{"title":"Whistle Down Farm","description":"Whistle Down Farm is located along Taghkanic Creek on Mohican land in the Hudson River Valley of New York. Eileen and Nicholas have been farming here for the past 9 years and grow certified organic berries, vegetables, and medicinal herbs. They work to nourish the community and foster relationships around food and connection to the land. Find out more on their website \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.whistledownfarm.com\" target=\"_blank\"\u003ewww.whistledownfarm.com\u003c\/a\u003e and on instagram \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/whistledownfarm\/?hl=en\" target=\"_blank\"\u003e@whistledownfarm\u003c\/a\u003e.\n\u003cdiv class=\"SGSpiceGallery\" id=\"SGSpiceGallery10320\"\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"grey-speckled-palapye","title":"Grey Speckled Palapye","description":"\u003cp\u003eGrey Speckled Palapye is a beautiful purple-tinted cowpea from a market in Palapye, Botswana that happens to produce well in cooler, wet climates like the far Northeast, Midwest, and the Northwest US. This bushy plant grows a couple feet tall and produces a nice amount of pods packed with seeds for fresh or dry eating.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn Botswana, cowpeas and beans are called \u003cem\u003edinawa. \u003c\/em\u003eThe \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.fondazioneslowfood.com\/en\/ark-of-taste-slow-food\/morogo-wa-dinawa\/\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eSlow Food Ark of Taste\u003c\/a\u003e lists \u003ci\u003eMorogo wa Dinawa, \u003c\/i\u003eor the dried, preserved leaves of cowpeas to be a culturally important and endangered food in Botswana. Also eaten fresh, the iron-rich cowpea leaves are blanched and squeezed into balls that are dried in the sun, and later reconstituted in water and cooked (like spinach) into porridge or stews.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWest Africa is where this species is most widely grown, and is likely where this species was first domesticated. From there, it has traveled the world nourishing Africa, the African diaspora, and beyond.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAlso known as: Gray Speckled Palapye\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDays to maturity:\u003c\/strong\u003e 75-90\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSeeds per pack:\u003c\/strong\u003e 55-60\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eGermination rate:\u003c\/strong\u003e 66% on 01\/12\/2024 \u003cem\u003e(\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/trueloveseeds.sbs\/pages\/faq\/#germinationtesting\" title=\"About Truelove Seeds Germination Testing\" target=\"_blank\"\u003ebelow standard\u003c\/a\u003e)\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003ePlanting \/ harvesting notes\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDirect sow southern peas safely after frost, any time between late May and mid-July. Full sun, plenty of room and airflow. Thin to 2-4\" in row, but give at least 12\" between rows. Wonderful picked fresh and still lovely once dried to where the seed rattles inside the pod (and much easier to shell!)\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eSeed keeping notes\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSouthern peas are self-pollinating, though it is best to isolate different varieties of \u003cem\u003eV. unguiculata\u003c\/em\u003e (including black-eyed peas, southern peas, cowpeas, and long beans) at least 20 feet, if not much farther to avoid unwanted cross-pollination. At our farm, we give them a few hundred feet of isolation between different varieties. Allow pods to dry fully into a brown crispy state. This is when they are ready to harvest for seed. If necessary, lay them out to dry a little longer in their pods.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Whistle Down Farm","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":21477548687440,"sku":"VIG-009","price":5.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/2406\/3467\/products\/Grey_Speckled_Palapye.jpg?v=1571609439"},{"product_id":"yarrow","title":"Yarrow","description":"\u003cp\u003eFlowering perennial native to much of the Northern hemisphere with low-growing feathery leaves. Leaves and umbelliferous flowers are used in medicine.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDays to maturity:\u003c\/strong\u003e 120-130\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSeeds per pack:\u003c\/strong\u003e 175\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eGermination rate:\u003c\/strong\u003e 98% on 08\/06\/2025\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Whistle Down Farm","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":21870992687184,"sku":"HERB-035","price":5.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/2406\/3467\/products\/BBR_seedcrops_Alchillea-millefolium_1.jpg?v=1571609442"},{"product_id":"waltham-butternut-squash","title":"Waltham Butternut Squash","description":"\u003cp\u003eVigorous and dependable with abundant 8-9\" fruits with sweet, orange flesh. Terrific for baking. Properly stored, the fruits are great keepers. The very hard stems on these plants make them particularly resistant to squash vine borers. Waltham Butternut was an All American Selection in 1970.