Summer brings the bounty of the harvest, not just in terms of fruits and vegetables, but also in terms of seeds. We begin harvesting dry-seeded vegetable crops like kale seed, collard seed, and lettuce seed in late May to early June. After these crops are fully dry, they are threshed on a large tarp (Evan’s favorite job), and then cleaned by passing a stream of seeds from one bucket to another in front of a box fan.

As the summer gets into full swing, so do the fruits! Starting in late June through August, we spend every day either harvesting summer squash, cucumbers, muskmelons/cantaloupes, watermelons, tomatoes, peppers, or eggplants, or scooping out their seeds for processing. Eila and Elias like this job! There is always a treat to munch on! These seeds are then fermented, washed, and dried, before they are cleaned in front of a box fan.

Towards the end of summer and into fall come the big harvests: beans, corn, winter squash and pumpkins, flower seeds, peanuts, okra, and grains. The good thing about these crops is that they can wait while we finish off the summer fruits! Beans and grains are threshed on a tarp, which Evan and Lalo take turns on. Megan removes the seeds of the winter squash and pumpkins with a converted vacuum cleaner or by hand with a group of community members. Flower seeds, corn, and okra are usually done by hand by the whole family or with friends, and peanuts just need to dry.

By late fall, all the seeds have been harvested and cleaned and are ready for germination tests and packing. There is still a bounty of winter vegetables in the field, though, for tending. Some are winter food crops, and some are overwintering vegetables which will be harvested for seed in the spring.