Heritage Corn: Planting, Challenges, and Educating from the Family Plot Perspective
Figure 1. 24 pounds of Avati Moroti Mita corn seed were collected in 2022. (Photo by Gerardo Morales)
This winter, Northern Indiana farmer, Zuleyja Prieto, finished her SARE farmer rancher grant that focused on planting and preserving heritage corn varieties (Figure 1). Prieto worked with her family and local farmer collaborators on heritage corn in a family plot for two years. A nearby GMO corn plot meant that Prieto had to track pollination timing to avoid GMO “contamination.” She had the seeds tested for the spread of GMOs or genetic material over two years. Genetic testing showed that her late planting strategy to avoid cross-pollination of adjacent fields of GMO corn kept Prieto’s seed at undetectable levels of GMO. These culturally significant, heritage corn seeds are important to their community, so intergenerational work and community engagement were integral to the project (Figure 2). This aspect of the project was important to Prieto, who said, “Encouraging farmers to hold space for cultural and ceremonial practices adds value and intention to our farming practices.” The entire report, with photos and details, can be found here.
Figure 2. Seed Blessing Ceremony. (Photo by Gerardo Morales)
Resources
Heritage Corn: Planting, Challenges and Educating from the Family Plot Perspective