Without seeds, there is no food, no growing things to sustain us. 

Seeds are part of an eternal cycle of sprouting, growing, yielding, harvesting, preserving, and planting. 

North Circle Seeds Farm in Vergas, Minnesota cultivates dozens of organic seeds for gardens and farms throughout the upper Midwest. Led by Zachary Paige, North Circle Seeds (NCS) commits daily to creating an ecologically diverse, equitable, and inclusive food system. “We are a small company focused on adapting seeds to our area and stewarding different varieties that other companies don’t carry,” states Rachael Roisum, a longtime volunteer at the farm. 

Without seeds, there is no food, no growing things to sustain us. 

Seeds are part of an eternal cycle of sprouting, growing, yielding, harvesting, preserving, and planting. 

North Circle Seeds Farm in Vergas, Minnesota cultivates dozens of organic seeds for gardens and farms throughout the upper Midwest. Led by Zachary Paige, North Circle Seeds (NCS) commits daily to creating an ecologically diverse, equitable, and inclusive food system. “We are a small company focused on adapting seeds to our area and stewarding different varieties that other companies don’t carry,” states Rachael Roisum, a longtime volunteer at the farm. 

NCS produces dozens of regionally-adapted, certified organic seeds. They sell seeds by the packet, ranging in quantity from 25 to 200 depending on the plant. The farm specializes in hard neck garlic, growing about 12,000 heads a year. Some of their specialty peppers, many originating from Mexico, now add flavor-packed bursts to the farm’s signature hot sauce. Popcorn and garlic salt are available for immediate gratification while you wait for your seeds to sprout. 

When asked what motivates him, Zachary explained how NCS seeks seeds that grow well in northern climates, are flavorful, and high yielding enough to be economically viable for a farm. “Our customers know when they buy our seeds that they’re getting something reliable that is not only unique and rare, but also actually can be used as food. I love hearing what people cook with their friends and family.” 

Collaboration with diverse Midwestern communities to increase access to culturally-important foods through seeds is a core element of NCS’s mission. “The way we select the seeds that we grow is just meeting people in our area, because there’s people from all over the world that live in Minnesota. We work with communities to develop the seeds for crops that they can’t find here,” states Zachary. “We adapt the seeds to our region. The seeds adapt just like people from all over the world adapt to our shared community and cultures. Being able to offer those seeds is vital for our food system. Also, it’s just a lot of fun to share and have meals together.” 

NCS produces dozens of regionally-adapted, certified organic seeds. They sell seeds by the packet, ranging in quantity from 25 to 200 depending on the plant. The farm specializes in hard neck garlic, growing about 12,000 heads a year. Some of their specialty peppers, many originating from Mexico, now add flavor-packed bursts to the farm’s signature hot sauce. Popcorn and garlic salt are available for immediate gratification while you wait for your seeds to sprout. 

When asked what motivates him, Zachary explained how NCS seeks seeds that grow well in northern climates, are flavorful, and high yielding enough to be economically viable for a farm. “Our customers know when they buy our seeds that they’re getting something reliable that is not only unique and rare, but also actually can be used as food. I love hearing what people cook with their friends and family.” 

Collaboration with diverse Midwestern communities to increase access to culturally-important foods through seeds is a core element of NCS’s mission. “The way we select the seeds that we grow is just meeting people in our area, because there’s people from all over the world that live in Minnesota. We work with communities to develop the seeds for crops that they can’t find here,” states Zachary. “We adapt the seeds to our region. The seeds adapt just like people from all over the world adapt to our shared community and cultures. Being able to offer those seeds is vital for our food system. Also, it’s just a lot of fun to share and have meals together.” 

Seed Saving Collaboration

Buying seeds from an independent farm like NCS allows for greater plant diversity and individual empowerment through programs like their Seed School. In partnership with the Sustainable Farming Association (SFA), NCS leads immersive trainings to teach participants all things seed saving from sourcing through to cleaning, storage, and testing. These trainings enable participants to learn to successfully save seeds for their own operation, likely saving those varieties that are best suited for their growing conditions. “I find it really important to have seed savers of diverse backgrounds come together to learn from each other,” explains Zachary. “It’s a circle of seeds, a circle of life, and a circle of community. We grow and learn together.” 

North Circle Seeds hosts its Seed School utilizing its own community Seed House as the central hub. Built in 2023, classes at the Seed School include access to all the seed saving tools and equipment for participants to harvest and process seeds from NCS’s farm. 

