Saving and Swapping Seed for Diversity and Resilience

The practice of swapping and saving seed links to several of the 13 principles of Agroecology. Whether you’re a hobby gardener, someone who grows their own veg or a commercial grower, seeds are a precious resource. Many traditional seed varieties are being lost, whilst seed patenting and seed production is increasingly concentrated into the hands of a few global companies. In the words of Vandana Shiva ““When you control seed you control food.”

Barleybird teamed up with Kate Ayre, an experienced grower and seed saver, to offer two Seed Saving Workshops, funded by East Suffolk Council’s Enabling Communities Fund. The first focused on annual food crops such as tomatoes, lettuce and peas, and the second included biennials such as carrots, beetroot and onions. Participants learned which plants you can and can’t save seed from, plus related facts about plant botany and pollination. The various stages of seed saving were also explained through fun, practical activities, including plant selection and seed cleaning.

The second workshop also coincided with our 2025 Seed Swap, kindly hosted again by Hodmedod’s at their warehouse in Suffolk. Despite the cold, word is clearly spreading as the numbers were up from 2024, with an estimated 200 people coming through the door. There was a lovely sense of community and shared interests as people browsed the seed packets, looking for free treasures, whilst sharing their seed stories and experiences. Trees were also given away by the Suffolk Tree Warden Network and delicious bread and snacks were devoured thanks to Henrietta Inman and her new hheart bakery.

Seed Saving and Swapping links to Agroecology

• Fairness - protect traditional knowledge and fair intellectual property rights e.g. open source seeds

• Input reduction - increase self-sufficiency, reduce reliance of purchased seed, creating community seed saving networks

• Economic diversification - create income from selling seeds, develop greater financial independence

• Co-creation of knowledge - farmer-to-farmer exchange, transfer of knowledge and good practice

Introducing Agroecology to the Suffolk coastal landscape

Barleybird has designed a short course in Agroecology specifically for those who are not commercial farmers or growers, but who are connected to food and farming through their work or vocation, or where they live.

Conversations with friends and research locally revealed a real curiosity and thirst for knowledge around the current food and farming system, and in particular, those practices which are better for nature and better for us. There was also a feeling that their own work, colleages and clients could benefit from such understanding. So our Introduction to Agroecology course was created.

The course aims to provide both a ‘macro’ and a ‘micro’ approach. Macro covers aspects of the global food system in relation to key historical events and technological developments, and their impact on human and planetary health. It also includes local history, geology and climate, and how these continue to influence food production in the region. In contrast, micro covers soil health and plant nutrition, and explains the difference between various alternative horticultural and agricultural approaches and practices, including permaculture, organic, regenerative, agroforestry and holistic grazing.

However, a key element of the course is to gain an understanding of what is meant by ‘agroecology.’ The word itself gives a clue to its meaning, yet did you know it is simultaneously a science, a practice and a movement, where the role of people is not only valued, but essential? Agroecological systems empower farmers and growers, food producers and consumers, encouraging a more inclusive, decentralised, community-based approach to growing food, which also protects and regenerates our natural systems.

Here’s what participants said……

“It was so brilliantly organised, full of so much fascinating content and with a lovely group of people. Truly one of the best courses I've ever been on!”

‘It is a complete mind-reset. The network of people pulled together for this are inspiring. It shows the far-reaching potential that can come about in all areas of life. I am already shopping and eating differently (better); increasing my food spend for local, organic and nutritious food. I am aware of soil in my work.’

“I can't wait to carve a bit of time to look through all of this again and read the reading list. It really was such a brilliant few days, I learnt LOADS! I feel it should be mandatory training for everybody - a human right to have this knowledge! And I feel so much more connected to my own allotment, landscape and food as a result. Absolutely brilliant, thank you!!!

So far our courses have been fully funded by Suffolk & Essex Coast & Heaths Farming in Protected Landscapes programme and run on either two consecutive mid-week days, or a hybrid online/in-person course in the evenings and at the weekend to make the courses as accessible as possible, whatever people’s work or home life commitments. If you are interested in attending an Introduction to Agroecology course, or think your employer might want to offer a bespoke version for their staff, do get in touch through our contact form or by emailing admin@barleybird.org

Farm Visits with Diverse Communities

Throughout the summer of 2024, Barleybird worked in partnership with farmer Richard Wrinch and the Suffolk & Essex Coast & Heaths National Landscape team, as part of the Landscapes for All programme. Community groups from the Ipswich and Colchester area were invited to Richard’s beautiful farm on the Suffolk coast near Shotley, where they learned about food and farming in the UK, both past and present, as well as spending some much appreciated time in nature.

Richard gave a tour of the fields of cereal and vegetable crops, and also the woodland, meadow areas and reservoirs to show how his conservation management was benefitting wildlife and creating precious water resources. One group arrived just after the onion harvest, and enthusiastically took up his offer to do some onion gleaning! Gaina from Barleybird explained which crops we traditionally grow in the UK, including those most commonly grown on Suffolk coast due to the climate, topography and soil types. The wider global food and farming system was discussed too, and how we can all try to eat more sustainably and healthily.

