#geteokosomin

[seedkeeping]

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See my last post for info - this is purely for the sounds and vicarious feels...saving seeds is very tactile and grounding. #geteokosomin #cucurbitamaxima #seedsaving #seedkeeping (at South West Philadelphia)

[seedkeeping]

Gete Okosomin (Cucurbita maxima) - a delicious long-storing winter squash from some Miami elders in Indiana who’ve been caring for this variety for perhaps thousands of years. It can also be sun-dried and stored - I gotta try that this year! It was named by Winona LaDuke (means Cool Old Squash in Anishinaabe) at White Earth Land Recovery Project, which is where my seeds came from and where I will send them back. My friend Zach coordinates their seed library and said he could use them. These are from the last 2 of 6 fruit I got this year - I made notes on their qualities for selection purposes. #geteokosomin #cucurbitamaxima #coololdsquash #seedsaving #seedkeeping (at South West Philadelphia)

[seedkeeping]

This is Jonah and me in the "squash lounge" with a bunch of bean seeds he grew for me at his educational farm in Brattleboro, VT. I sent him a small packet of each variety - mostly from 2009/2010! Fun facts about Jonah: he made the Queer Farmer Film Project and went to high school with my sister. #beanseeds #rarebeans #queerfarmer #geteokosomin #squashlounge #bottlegourd (at South West Philadelphia)

[seedkeeping]

Nighttime with Squashes, Watermelons, Luffas, Bottle Gourds, Coconut, and Kitty. #seedkeepersathome #goodnight #geteokosomin (at Southwest Philly)

[seedkeeping]

We are both just so happy about this Gete Okosomin harvest. The flesh is so fragrant and melon-like (in flavor) for a winter squash. It was named by Winona LaDuke, one of my heroes, and means Cool Old Squash in the Anishinaabe language. Despite the stories going around, the seeds of this squash were not found in a clay pot and dated to be 800 years old. That was another, less tasty squash. This one is so amazing, delicious, and able to store so well (low carbon food!) precisely because it has been cared for year after year by the Miami people in Indiana for countless generations and generations. For the full story, see the White Earth Land Recovery Project’s Indigenous Seed Library page. Also, please order seeds from them to support their work - I was told that the Anishinaabe elders at White Earth prefer the seeds not be commodified, so I encourage folks to donate to their important seed keeping work and get seeds that way. Photo by Debbie Warden! #geteokosomin #cucurbitamaxima #seedkeeping #whiteearthlandrecoveryproject #whiteearthreservation #indigenousseedlibrary #coololdsquash (at Newtown Square, Pennsylvania)

[seedkeeping]

Update on the Gete Okosomin origin story! 

First and foremost, please read it from the source: Squash Story from the White Earth Land Recovery Project, on Anishinaabe land, northern Minnesota, posted 11/17/2015. 

As many of you know, the seed for this Cucurbita maxima had been shared with Winona LaDuke, one of my heros who founded the White Earth Land Recovery Project, and she named it Gete Okosomin meaning “cool old squash” in Anishinaabe. The story that Winona received was that seeds for this squash had been found in a clay ball on Menomonee territory in Wisconsin and carbon dated to 800 years old. Apparently, the squash has a very different journey from that - one which I find even more beautiful and valuable, partially because it is true, and partially because it speaks to the power of countless generations of caring hands to shape the food that nourishes and delights us. And this squash is truly delightful. I will grow it every year if I can. For the updated story, again, please read it directly from White Earth.

Some of the many recent news stories about this squash have continued the game of telephone by changing the story even further, and often have not mentioned the role of White Earth Land Recovery Project (where seed keepers tend to this seed and this story) or Winona LaDuke (who named the squash). Some of these stories link to my blog, which has caused a skyrocketing of requests for this seed, which is understandable. Because I started with one good seed, and I sent back most of the seeds I saved last year to the Indigenous Seed Library, I do not have extra seed to share. Also, this is sacred seed and part of a legacy that is not mine. Unless I get a sense from indigenous elders that they would like this seed to be widely distributed or sold, I will carefully and respectfully grow this seed and share it back with the seed keepers I received them from.

If you would like to help preserve Gete Okosomin, Anishinaabe crops, farming systems, language, and culture, and of course the land itself - please donate to the folks who do it best:  White Earth Land Recovery Project.