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis variety was bred in the 1940s by Charles Leggett of Stow, Massachusetts, who shared it with the agricultural research station in Waltham, Massachusetts where it was further selected and refined by Professor Robert Young. Mr. Leggett was an insurance man, and happened to breed one of the best winter squashes out there in his free time. He is said to have named it because it is \"smooth as butter, sweet as a nut.\" The land where he grew this squash is now an 18-hole golf course called Butternut Farm Golf Club. Thank you Mr. Leggett for your amazing work! It is a hole in one.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDays to maturity:\u003c\/strong\u003e 85-105\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSeeds per pack:\u003c\/strong\u003e 30\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eGermination rate:\u003c\/strong\u003e 89% on 03\/17\/2025\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003ePlanting \/ harvesting notes\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDirect sow in warm soil after the last frost, or seed indoors 2-3 weeks beforehand and transplant. Plant 3 seeds per hill spaced several feet apart, or seed in rows, one plant every 2-3 feet. Vines grow at least 10' if not much longer, so allow them space to sprawl. If grown in corn, you may need to train them so they won't pull it down! Avoid downy mildew by watering only at the base of the plant (not on the leaves!). Harvest when the stem begins to turn brown and woody and the fruit becomes hard, leaving a couple\/few inches of stem. Cure in a dry or sunny place for a week, and then store in a cool (45-50 degrees) room for up to 5 months (however, keep an eye on it and use it at earliest sign of softening if not before).\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eSeed keeping notes\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSquash is insect pollinated and requires about 1\/2 a mile of isolation from other varieties of the same species, which in this case is \u003cem\u003eC. moschata\u003c\/em\u003e. The seeds will be fully mature on any squash when the stem of the fruit has turned brown and woody, so when you eat your squash, the seeds should also be ready for harvest. Separate the seeds from the flesh, rinse them, and dry them on a screen or paper product away from direct sunlight in a ventilated place. The plumpest and hardest seeds will be most viable.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Whistle Down Farm","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":39325479698590,"sku":"CUC-019","price":5.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/2406\/3467\/products\/WalthamButternutSquash_sq.jpg?v=1614890076"},{"product_id":"lobelia","title":"Lobelia","description":"\u003cp\u003eA small, delicate wildflower in the bellflower family, growing anywhere from 5-39 inches in height. Native throughout what is now the Eastern United States, Southeastern Canada, and Westward into the Great Plains region.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThese tiny herbaceous plants grow as annuals or biennials, with long, toothed oval leaves, hairy stems and stalks ending in clusters of flowers ranging from violet to light blue, or white with faint blue spots. Native habitat ranges from fields to open woodlands - this plant prefers part to full sun and rich, moist soil. Blooms from midsummer, June-July, through autumn, Sep-Oct. After flowering, stalks develop tiny, balloon-like seed pods - inspiration for their species name \"inflata,\" meaning inflated, \"to swell or puff up\" in Latin.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAlthough small, Lobelia is powerful. Used for centuries by many Indigenous nations as medicine, it is a low-dose herb with strong purgative properties, outlined in one of its common names, \"pukeweed.\" Historically used as an emetic, antispasmodic, and ceremonial herb. Contains the chemical \"Lobeline,\" thought to have similar effects to that of nicotine - you may see it as a low-dose ingredient in herbalist's smoking cessation blends, to curb nicotine cravings. Not recommended for casual use, can be toxic.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDays to maturity:\u003c\/strong\u003e From spring planting, 60-80 days to flower. From overwintering, flowers in second year.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSeeds per pack:\u003c\/strong\u003e 400\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eGermination rate:\u003c\/strong\u003e 50% on 6\/28\/2023\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003ePlanting \/ harvesting notes\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSow in spring or autumn to overwinter. Light-dependent germinator. Sow seed on surface of soil, tamp, and keep evenly moist until germination. Can take between 1-3 weeks to germinate in warm soils. As a wild plant, this herb can be challenging to cultivate. Prefers growing in part to full sun and rich, moist soil. Blooms from midsummer, June-July, through autumn, September-October.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eSeed keeping notes\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSeeds are ready when the seed pods are inflated and a bit dried out.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Whistle Down Farm","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43550648991982,"sku":"HERB-057","price":5.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/2406\/3467\/products\/Lobelia-WDF.jpg?v=1664229496"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/2406\/3467\/collections\/WhistleDownFarm_sq.jpg?v=1619720565","url":"https:\/\/trueloveseeds.sbs\/collections\/whistle-down-farm.oembed","provider":"Truelove Seeds","version":"1.0","type":"link"}