Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
Dan Clore
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/smygo
http://tinyurl.com/ycu66jb
Louisa seed company also a �way of life�
The Southern Exposure Seed Exchange specializes in open-pollinated and
so-called heirloom seeds.
by BILL LOHMANN PHOTOS BY BOB BROWN TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF
February 22, 2010
Looking for spring, we drove into the woods of Louisa County, trundling
through snow and ice down a dirt road and across a one-lane bridge.
Inside a farmhouse, there's a sure sign of the coming season: seeds.
Lots and lots of seeds. In jars, bags and small, charmingly illustrated
packets. Seeds for tomatoes (more than 100 varieties), beans and corn,
peanuts, cotton and okra, and hundreds of other varieties of fruits,
vegetables, flowers and herbs.
"This is our busiest time," said Ira Wallace, co-manager of Southern
Exposure Seed Exchange, standing in the warmly chaotic office as phones
rang, printers hummed and other worker-owners tapped on computer
keyboards. "We pack seeds, take orders and get them out of here."
Southern Exposure is a different sort of operation for a number of
reasons, including that it specializes in open-pollinated and so-called
heirloom seeds that have a history of being passed down through
generations of families and small farmers.
However, what really sets the company apart is its setting: Acorn
Community, an egalitarian, income-sharing living arrangement that one
resident half-jokingly described as a "hippie commune."
Another resident, Byrd Rising, put it this way: "It's not just a
company," she said. "It's a whole way of life."
Twenty-two people live in three houses on the 70-acre farm. Everyone has
a hand in the business, working in the garden, answering phones or
designing the catalogs that, of course, list seeds for sale but also
chronicle their sometimes-rich history.
No one is paid a salary; proceeds are plowed back into the community or
donated to charity or causes they support, such as the Piedmont
Environmental Council. Residents share cars, long conversations, and
daily tasks such as cooking meals and washing dishes in an atmosphere
that values personal responsibility and alternative lifestyles. No one
pays rent.
"You don't take a vow of poverty, but we're committed to simple living,"
Wallace said. "People have a small spending allowance . . . but we try
to have our consumption be low for junk and stuff."
Noting many of the group's furnishings are acquired at secondhand
stores, Wallace said with a smile, "Why buy something new when you can
get it used?"
Acorn -- not affiliated with the community organizing group of the same
name that has become a political lightning rod -- was founded in 1993 as
an offshoot of Twin Oaks, a similar, larger community less than 10 miles
away.
Acorn has operated Southern Exposure since 1999 when it took over the
business from founder Jeff McCormack, who started the company in 1982 in
his family garden and kitchen. Southern Exposure has expanded its
offerings in recent years, fed by a growing interest in food that is
locally grown and organic. Acorn also operates Garden Medicinals and
Culinaries, which sells medicinal and herb seeds and also was founded by
McCormack.
Acorn residents grow many of the seeds on their farm, conduct plant
trials and germination tests, and provide environmentally controlled
seed storage, including a refrigerated trailer.
"We don't air-condition our people," Wallace said with a laugh. "We
air-condition our seeds."
They also grow seeds at several leased plots nearby, including land at
Twin Oaks, and they contract with an additional 30 growers around the
Southeast and beyond. The community's business meshes famously with its
overall philosophy of life, promoting seed-saving, ecological
agriculture and local food production. Heirloom and open-pollinated
seeds produce crop and seeds for the next planting; much of today's
large-scale food production relies on hybrid seeds that produce crop but
cannot reproduce themselves.
In a way, Rising said, the business is "a form of very accessible activism."
Richard Nunnally, retired extension agent, freelance gardening columnist
for the Richmond Times-Dispatch and host of WCVE's "Virginia Home
Grown," said Southern Exposure's work "meets the needs of a growing
segment of the gardening world."
"More and more gardeners are looking for the old standard varieties that
had natural disease resistance and wonderful flavor," Nunnally said.
"Their dedication to producing quality seeds that are properly
identified and packaged has given them a reputation of reliability."
Wallace said Acorn residents feel fortunate "we can make a living doing
something good."
They also are lucky that their work produces vegetables year-round for
their community table, such as the colorful stir-fry featuring chunky
oxheart carrots -- described in the catalog as "thick, sweet carrots"
that require "extra growing space" -- that Lisa Harney and Ashleigh
Wilson were preparing for lunch on the day of our visit.
While they cooked, Jason Finn was nearby showing off his latest creation
from the Acorn workshop: a handsome rack made of scrap oak for
displaying Southern Exposure seed packets in retail shops. Richmond-area
retailers that carry Southern Exposure seeds include The Great Big
Greenhouse & Nursery and Ellwood Thompson's Local Market.
"We're the only seed company that has handmade-like-Amish-furniture seed
racks," Finn said with a laugh.
Contact Bill Lohmann at (804) 649-6639 or wloh...@timesdispatch.com .
Contact Bob Brown at (804) 649-6382 or bbr...@timesdispatch.com .
--
Dan Clore
New book: _Weird Words: A Lovecraftian Lexicon_:
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My collected fiction: _The Unspeakable and Others_
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Skipper: Professor, will you tell these people who is
in charge on this island?
Professor: Why, no one.
Skipper: No one?
Thurston Howell III: No one? Good heavens, this is anarchy!
-- _Gilligan's Island_, episode #6, "President Gilligan"