A delicious lunch cooked from Hodmedod’s UK grown pulses and grains fed (pun intended!) into a discussion about the use of these of ingredients in their own favourite dishes, and which UK grown pulses could potentially be used in cuisines from around the world. We discovered that some members of the groups were from farming backgrounds or were accomplished chefs, so able to share their knowledge of growing crops such as Teff in Ethiopia, or cooking dishes with nakhod (chick peas) from Afghanistan.

Thank you to Richard, National Landscapes and the wonderful people from Refugee and Migrant Action (RAMA), Bangladeshi Women’s Association, Suffolk Refugee Support for their warmth and enthusiasm. We are looking forward to continuing our work with diverse communities in the near future.

Supporting farmers to inspire the next generation

It’s been an exciting few months for Barleybird. Our fledgling organisation has begun working with a range of different people in the local community including farmers, teachers, and school children in collaboration with practitioners in food, farming, art and nature.

A project led by Natural Habitat, Weaving Farms, Land, People and Planet, aims to connect school children and the wider public with the farmed landscape, began with a training session for the farmer members of the Blyth Valley Farm Cluster. Barleybird Director, Gaina Dunsire, led a workshop which outlined the steps needed to organise a farm visit, including how to address health and safety requirements which can potentially be a concern for both farms and schools. The farmers were also encouraged to see their farms as the amazing learning resources they are. Linking these activities to the National Curriculum can also help to make a farm visit more appealing to teachers who work within an already crowded curriculum.

Subsequent sessions for the project were held in schools. At Ilketshall Primary School, children discussed in groups what they had eaten for breakfast, and where they thought the ingredients came from. This led to discussions about seasonality, food miles and the UK climate. The children were shocked to learn that we grew only 16% of the fruit we consumed in the UK in 2020 (www.cbi.eu)

A further activity linked farming to the History curriculum. Children developed their understanding of chronology, and sorted images of crops, animals, machinery and people, to demonstrate show how much farming has, and also what hasn’t, changed over time in the farmed landscape around them.

Another element of Barleybird’s collaboration with Natural Habitat was to support farmers by co-planning activities and provide advice regarding health and safety in preparation for school visits. The wonderful Broad Oak Farm went on to be great hosts: children tasted peas straight from the pod, identified caddis fly larvae from the pond, and explored the mixed species woodland. They also learned about the life cycles of a range of farm animals whilst meeting cows, sheep, pigs, goats and alpacas. The inspiring farm staff kept the children’s attention all morning with their fun facts and interactive activities, and no question was left unanswered…..even the awkward ones about reproduction and eating meat!

Natural Habitat’s film showing the full Weaving Farms, Land, People and Planet project is available to watch, as well as a free downloadable educational resource for Primary Schools

If you would like Barleybird to work with your farm or school, please get in touch: admin@barleybird.org

Our first event! Seed Swap at Hodmedod’s

It was a cold, windy day in Suffolk, but the turn out at our very first Barleybird event back in March saw an encouraging turnout of more than 70 people. They arrived with leftover bought seed, their own saved seed, or nothing at all, but everyone was welcome to take seeds home.

Swapping your own saved seed and sharing it with others, is a great way support the availability of diverse, open-pollinated seed varieties. It also helps to continue the production of seed which has adapted to local climate and soils. All the seeds were available free of charge, so seed swapping can also support those on low incomes to grow their own food.

The event was held at the Bean Store in Brampton, Suffolk, home of Hodmedod’s: the award-winning food company which sells pulses, seeds and grains grown on British farms. Seed Swappers were given a rare opportunity to visit their warehouse and purchase some Hodmedod’s goodies.

As well being able to select seeds for growing vegetables and flowers, Suffolk Tree Warden Network’s volunteer, Graham Pleasants, was also at the Bean Store with over 50 trees to give away………almost all of them went to new homes! The charity grows trees from seed collected in Suffolk, which are then grown on by volunteers and distributed to anyone who requests them, including at their big annual give-away each autumn.

The talented Henrietta Inman, from Wakelyns Bakery, provided attendees with the opportunity to relax, chat and meet other growers over a hot drink and a delicious snack. Some seed-swappers also bought some of her delicious bread, made with the organic, diverse population wheat pioneered by the late Martin Wolfe at at Wakelyns Farm.

Barleybird is delighted to have been awarded funding from East Suffolk District Council to run two seed saving workshops. Part 1 is designed for beginners and will be held on the 28th September 2024. Part 2 will be for the more advanced on the 8th February 2025, in conjunction with another Seed Swap event. We are looking forward to working with the local community, and welcoming even more enthustiastic Seed Swappers next year.