An Uncommon Seed Catalog
Digging deeper than Park and Burpee, who just scratch the surface of seeds in peril
When one of our daughters was in the Central African Republic in 2000 on a research project, she wrote in a monthly email (when the generator was hooked up to the camp computer) that the project director was interested in obtaining native plant seeds. She asked me to locate a source in the United States. I was a librarian, so I enjoyed this task.
Soon I had a seed catalog in hand and sent the director the information she wanted. I still have it on my bookshelf.
As someone might enjoy a cookbook (with photos), I’m browsing this catalog today. It’s a little late to be reading one by the fireplace while snow falls. But the mail hasn’t brought an “all business” seed catalog, so there’s still time to read this one, just for the story.
Author J. L. Hudson is clear in the preface (“How to Order”) that, since his is not a corporate “consumer” company, many of his seeds are not easily grown. “Have patience, take care in providing correct conditions, experiment,” he says. “If there is a problem, I want to be the first to know.”
But, Hudson warns his clients, don’t experiment with the wild edible and medicinal plants which he carries “solely to point out promising plants to competent researchers, and for historical interest.” By page 3 you know that Hudson is deeply committed to “the preservation & dissemination of biodiversity”.
Saving the earth’s seeds is a wide-ranging subject. A 2019 research paper that I found online laments the loss of valuable ethnomedical knowledge due to “the absence of collaboration among traditional medicine practitioners, entrepreneurs, and scientists”.
Also, Hudson in his catalog notes “widespread unusual weather, with a short supply of crops.” He says,
There are four major threats to the ongoing free flow of seeds: “invasive” species legislation, patenting and other intellectual property, genetically-engineered seeds, and the Convention on Biological Diversity.
Developing herbal medicines for a global market is complicated. Side effects and drug interactions call for thorough testing. Local technology restrictions and endemic diseases slow the process. And, economically, harvesting botanicals is not sustainable.
Harvesting has improved income levels in marginalized communities, but … the low prices paid for plants does not cover replacement. Importers who demand high volumes of plant material contribute to the decline of medicinal plants species in Africa.
Our daughter was not in the Central African Republic to study medicinal plants, but during her year there she found an ecosystem in peril. The gorillas she tracked then still depend on wild plants for food, shelter, and, likely, for medicinal purposes, just as do the people who live there.
I think she must have been among the last westerners to glimpse the natural biodiversity that J. L. Hudson, and she and her project team, were working hard to protect.
My 2000 Ethnobotanical Catalog of Seeds in part tells the story of how J. L. Hudson, working to conserve the earth’s remaining seeds, is developing Gibberellic Acid for rapid germination. He says,
Only a few types [of my GA solutions] are available, but more will follow as research progresses.
Quickly, Mr. Hudson!
Great Information Deda!
This was fascinating I posted a link to this on the Asheville Plant People Facebook group and people are enjoying it.