Originally created as a set of four DVDs, 40 short films for professional or amateur gardeners who wish to learn how to produce their own vegetable seeds are now freely available to download on the new website www.diyseeds.org/en/
The films make up an educational tool, a practical manual that can also be used in schools, training programmes or seed swaps. From cabbages to peppers, carrots to aubergines, 32 films describe the cycle of different vegetables from seed to seed, the biology of their flowers, the different varieties and how to extract, clean, sort, dry and store your seeds. You will also find eight other films that explain a number of theoretical and practical aspects of seed production, such as botanical classification, pollination, selection or isolation techniques.
The films were produced by members of Longo Mai, a movement of self-managed collectives in five European countries that has existed since 1973. Around 200 people of over ten nationalities work in agriculture, animal breeding, forestry and crafts. For many years they have produced their own seeds and they organise seed swaps.
By producing your own seeds you will contribute towards maintaining the vast heritage of heirloom varieties developed over countless generations that is fast disappearing. The only way to guarantee their survival is to cultivate them in our gardens and acquire the knowledge of how to multiply them.
On the website the films can be viewed and downloaded free of charge in English, Arabic and Portuguese, under the Creative Commons Licence. Other versions will be added in the coming months. You will also find the complete explanatory texts which make up the soundtrack, as well as drawings of the botanical families.
