Between snow squalls, our friend Trevor (@larkinandtrevor) stopped by this week as we were making flavor selections for the next generation of our Dulcinea carrot and LOOK WHAT HE MADE!
(I especially can’t deal with how he captured the spirit of Davi, one of our two mini-Aussie mutts!)
Okay, but what’s going on?
Carrots quickly revert back to their wildly bitter and pine-y ancestry, so we taste every single root of every single generation. Nearly one thousand of them! We’ve been especially choosy with Dulcinea, our new Fruition-bred variety, selecting (among other traits) for seriously exceptional flavor. What else matters, in the end?
So yes, we harvested the carrots and tucked them in our root cellar, soil still on to optimize their storage. To taste them, we wash the bottom few inches of each root and then slice away, cutting on a bias so each root (marvelously called ‘stecklings’ when they’re for seed rather than eating…!) is ready for re-planting in spring.
All the roots with great flavor are now back in the root cellar, waiting for spring to re-grow and produce the next generation of Dulcinea’s seed. The roots that didn’t make the cut got cut further (!) and are now fermenting in a ten-gallon crock, becoming more delicious as I write <3
If you’d love to learn more about Dulcinea, enjoy our blog exploring deeper facets of her development as well as this podcast, a delightful conversation between many key collaborators (who are also dear friends!) who just love carrots, seeds & the stories that nourish us all.
Friends, despite the chaos of the 21st century, the presence and power of friends, seeds, stories and tools to share what we love with one another continues to nourish me in ways calories can’t begin to describe.
Trevor, thank you for shining your remarkable light on the humble, dirty, and delicious work that we do!
We see and love you, too <3
What else will we see a little differently through the eyes of a friend today?
Sow Seeds & Sing Songs,
and the Many Beings of Fruition