janet
I am in Southern Ontario, and I wish I could come and hear you speak on Feb.9! Previous commitments prevent.
Our three acres is surrounded by corn fields on all sides. Sadly, the big farmer that owns most of the land in our area knows nothing of rotating crops. It's very rare for him to plant anything but corn. Instead of rotation, he inoculates the land with chemicals.
I try not to think about it too much.
Ann
I would love to come hear you speak. But alas, I live just a bit too far.
There are lists on the internet of seed companies that refuse to have any GMO seed or to have anything to do with Monsanto, Bayer, or any other company involved with big agribusiness. I try to stick to using them exclusively. But this year I am so late in buying seed that I may be forced to buy off the rack seeds to get anything in the ground.
This last summer I went up to rural NW Ohio for my HS reunion. I noticed that every field of soybeans, corn and wheat were way too perfect. I asked a family member where I was staying and she said it is all GMO. All exactly the same height, color, no weeds, no bare spots. Very pretty to some but scary as hell to me.