In her garden in Săhăteni, in Buzău county, Rodica Meiroşu grows so many species of plants one might think she is trying to compete with the botanical gardens. She is also the manager of a group called Seeds with Soul, as well as the coordinator of various events held under this slogan. Rodica Meiroşu spoke enthusiastically about the group of people passionate about local varieties:
“This group is made up of people passionate about growing plants. We began with a few friends and then we expanded and began to exchange seeds, everything out of passion. We all have different backgrounds and jobs, including some of us who have studied agriculture at the university, but we are all united by this hobby. We called our group Seeds with Souls because we offer these seeds without asking anything in return. There’s about 700 of us, spread all over the country. The intention wasn’t to have an enormous group, but to bring together people who really want to help and who are willing to donate seeds.”
The only condition for receiving the seeds is to want to plant them, grow them and take care of the plants, Rodica Meiroşu says:
“We focus on local varieties. We collect them from people from different parts of the country. We travel a lot for our events and get to exchange seeds and are trying to get hold of old varieties from older people in the countryside. Apart from local varieties we naturally also grow alien varieties. We are collaborating with many gardeners from abroad, and organise festivals such as the Tomato Festival, where we bring hundreds of varieties of tomatoes.”
We asked Rodica Meiroşu about the plants she grows in her own garden:
“There are so many! My garden is full. I live in Buzău county, which is a wine-making region, so you’re more likely to find vineyards here, but in my garden I grow many vegetables, lots of flowers, herbs, medicinal plants, berries and lots more!”
Hundreds of varieties of tomatoes, dozens of varieties of pepper, as well as mint, hot pepper, lettuce, potatoes, aubergines, broccoli, cauliflower, onions, dozens of ornamental plants and herbs can be found in the garden of Rodica Meiroşu. She explains why she thinks it’s important to grow local varieties:
“It’s important because those old varieties our parents used to grow, such as tomatoes with thin skin and very juicy, are beginning to disappear. Farmers who now grow vegetables in polytunnels have replaced them with hybrid varieties. I believe it is important to preserve the old varieties, with the taste we remember from when we were young. Farmers can keep the seeds and plant them the following year and that way they won’t become extinct.”
Rodica Meiroşu, a passionate plant grower and the manager of the group Seeds with Souls and coordinator of the events held under this slogan made an appeal to vegetable growers:
“I would like to see people in the countryside focus more in local varieties, realise their worth, try to preserve them, for the sake of their health and that of their children. Our group of seeds donors, which is basically a group of volunteers, as we are paying for our own trips, wants to accomplish something: to preserve these varieties and disseminate them as much as possible for them not to become extinct. I would like our group to grow, and to attract people who grow local varieties in their own gardens.”
In her journeys looking for local varieties, Rodica Meiroşu travelled all over the country, including monasteries, where she found many plant growers interested in rare varieties.