#Conservation of nature and environment#Ecological farming#Plant-based diet#Education, science and research
About the association
The non-profit association "Kulturpflanzenentwicklung Obergrashof" is part of the biodynamic Obergrashof farm organization in Dachauer Moos. In close cooperation with the Obergrashof nursery, the association is responsible for seed work on site. This includes the maintenance and preservation of proven seed-resistant varieties, the breeding of new varieties with good taste and high food quality as well as research into the inner qualities of the plant.
Seed is a cultural asset - it belongs in the hands of society as a whole and not in the hands of a few large corporations. Seeds are the basis of all plant growth and the foundation of our nutrition. We want to nurture and develop the diversity of food plants that nourish and sustain us - with respect for the plant as a dignified being.
Why we fund
Seeds are a cultural asset! Generations of farmers and gardeners have created our current diversity of food plants by selecting and reproducing particularly beautiful, tasty and resistant plants and by freely exchanging seeds with each other. The diversity of cultivated plants as well as free access to varieties are currently under massive threat: profit-oriented conventional breeding relies on high-yielding varieties of fewer species as well as legal and biotechnological tools to contain them.
We want to counter this trend with a sustainable alternative. We support initiatives that maintain and preserve proven old varieties and develop new varieties through research that are characterized by unrestricted reproducibility, good taste and high food quality - for human nutrition on a physical, mental and spiritual level. The breeding focus is also on the suitability of varieties for today's commercial vegetable cultivation. Developed varieties are made available to hobby and commercial gardeners for free cultivation and reproduction.
PROJECT DETAILS
What we fund
Picture: Obergrashof-Greenhouse
The basis of successful breeding work is high-quality seed. Obergrashof e.V. relies on protected cultivation under glass or foil for the overwintering of seed bearers of biennial crops (e.g. kohlrabi, carrots, cauliflower...) and for the flowering and seed ripening of our elite plants. A greenhouse for the seeds of tomorrow - that was Obergrashof's goal for 2022! The very dilapidated foil tunnels had had their day and so a new home for the seed bearers and elite plants was to be created.
With the support of several foundations - including the Stiftung Zukunft jetzt! - and with a successful crowdfunding campaign with over 300 supporters as well as direct loans from the farm environment, this goal has now been realized. In autumn, a partially used glass house with a total area of 1,500m2 was built, which is tailored to the needs of Obergrashof: There are several insulated compartments, sufficient ridge height, good ventilation and a concreted work area for seed threshing and cleaning. The shell is already in place - the next building blocks are concreting, irrigation and electrics.
The first carrot seeds were planted in the new greenhouse at the beginning of April 2023. Cauliflower and fennel will follow.
Picture: Meadow before construction begins
Picture: When pouring the point foundations
Picture: Strip foundations
Picture: Scaffolding
Picture: Roof structure
Picture: Preparing the water butt
Picture: The first carrot seedlings are planted
Enthusiasm for the complete experience of a vegetable plant between the concentration in the seed and the expansion in the annual growth and the question of the quality of our food plants - that is what drives me forward.