Seed School workshops encourage attendees to bring their own seeds to clean and process or even to share with other participants. “This natural sharing of seeds includes others in food traditions that may be new to them,” says Zachary. “Storytelling is part of seed sharing. This is how we learn from each other’s experiences.” 

In addition to leading NCS, Zachary works for the University of Minnesota Extension programs in the Regional Sustainable Development Partnership (RSDP). His current projects focus on independent grocery stores, especially in rural communities, and the economic impact of farm stands for direct-to-consumer growers. These outreach efforts, along with his service as the Board President of Manna Food Co-Op in Detroit Lakes, put Zachary directly in contact with the farmers who use seeds, the grocers who feed them, and conversations with different communities in the upper Midwest about what they want to cook and eat. 

Growing seeds is how our annual food system stays strong and evolves to meet the changing climate and food security demands. “We grow annual and biennial seeds. Those seeds adapt with us every year or every other year. They respond to climate change,” concludes Zachary. “We’re working with nature and nature’s cycle. We have to work in nature’s terms. It’s a slower solution that allows us to learn as we go.” 

Growing Independence

Buying seeds from an independent farm like NCS allows for greater plant diversity and individual empowerment through programs like their Seed School. In partnership with the Sustainable Farming Association (SFA), NCS leads immersive trainings to teach participants all things seed saving from sourcing through to cleaning, storage, and testing. These trainings enable participants to learn to successfully save seeds for their own operation, likely saving those varieties that are best suited for their growing conditions. “I find it really important to have seed savers of diverse backgrounds come together to learn from each other,” explains Zachary. “It’s a circle of seeds, a circle of life, and a circle of community. We grow and learn together.” 

North Circle Seeds hosts its Seed School utilizing its own community Seed House as the central hub. Built in 2023, classes at the Seed School include access to all the seed saving tools and equipment for participants to harvest and process seeds from NCS’s farm. 

Seed School workshops encourage attendees to bring their own seeds to clean and process or even to share with other participants. “This natural sharing of seeds includes others in food traditions that may be new to them,” says Zachary. “Storytelling is part of seed sharing. This is how we learn from each other’s experiences.” 

In addition to leading NCS, Zachary works for the University of Minnesota Extension programs in the Regional Sustainable Development Partnership (RSDP). His current projects focus on independent grocery stores, especially in rural communities, and the economic impact of farm stands for direct-to-consumer growers. These outreach efforts, along with his service as the Board President of Manna Food Co-Op in Detroit Lakes, put Zachary directly in contact with the farmers who use seeds, the grocers who feed them, and conversations with different communities in the upper Midwest about what they want to cook and eat. 

Growing seeds is how our annual food system stays strong and evolves to meet the changing climate and food security demands. “We grow annual and biennial seeds. Those seeds adapt with us every year or every other year. They respond to climate change,” concludes Zachary. “We’re working with nature and nature’s cycle. We have to work in nature’s terms. It’s a slower solution that allows us to learn as we go.” 

Sowing Curiosity

Zachary first moved to Minnesota from Long Island to learn about Native American agricultural practices, especially seed saving. He had long been curious about where seeds come from and why it is that some plants are wild and some are cultivated. “I became interested in where organic farms sourced their seeds. I quickly found out that a lot of farmers don’t save their own seeds,” reflects Zachary. “Seed saving takes dedication, especially on diverse vegetable and CSA farms where farmers are growing dozens of species, all with differing seed saving considerations.” 

The more he learned about plants, the more his curiosity grew. Zachary returned to school to study plant breeding at Iowa State. A Master’s program project on high nutrient corn taught him about the relationship among nutrient density, food color, and flavor. “Interacting with our food system in the most basic possible way of growing, taste testing, and selecting is simply fun,” shares Zachary. “Combine that process with culture and tradition and you end up with your own varieties. It’s simply amazing.” 

Zachary shared how seed saving is a perpetually humbling process. “We like to think that we can control most everything with technology, but I don’t think we ever really can. At NCS we want to work with the world the way it is. We want nature to be wild to some degree. Plants have to be true to their own roots, their own history.”

A self-declared dabbler, Zachary enjoys experimenting with a wide variety of crops. NCS currently sells produce common to regional farmers markets such as tomatoes and squash, arugula and Asian greens, zucchini and flowers, popcorn and peppers, or okra and bitter melon. Looking for more ways to help independent farms succeed, NCS is working on a variety of high value crops such as garlic for seed, ginseng, and cannabis seed and seedlings. This effort will potentially offer farmers access to high value crops that will bolster their economic independence. 

“To be a seed saver is to be an optimist.”
—Zachary Paige, North Circle Seeds