Tully's seeds and the Manifesto on the Future of Seeds

Tully lives in Newcastle, where I just visited this past weekend. I had a wonderful time staying with his family, parents Maureen and Will, and experiencing the ever-expanding permaculture garden, the building of a chook pen, and lots of great shared meals and conversation. One afternoon Tully asked if I'd like to see his magic seed box. What a question... who could refuse! The box actually did have a secret compartment. The top layer opened to reveal seedpods that he's actually crafted into some great boats...like a tiny catamaran. The surprise came when the under layer opened and it contained 100's of very, very light seeds with wings. We had to be careful not to let them float off in the breeze. I loved it...there was something a bit magical about this. Thanks Tully!

Tully's magic seed box

The page above I just put together this evening so I can hand it out with Seed Project work. If you click on the image above you can enlarge and view it properly. It contains information and a weblink to the 2006 document The MANIFESTO ON THE FUTURE OF SEEDS produced through a global consultation held at Terre Madre In Turin, Italy in 2006- a Slow Food International Conference. This response evolved out of  previous document The Manifesto of the Future of Food from the 2003 International Commission on the Future of Food. If you go to the actual Manifesto as directed above you can read the 36 page document. This statement is sobering to say the least:  'Of 80,000 edible plants used for food, only about 150 are being cultivated,and just 8 are traded globally. This implies the irreversable disappearance of seed and crop diversity'. from -  Part I: Diversity of life and Cultures under threat.