Ep. 81 Breeding Adaptive Crops - Brett Grohsgal, Even'Star Organic Farm

Brett Grohsgal runs Even'Star Organic Farm in Lexington, Maryland alongside his wife Dr. Christine Bergmark. They grow vegetables for CSA and farmers markets but they also keep a number of their own seed lines that are a large part of the success of their farm.

In this episode, Brett and I talk about how to breed adaptive crops for a region and for extreme weather resilience. Brett has also eliminated most overhead irrigation and significantly reduced the amount of fertilizer that he applies on his fields, which adds even more selection pressure to his crops. We get into his work with brassicas, especially his Icebred and Coyote Arugula. We also talk about when you should keep your own seeds and when you might rely on purchased seeds.

In the deep dive, Brett and I discuss cherry tomatoes for seed: how he dehybridized two hybrids by crossing them with op varieties, how he's been selecting them for years for exceptional flavor and disease resistance, and what seed harvest looks like,
Enjoy the conversation!

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Episode links

Even'Star website
https://evenstarfarm.bigcartel.com

Even'Star on Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/evenstarfarm.org/

You can find some Even'Star brassicas at Fedco
https://fedcoseeds.com/search?search=Brett+Grohsgal

You can read Brett's seed articles in the Growing For Market Archives
https://growingformarket.com/?s=Brett+Grohsgal

 

 

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