The Utopian Seed Project

10/22/2026

10/20/2026

What Am I?

10/19/2026

This was my first year growing Achocha (Cyclanthera pedata). It's a climbing crop in the squash family with origins in the Andes of South America. It's also known as caigua or slipper gourd.

It's a vigorous climber and sprawled all over the place during the summer. It started flowering mid-season, but despite plenty of ovary-bearing flowers, none of them developed into fruit until very late in the season.

As the nighttime temperatures cooled in September, the ovaries suddenly started developing into small fruits, and I ended up with lots and lots of mini cucumber-like fruit.

The young fruits can be eaten raw, pickled, or cooked, while larger fruits can be deseeded and stuffed. The flavor falls somewhere between cucumber and green pepper. I like them!

Assuming we get mature seed from the largest pods, I would definitely grow them again, hoping to make selections for plants that can successfully produce fruit in our warmer weather.

10/16/2026

A quick walk through the yam harvest at Bellsong Farm in Leicester NC where we have D. alata (ube and white yams) and D. rotundata (West African yams) growing.

10/12/2026

As a devotee of okra in all its glorious forms, I’ve been joking about printing t-shirts that proclaim, EMBRACE THE SLIME, for almost a decade. In a recent article that I wrote for Issue No. 2 of Southlands Magazine, I made the same statement, but this time Boyce Hubolt (the magazine’s founding editor) took the proclamation to heart…

A few months later, the t-shirt is about to become a reality!

Lime-green okra art on a heather green tee that's soft from the first wear.

Bella + Canvas 3001CVC, cotton/poly blend
Unisex retail fit, pre-shrunk
Sizes XS–3XL

This is a pre-order. We're making a limited run based on orders placed by Sunday, October 25. Everything ships in early December, in time for the holidays. All profits directly support Utopian Seed Project and a deeper appreciation of okra!

ORDER LINK: https://www.utopianseed.org/store/p/embrace-the-slime

10/07/2026

Hail Mary have been selling watermelon drinks using watermelons from our Southern SARE trials!! They committed a portion of each sale to supporting the work of Utopian Seed Project.

Here, Kelly is having over $400 to our Culinary Director, Terri. THANK YOU SO MUCH!

The next crop inspired drink fundraiser from Hail Mary will feature yacon in November!!

10/07/2026

The second annual WNC Seed and Plant Swap is just 13 days away. All are welcome to attend on Tuesday, October 20th, from 4-7pm at Stephens-Lee Community Center!

This is a free community gathering full of seeds, stories, and community connections. We are asking folks to REGISTER AHEAD of time via https://givebutter.com/wnc-seed-swap-2026.

William Ritter Song to Seed is a seasoned old-time fiddler, seed-saver, and ballad singer from the mountains of Mitchell County, North Carolina. We're very excited to host William for a short performance during the seed swap.

We'll have seed tables for: Appalachian Growers Seed Collective, Bountiful Cities Herb Collective, Utopian Seed Project, Seeds of Solidarity, Organic Growers School, Cooperativa Tierra Fértil Sow True Seed Sunshine Colelctive, Leicester Library Giving Garden, Spiderweb Acre, Dr. John Wilson Community Garden, NC State University

All are welcome to bring seeds, but attendance is not dependent on having seeds. Come and learn and take some seeds to grow and save next year!

Tell your friends, bring your family, it's going to be fun!

Tracy Hyde