Tomatoes never betray.
In a world with approximately 7,000 varieties of tomatoes, only 2% of them are currently cultivated. Once, all seeds were a common heritage, shared by everyone. Today, we are returning to this model through initiatives like “Open Source Seed” and “Guerrilla Gardening.” Why not become a guerrilla gardener yourself?
Rebuilding the Stream
Currently, seven companies control 70% of the world’s seed market. Monsanto, in particular, has systematically dominated the seed market since the 1990s and holds patents for the majority of genetically modified plants. This not only entails economic control by corporations and the loss of biodiversity but also signifies the closure of seed cycles (effectively obtaining patents through breeding hybrids). Farmers have become dependent on corporations without achieving self-sufficiency. In response, the Open Source Seed Initiative established in Minnesota in 2012 and AGRECOL’s OpenSourceSeeds have emerged, utilizing open-source rules from the digital field. Similar to other open-source initiatives, these allow for multi-variety cultivation and collaborative seed exchanges. This is an alternative for farmers to escape the traps. In open-source systems, new varieties can be created through crossbreeding, but patents cannot be obtained.
“The seeds we use determine what we eat and the diversity of our food. Access to seeds is more critical than ever, and cultivating many seeds and varieties without patents is essential to confront the loss of biodiversity. Escaping from the current agricultural model is necessary due to issues like soil erosion and climate change. Instead, adopting a sustainable model that respects regional conditions, applied and decentralized, empowers people and farmers. This is the opposite of the current agricultural model, which involves planting uniform fields of very few crop varieties, the basis of our nutrition. Such agricultural forms may be highly profitable, but considering the challenges posed by climate change, it is irresponsible and imposes a heavy burden on future generations,” wrote Barbara Unmüßig, President of the Heinrich Böll Foundation, in an article titled “Fair Seeds” published in ‘Politische Ökologie’ in October 2017.
Tomato Guerrilla
Roberta Charneca is an enthusiast of permaculture gardening and a zero-waste advocate. She grows ecological and natural vegetables, conducts educational workshops for children and adults, and spreads the joy of cultivating plants in balconies and windows in urban areas. As a therapist and TRE provider (specialized in treating and preventing trauma, tension, and stress-related disorders), she interacts with children. She has recently started activities targeting people with physical disabilities, hemiplegia, or wheelchair users at Caritas. “I decided to offer them garden therapy. Gardens have three or more dimensions, and one of them is time. Taking care of plants allows you to observe the changing seasons, the time flowers bloom, the time fruits bear, insects, the smell of the garden, individuality, and more. It has a significant impact on people.”
Roberta grew up in the village of Latowice near Wroclaw. Her grandparents had old varieties of seeds, and some were inherited by their granddaughter. Even now, she shares the Polish variety called “Independence Beans,” brought by her grandmother from the eastern borderlands after the war. Currently living in Warsaw, she utilizes her balcony and grows plants in friends’ gardens and community gardens. As part of guerrilla gardening, she planted tomatoes at the entrance of her apartment.
Tomatoes are a crossbreed of her favorite fruits. Yes, tomatoes are fruits (technically berries), but they are classified as vegetables for culinary purposes. Tomato seeds are robust. “Creating your own tomato variety is easy,” says Roberta. She has 400 varieties in her seed bank. “To create a new variety, prepare two flowering varieties, collect pollen from one and apply it to the pistil of the other flower. This creates the F1 generation, a crossbreed of two established varieties. Then, through selection, a new stable variety is born. You can crossbreed as you wish, considering factors like decorative appearance, leaf density, fruit color, nutritional value, and taste. We save seeds of satisfactory fruits and just eat other fruits.”
Gardeners are enthusiastic about online exchanges. They are also actively sharing observation results and genes of unrecorded seeds. DNA encapsulated in particles still travels worldwide through envelopes, letters, and packages.
The Garden as a Battlefield
Producers take pride in their varieties. Tom Wagner, an American tomato enthusiast, created famous striped tomatoes like “Green Zebra” and red-black tomatoes like “Clackamas Blueberry.” Roberta, on the other hand, is the creator of pink tomato variety “Pink Snow” and a tomato with white-haired leaves called “Yeti.” The latter survived frost but did not bear fruit. She also attempted to cross Brussels sprouts with kale and peas because she met a woman who created a red-podded pea variety. “It must have been delicious. Snails ate them all overnight.”
