Our Guest:
Hassena Kassim is a mother and a newish farmer in Hot Springs NC. She works the land with honeybees, chickens, dairy goats, gardens and several composting methods. Hassena is a grower of seeds for Sow True Seed in Asheville, North Carolina and has recently completed the Organic Seed Alliance seed school.
Listen in and learn about:
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- Trying to grow seeds with a greater purpose led her to Seed School
- 8-month program: Organic Seed Alliance seed school, guest speakers from the US, Africa, Canada
- Enterprise budget or Seed Historian Project – she chose Seed Historian Project, researching a crop, learning the history
- Sow True Seeds – based in Asheville, supporting local seed growers, online seed catalog
- She is growing two seeds for Sow True Seeds: Pink Balsam (an impatien) and Old Joe Clark (a red peanut bean)
- A large percentage of our seeds are controlled by 3 or 4 companies – it shouldn’t be that way.
- What is a half runner bean – a combination of a pole bean and a bush bean
- Old Joe Clark beans – harvested about a pound of seed, really pretty plants, 6-7” long pods started out green then turned magenta as they became ripe.
- Using Old Joe Clark beans – cook, can, or freeze them
- Fava beans and Northern Israel beans date back to about 14,000 years ago
- How beans and corn complement each other
- Runner beans came from central America, half runners from West VA. Popular because of their growing climate and more compact size.
- Old Joe Clark was a comedian who loved to grow beans
- Russ Crow – abeancollectorswindow.com
- Bill Best – heirlooms.org
- How seed school has impacted her life: Raising chickens for eggs feels good, but saving seeds is a bit bigger.
- Her farm: about 5 acres – bees, chickens, dairy goats (more mischief!), about a ¼ to ½ acre garden
- She will always have worms! But they are more personal in NC than they were in Phoenix.
- Why farming?
– She enjoys being outside
– Take vitamins because the food isn’t as healthy as it used to be? Fix the soil instead.
– Why pay to go to the gym when you can farm?
– A way to leave a legacy behind.
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- rainlog.org
- Rainwater harvesting is different in NC than it was in Phoenix
- Gardening discoveries – potatoes have a smell!
- Growing beans has inspired her to want to try eating more types of beans.
As well as:
Her childhood memory – Her mother’s side of the family had farms in KY with a pottery barn, cow pasture, smokehouse.
How to Reach Hassena:
Facebook: Hassena Kassim
Instagrarm: WormWhisperer
UrbanFarm.org/Hassena
