Five farmers who save and sell native vegetable seeds to promote biodiversity

For centuries, farmers have been saving native or indigenous seeds to continue the cycle of food from one season to the next. Native seeds adapted to the local environment over generations, can withstand pests, require less water and fertilizers and cost nothing. 

Farmers don’t have to depend on the market and spend money on seed purchases every year. This results in lower input costs and more stable yields, improving profitability for farmers. 

Moreover, preserving these seeds helps maintain biodiversity and agricultural heritage. 

India is home to over 80 varieties of tomatoes, about 270 types of brinjals, over 50 types of gourds, beans (50) and many other varieties of various vegetables.

Some farmers who practice organic farming and natural farming save these native seeds for future generations and share them with other growers and gardeners to protect biodiversity and keep farming costs low.

Here are five seed savers who are working for their propagation and conservation:

1. A Parameswaran, Tamil Nadu

An aeronautical engineer turned organic farmer, Parameswaran has collected over 350 varieties of traditional vegetable seeds, many of them rare and on the brink of extinction. They include 15 varieties of lady's finger, red corn, over 20 varieties of tomato and 50 types of eggplants and gourds, among others. 

These seeds are sold to farmers and kitchen gardeners interested in growing local varieties free from pesticides. They are sold through WhatsApp and Parameswaran’s Facebook page - Aadhiyagai Biodiversity and Ecological Farm. Aadhiyagai means the first bloom in Tamil.

Read his story here: How Tamil Nadu’s aeronautical engineer-turned-farmer is creating a native seed bank to promote organic farming

2. Prabhakar Rao, Karnataka

An architect-turned-organic farmer, Prabhakar has saved 516 varieties of native vegetable seeds. He propagates the seeds on his Hariyalee Seed Farm on Kanakpura Road on the outskirts of Bengaluru. The farm is spread over 2.5 acres.

Rao began collecting heirloom seeds by visiting remote and tribal areas where chemical farming had not yet made inroads. 

He travelled to Manipur, Tripura, Bodoland and then to Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh, where biodiversity was relatively untouched.

Rao has set up net houses to ensure that there is no cross-pollination. “We hand-pollinate them and ensure that we get the same plants every time. It’s not easy. I specialise only in vegetables,” says Rao, who has more than 30 varieties of tomatoes, over 20 types of eggplants, eight okra varieties, eight types of chillies, many types of gourds, beans and peppers etc.

Here’s his story: Prabhakar Rao: How this architect-farmer saved 516 varieties of native vegetable seeds

3. Aftab MB, Karnataka

Aftab conserves over 800 types of organic vegetable seeds and sells them across India by post. Aftab has over 800 types of vegetable seeds. 

They include 270 varieties of brinjals or aubergines, radishes in 20 colours, 34 varieties of okra, 100 types of tomatoes, 40 types of cowpeas, and 70 varieties of chillies including Carolina Reaper (the world’s hottest pepper as ranked by the Guinness Book of World Record), North East’s Bhüt Jolokia (ghost pepper) in six colours and China’s Thunder Mountain Longhorn pepper. 

He multiplies them over one acre and saves them for the future. “I cultivate vegetables in small patches of land through organic farming, and save their seeds,” he says.

Here’s his story: This farmer conserves over 800 types of organic vegetable seeds; sells across India

4. Anil Gavali, Maharashtra

Anil has collected 350 varieties of native vegetables and fruit seeds. He shares them with farmers for free and they return double the amount in the next season. For home gardeners and others interested in growing native plants, he sells the seeds in packets sent via courier.

His repertoire of native seeds includes 150 varieties of tomatoes including black tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, blue and purple tomatoes, pickle tomatoes and apple-like tomatoes. He has seeds of 60 types of native brinjals, 80 types of bananas, 10 varieties of mangoes, many types of beans, and nine varieties of corn (red, yellow, black, green, white, golden and rainbow with seeds in seven colours). 

He has also saved native seeds of 30 varieties of bottle gourds, three types of pumpkin, four types of spinach, including Malabar and Pahadi varieties and many types of chillies, bell peppers, and Carolina Reaper, the world’s hottest pepper, among other vegetables.

Here’s more about him: This farmer conserves 350 types of native vegetable and fruit seeds; sells across India

5. Sowmya Balasubramaniam, Tamil Nadu

Sowmya is an IT engineer who quit TCS and has conserved over 250 varieties of native organic seeds. On a trip to Uttarakhand, she saw a bottle gourd which was over 5.5 feet long and also 58 types of rajma (kidney beans). 

That prompted her to start native seed conservation.

She has, so far, collected over 250 varieties of native seeds of vegetables including brinjals, gourds, tomatoes, greens and peppers. Sowmya’s HOOGA native seeds collection also includes millets and 42 varieties of paddy. 

“We, at HOOGA, conduct seed yatra to a new village and farm once every three months. We meet people, document the local knowledge and create space for the exchange of knowledge,” she says.

Here’s her story: This techie quit TCS for the love of social work; and has conserved over 250 varieties of native seeds

(US Anu is a Madurai-based writer. She specialises in stories around human interest, environment and art and culture.)

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