June 2004 ARCHIVES of Andy's Life on
the Farm Shows
June 18th
Fava Seed
This is Andrew Griffin of Mariquita Farm with Life On The Farm. I spent
over twenty thousand dollars on seed last year, and my farm is only
thirty acres. To keep ahead of rising costs I've begun saving my own
seed over the last couple of years. Growing a crop out for seed can
be as different from producing it for the vegetable market as designing
shoes is from manufacturing them. Since I'm still learning I concentrate
on varieties that are easy. This week we are harvesting fava beans.
Back in March and April we were harvesting favas for the fresh market.
The variety I grow is called Broad Windsor. Each pod is about six inches
long and contains four or five beans the size of a quarter. We left
a couple of rows unharvested. The pods that weren't picked have turned
leathery brown in color. The leaves have fallen from the stalks so the
beans are easy to see. We sweep through the field picking the fattest
pods, then spread them on a plastic tarp in the shade to finish drying.
Once the pods are crispy we will, in the time honored tradition of our
peoples, drive a Toyota pickup back and forth over the pile to shatter
the hulls. It's windy almost every afternoon in our part of San Benito
County so winnowing the seed from the trash is easy. I've been very
satisfied with the vigor of the seed I've produced myself and it is
fulfilling to become more self sufficient. For K.U.S.P. this is Andrew
Griffin.
copyright 2004 Andrew Griffin
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Farm: Website
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