I’ve finally put together an album of photos culled from the several hundred I took during a visit to one of my favourite human being hybrids (yes, even he is a hybrid!) and a great inspirator of our times and a national and international treasure, Dr. Alan “Mushroom” Kapuler!!! Thanks to Mushroom and his and Linda’s seedling, Dylana, for the help with the IDs! His blog is also very worth visiting (http://mushroomsblog.blogspot.no). Here are my pictures:
http://www.edimentals.com/pictures/index.php?/category/99
You will see pictures from Mushroom’s Kinship (Biodiversity) Garden: Amongst hundreds of other plants I could see fruiting avocado, jujubes, kumquat, Meyer lemons in this 5m high x 9m x 30m greenhouse in which Mushroom and friends planted 500 species phylogenetically (related plants planted together) in 1994…Although he lost 350 in a major flood, he learned much from this disaster, in particular that citrus survived these conditions and he advocates greenhouse cultivation in Oregon of citrus rather than shipping up from California (see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9evVLC0lnsA : this video also includes Andeans yacon, mauka and arracacha, the perennial root crop of the Andes)…all planted in the earth where plants belong, something I’ve also always advocated!!
You will also see pictures from the farm which is dominated by the incredible diversity of South American vegetables from tomatoes to quinoa to yacon. I was also honoured to visit the Kapuler home which houses the seed collections and even more diversity!
See also https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBOZkpEWCVc
Peace seedlings and Andean Roots: http://www.corvallisadvocate.com/tag/dylana-kapuler/
In his own words, this is what Mushroom (and, thank goodness, also seedlings Dylana and Mario) is about:
“Peace, love, biodiversity, kinship gardening, unity, life, seed saving, organics, public domain plant breeding, PNW native foodplants, genomics, the Oregon Coast, dreamscapes, ecosanity, recreality, multidimensional character analyses,sustainable organic agriculture in the PNW, hope on this long strange trip that continues, post Picasso acrylic paintings, growing forests of dense, biodiverse,hardy, temperate zone perennials, supporting the organic movement with original open-pollinated and nutritionally selected plant cultivars of merit towards improving the health of humanity.”
Also you must see, An afternoon with Alan Kapuler:
http://www.edimentals.com/blog/?page_id=3012
and Alan Kapuler talking more knowledgeably than most on GMOs:
http://www.edimentals.com/blog/?p=2332
…..and in December 2013, I was blown away to receive a package containing 11 different Lomatiums, commonly known as biscuitroots, Indian parsley or desert parsley, at one time a staple of the Native Americans. Alan is doing important work resurrecting this genus of drought resistent perennial carrot relatives, destined to once again become an important food crop, but only Mushroom and a couple of other knowers are working on it! http://www.edimentals.com/blog/?page_id=3293
Thanks also for the generosity…I came away with many seed packets!
Please visit the Peace seeds website here and help spread Mushroom’s work: http://peaceseedslive.blogspot.no/
...and please also support the work of the Peace seedlings here (Yacons, Ocas and much, much more)
http://www.peaceseedlingsseeds.blogspot.no/
Finally, a picture of my friend Pamela Melcher, who did so much to make this trip come about, with Mushroom. A very happy meeting of good souls! :)
I worked with Mushroom’s daughter Kushra in the 90s, and have ordered from Alan and from Peace Seedlings – love the inspiration and the plant diversity!
The perennial leeks are so easy – come up through winter and spring, then flower and make sets for more leeklings …
I got a lovely yacon this summer that may have been from their stock … split into 3 in pots …
Thanks for this!
Love the name leeklings :)