Alan Bishop seeds

I am very proud to announce that Secret Seed Cartel will be the exclusive vendor for Alan Bishop seed varieties. Alan is the breeder of two of my favorite varieties of tomatoes; Jack White and Absinthe. Here is Alan's bio:

Alan Bishop and Kimberly Ratts

Alan has run Bishops Homegrown, an ecologically managed sustainable farm in Pekin Indiana with roots in his family dating back to the 1940s since 2004 alongside Kimberly Ratts. As an outgrowth of his interest in developing local food sheds Alan began pursuing heirloom seeds both locally and abroad through his Homegrown Goodness forum and blog, trialling thousands of varieties for taste, flavor, productivity, and suitability to low input agriculture, when existing varieties proved unsuitable for current methods and environmental conditions Alan turned to population breeding in order to develop new landrace type crops, an act which at the time to seed purists seemed heretical but has proved reliable, productive, and profitable. Many of the earliest introductions were shared with other like minded breeders through his previous efforts with his own Face of the earth seed collective,those genetics now make up the foundation stock for localized landraces worldwide. Alan has been interviewed and honored by Association Kokopelli for his work, has written for local, national, and international publications, has taught master gardeners classes and maintains connections with breeders and farmers worldwide, as well he finds secondary employment as an agricultural advisor. In recent years he has stepped away from his seed list to focus on honing and increasing his seed stock in preparation for what he sees as the rough road ahead for all of us as well as turning his attention to his local community where he is a co-founder, current president, and former vice president of Washington County Artisans and Farmers market, a volunteer miller and distiller and reenact or at the historic Becks Mill and president of Old Settlers Days where he represents the distiller and yeoman farmer. Some of Alans previous works have filled particular niches and gained small cult followings. A few varieties of notoriety include Absinthe tomato, Jack white tomatoes, and Astronomy Domine sweet corn.

Secret Seed Cartel has become Alan's choice of vendor to release new landrace varieties from his work as they become available. The seed you will find here has not been commercially available for two years and never in its current form. The landraces here are highly genetically diverse and particularly hone to low input agriculture in the wider Ohio Valley. Phenotypes will tend to vary (sometimes drastically) from plant to plant but the genetic diversity within will allow the seedsaver to select for those best adapted to their cultural and environmental conditions and culinary use. This years selection is limited but more will follow. ~Alan Bishop

Please feel free to go to the store and take a look at Alan's offerings. Here's to good gardening.

secretseedcartel.com Go to the shop tab on the home page to see Alan's varieties.