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'Melange'
' 'Looking at the field of ripening
grain, Vavilov realized it was not a uniform wheat cultivar,
but a panoply of intermixed strains of grain that formed a resilient
polyculture. It was necessary to collect hundreds of seedheads
for a representative sample of the vast biodiversity in a single
field...The traditional farmers' methods of crop selection enhance
landrace wheats' biodiversity; Their criteria of complex traits
include: flavor, texture, health, maturation and more.' Where Our Food Comes From. Gary Nabhan p. 139
Plant a resilient wheat polyculture that can
adapt to your unique fields and unprecedented weather extremes:
Genepool of elite European landrace winter wheats:
Crimean Turkey Red, Red Lammas,
Rouge de Bordeaux, Purple Tinge, Hungarian Bankuti, Siberian,
Ancient Georgian, German Bio-Dynamic winter wheats.
Plant each seed 12" apart
in deep-dug well-fertilized soil. Spread mulch to suppress
spring weeds. Heritage wheats are at least twice as tall with
a larger root system than modern wheats. Save the seeds from
the robust plants that best thrive in your unique soil and micro-climate.
Exchange seed with your neighbors to build a community wheat
supply.
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Traditional farmers grow
mixtures of landrace populations, allowing nature and farmers
to work together to evolve the best locally-adapted variety.
Current
research confirms that wheat cultivar mixtures tend to yield
higher.
'Melange'
European landrace winter wheat genepool
NOT available till 2010
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