Tucson, Patagonia: The Good Seeds
by Karyn Zoldan on Jul. 26, 2012, under Desert Locavore
NS/S Farm Tour
Starting Friday July 27, Native Seeds/SEARCH is starting behind the scenes public tours of the Conservation Center in Tucson and Conservation Farm in Patagonia.
Tours happen on the second and fourth Fridays of the month. At the Conservation Center, the tour will begin at 10 a.m. At the Conservation Farm, the tour will being at 5 p.m.
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All tours last one hour. The suggested donation is $10 or for NS/S members, the tour is free. Please pay by cash or check only, no credit cards.
Tours at the Conservation Center provide a rare opportunity to explore a state-of-the-art seed bank facility. Visitors will see firsthand the work that goes into preserving a collection of nearly 2,000 indigenous Southwestern seeds at one of the world’s foremost regional seed conservation organizations.
NS/S Conservation Center
3584 E. River Rd.
Tucson, AZ 85718
Tours at the 60-acre Conservation Farm in Patagonia offer a direct experience of native seed conservation in the field. Depending on the season, visitors might witness the processes of hand-pollinating corn and squash, threshing and winnowing beans, or combine harvesting heirloom wheat.
NS/S Conservation Farm
45 San Antonio Rd.
Patagonia, AZ 85624
Directions to farm:
From Tucson, take I-10 east for 25 miles and exit at Highway 83, the Sonoita/Patagonia turnoff. In the town of Sonoita, turn west (right) toward Patagonia onto Highway 82. After 12 miles, look for the Patagonia sign. Take the next left onto San Antonio Road. The sign above the entrance reads Red Mountain Ranch. Drive across the wash. The large, green barn will be on the right.
(Photo: Courtesy Native Seeds/SEARCH)
