Seeds Continued from Page 3
While the farm prioritizes partnerships with land managers for large-scale resto- ration projects, it also sells seeds for 150 plant species on a retail website for people who want to plant native species in their home gardens. And it provides farmers with plants that make good habitat for bees and other pollinators. Hedgerow Farms, which takes its name from the rows of trees and shrubs that run along the edges of its fields, is itself an ex- ample of land restoration. Those rows, in- spired by hedgerows Anderson observed decades ago in Kenya, create a corridor that stretches from the nearby Berryessa hills to the farm, transforming irrigation ditches into verdant creek beds where fox- es, deer and rabbits scamper. The hedge- rows also harbor beneficial predators that provide pest control for the farm. “They’re basically highways of habi- tat for birds and mammals and insects,” Michaels said. Today, when collections experts Sánchez and García hit the road to gather seeds from across the state, they witness the farm’s legacy in the landscape. “It gives me a lot of pride,” Sánchez said, “that I can drive by some sites where we’ve planted and see how the flowers are doing.” (Caleb Hampton is an assistant editor of Ag Alert. He may be contacted at champton@cfbf.com. This article first appeared in the Summer 2024 issue of California Bountiful ® magazine.)
with Hedgerow Farms because “they were the only company that provided what we wanted,” Martinelli said. One of the keys to the farm’s success, Michaels said, is the knowledge and expe- rience of its collections experts. Originally from Chiapas, Mexico, Manolo Sánchez was working in Sutter County’s apple, peach and prune orchards in 2010, harvest- ing fruit and doing other traditional farm work, when his friend, Alejandro García, invited him to work at Hedgerow Farms. Since then, Sánchez and García have crisscrossed California, going as far north as Humboldt and as far south as Bakersfield, trekking through hills and creek beds to collect samples of na- tive grasses and wildflowers to plant at Hedgerow Farms. “They’re some of the best botanists in the state,” Michaels said. The farm pays close attention to the genetics of each species, which is tied to a particular location, microclimate and soil type. “Every species we grow has a place it was originally collected from. We generally try to return the species back to that area,” Michaels said. “If we collect seed from a poppy from the Central Valley, we put the seed we produce from it back into Central Valley restoration projects.” In 2016, Martinelli of Fish and Wildlife began sourcing seeds from Hedgerow Farms for a restoration project in the
On 300 acres in Yolo County near Winters, Hedgerow Farms grows native wildflowers and grasses. Fields are planted with seeds collected from wildlands to replenish California’s natural spaces.
Knoxville Wildlife Area, a nature preserve in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Napa, Lake, Colusa and Yolo counties. The wildlife area is home to deer, bobcats and golden eagles, and draws hunters and other nature-goers. “There was an exceedingly bad weed problem in the wildlife area,” Martinelli said, referring to swaths of land taken over by the invasive yellow star thistle. “It was a challenge for wildlife to get through.” Fish and Wildlife is in the process of replacing 100 acres of thistle with native
plants such as purple needlegrass and wild rye. “It was important for us to grow na- tives that were genetically similar to what should be in the wildlife area,” she said. “And that’s what Hedgerow offers. They collect the seeds themselves in the differ- ent lands and watersheds.” “So much of the success of restoration depends on what species you plant and that depends on what is being made available through native seed farms,” said Michaels, who earned a Ph.D. in ecology from the University of California, Davis.
ENTER YOUR PHOTO! Open now through September 22
Prizes 1st place $1,000 2nd place $500 3rd place $250 People’s Choice $100 Honorable Mentions $50 (six winners)
Enter up to fi ve high-resolution photos for the general contest and one photo for the People’s Choice category at cfbf.com/photocontest. Submit photos of fresh food, rural scenery, animals, crops, harvests, life, work, family or any inspiring photo captured on the farm or ranch.
Budding Artists (ages 13 & younger) 1st place $250 2nd place $100
Voting for the People’s Choice category will be open from Sept. 24–30.
The contest is open to amateur photographers who are Farm Bureau members. Participants who are not Farm Bureau members can visit cfbf.com/join to learn about becoming a member. Go to cfbf.com/photocontest for contest rules.
2023 1st place winner Cayden Pricolo, Merced County
8 Ag Alert July 10, 2024
Powered by FlippingBook