A portion of our annual plants are left in place to dry up, set seed, and die back. A garden that values only living plants is a denial of reality. The story of a plant continues long after moisture stops coursing up through its roots, stems, and leaves. As the plant dies and dries, seeds hang out in the sun and wind, gradually ready to disperse, as the desiccated plant material breaks down to the ground creating mulch and cover for new life. The resulting complex seasonal landscape welcomes death into the center of the garden as the foundation for new life to come up beneath it. We see this in our Northern Californian landscapes that turn from bright April greens to warm October ochres. Throughout the summer and fall we follow the birds who tell us which seeds are ready, as we watch the feeding frenzy migrate from plant to plant.

This is not a careful and precise commercial seed mix — rather a crazy reckless cacophonous variety, gradually collected by hand week by week, seed by seed. It includes crossbred mystery varieties, inert materials, and seeds with widely divergent suggested sowing seasons and methods. But we appreciate the nature-like casualness, echoing the wild careless broadcast of extravagant seed abundance that most plants perform — some of which germinate, take root, mature, and go on to set seed themselves.

We hope you keep the story going and the cycle spinning by saving your own seeds to disseminate, sharing with friends, neighbors, and community.