“The garden is a constant struggle, always threatened by wild rabbits, mice, and snails. In the city, there is no space, so you need to look for dwarf varieties or ornamental cocktail tomato varieties that produce round fruits. There’s no choice but to deal with it. Tomatoes are thriving. Producers say it’s a plant that doesn’t engage in inbreeding depression and can pollinate for generations. Inbreeding depression refers to the decrease in biological fitness caused by inbreeding. However, tomatoes don’t care about that. And they even succeed with crossbreeding!”
Into the Bottle
Cultured on the sugar diet
Setting up one room in their apartment as a laboratory, Martin Agopsovič and Martina Bunda placed a large container that became the mother of kombucha at night, making strange noises. “It was as if we were living with dolphins,” they say.
Martin Agopsovič and Martina Bunda brew live kombucha, calling it “Wastna.” In Kashubian, “Wastna” means a woman treated with special respect. Martina, originally from Kartuzy, loves Kashubia and the “coldness of Kashubia” (as mentioned in her novel ‘Nieczułość’ nominated for the Nike Literary Award and winner of several awards). “If there were no war, Kashubia might have become the birthplace of Polish kombucha. The mother culture, a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast (SCOBY), cultivated in a hut in Pomerania, could not survive the war without sugar as food,” says Martina. Their Wastna is brewed along the Ukra River near Warsaw. The kombucha mother feeds on sweet tea, producing valuable substances like vitamin B, C, and folic acid in the process.
Martin was the first to learn about kombucha. Originally interested in mental growth, he practices Zen. After the death of his master Małgorzata Braunek, he underwent intensive training in the United States. Living in a center near the village of Asheville in North Carolina, he lived in the mountains. Physical labor is part of Zen practice, including conscious and dedicated manual work such as sweeping and floor washing. Taking care of kombucha turned out to be a perfect match for meditation and this simple practice. Sunya, a teacher at the Windhorse Zen Community, gave Martin his first mother. It’s a gift he still cherishes.
“Kombucha gives me a connection to life and nature,” he declares. “Although it’s bacteria and yeast and not a body, standing with a knife over the kombucha mother feels strangely special. It’s both like a brain and a body. We don’t eat meat, so we hesitated to chop up the mother. There are scars, but we found out it regenerates and returns to its original size. The kombucha mother acts intelligently. When it thickens, it creates holes to allow oxygen to reach the liquid below.”
Mysterious Fungus
Kombucha is a young vinegar fermented from sweet tea. The tea can be green, white, or black. It is mixed with a specific “tea fungus,” also known as a mushroom, which has no actual relation to mushrooms. Among the various bacteria and yeast strains in this symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast (SCOBY), Acetobacter and Gluconobacter are the most common. Gluconacetobacter xylinus, Acetobacter genus vinegar bacteria, Acetobacter aceti, and Gluconobacter oxidans are predominant in vinegar bacteria. Typically, it takes about two weeks to ferment tea and sugar into kombucha with little residual sugar, but during the summer, fermentation can occur in as little as five days depending on the temperature, requiring caution. Kombucha can be stored in the refrigerator, but its taste changes slightly. Extended storage makes it more vinegar-like. Commercially available kombucha is often pasteurized, losing its unique and lively charm. Of course, if you make your healthy drink, respecting the wild nature of kombucha, it’s a different story.
The Unique Combination of Nutrients in Kombucha Provides the Following Effects:
– Boosts metabolism and supports weight loss.
– Aids in fat burning, helping dissolve and remove deposited cholesterol.
– Purifies toxins in the body.
– Stimulates the immune system, supporting it with natural antibiotics and antiseptics.
– Supports the digestive system.
– Suppresses the growth of harmful bacteria, beneficial for overall health.
– Supports the function of endocrine glands, rejuvenating the entire body and improving energy levels.
– Effective against stress and insomnia.
– Delays the progression of many diseases.
Kombucha has been extensively studied by many research institutions, confirming its health-promoting effects. While some opinions may question these effects, there is evidence of a description in Chinese literature from around 220 BC during the Jin Dynasty, mentioning a fermented tea drink that is pure and full of vitality. In recent years, kombucha has gained immense popularity in the West, captivated by ancient beverage and preserved food manufacturing techniques. However, industrially produced kombucha loses its characteristics and unique lively charm. Of course, when making your healthy drink, respecting the wild nature of kombucha is a different story.
