4-Week Course.
Self-Paced.
Watch Intro Video

Click to Watch!

Join us for an in-depth immersion
into seed saving.

Take your gardening skills to the next level!

  • Enrollment Is Open!

    You can enroll at any time—there is no cut-off date. Get prepared to save the seeds from your garden and preserve bio-diversity!

    All materials are available upon enrollment. We recommend you plan for one week per lesson but can adjust the pacing as needed. This is a self-paced course.

  • What's in the Course?

    Lectures and hands-on methods covering seed saving for all major plant families, with detailed instructional videos for each individual crop.

    Charts and supplemental written hand-outs. Plus, fun assignments and quizzes to help assimilate the basics.

    Integrates Amma's teachings with inspiring satsangs and beautiful guided Nature meditations. Includes bonus videos on related topics.

  • Instructor and Community Interaction

    Regular access to instructional team through e-mail.

    Gain access to an exclusive online community of like-minded seed savers. Share and exchange knowledge.

    Special opportunity to actively participate in conservation efforts through joining Amma’s "Adopt a Seed Campaign."

Free video presentation! Learn more about the significance of reviving the ancient tradition of seed saving.

This in-depth video with Sarvaga, founding member of GreenFriends, highlights the guidance from Amma that was the inspiration for this course! Check it out below.

Watch Intro Video

Click to watch

Course Curriculum

Click on the topics to expand/contract contents

  • 1

    Welcome & Orientation

    • Opening Prayer

    • Welcome to Amritaculture Seed Saving: Seed Planting Rituals

    • Amritaculture Core Principles & Practices
  • 2

    Resources

    • Community Discussion Board Information & Guidelines

    • Resources
  • 3

    1. Getting Started & Seed Saving Basics

    • Satsang: Vedic Teachings: The Seed of Creation with Swamini Ambikamrita Prana

    • 1.1 Introduction: Why Save Seeds

    • 1.2 Agricultural Biodiversity Loss

    • 1.3 Choosing the Right Seeds: Open Pollinated & Heirloom, Amma's Advice

    • 1.4 Organic & Locally Adapted Seeds: Amma's Advice

    • 1.5 Hybrid & GMO Seeds Explained

    • 1.6 Sourcing Good Seeds

    • 1.7 How to Keep Seeds True-to-Type

    • 1.8 How to Save Beans and Peas

    • 1.9 How to Save Lettuce

    • 1.10 Planning the Seed Saving Garden

    • Guided Nature Meditation: Embracing All Creation

    • Week 1 Lesson Notes

    • Engage: Week 1 Assignment

    • Test Your Knowledge: Week 1 Quiz
  • 4

    2. Understanding Your Crops & Pollination

    • Satsang: Cultivating Loving Reverence for Mother Nature with Swami Shantamritananda Puri & Spiritual Seed Planting Workshop Part 1

    • 2.1 Pollination & Fertilization

    • 2.2 Annuals & Biennials: Know Your Crops' Lifecycle

    • 2.3 How to Encourage a Good Seed Set: Pollinators & Wind

    • 2.4 Protecting and Attracting Bees & Native Pollinators

    • 2.5 Population Size: Maintaining Genetic Diversity

    • 2.6 Roguing: Selecting the Best

    • 2.7 How to Save Tomatoes

    • 2.8 How to Save Eggplant

    • 2.9 How to Save Peppers & Chilies

    • 2.10 How to Save Okra

    • Guided Nature Meditation: Watering the Seeds of Compassion

    • Week 2 Lesson Notes

    • Engage: Week 2 Assignment

    • Test Your Knowledge: Week 2 Quiz
  • 5

    3. Isolation Methods & Hand Pollination

    • Spiritual Seed Planting Workshop with Swami Shantamritananda Puri: Part 2

    • 3.1 Isolation by Planting Only One Variety

    • 3.2 Physical Barriers, Tenting, Caging & Bagging

    • 3.3 Isolation by Time and Growing in Blocks

    • 3.4 Isolation by Distance & Strengthening Community Bonds

    • 3.5 Hand Pollination Techniques for Seed Saving

    • 3.6 How to Save Cucumber, Squash & Melon

    • 3.7 How to Save Brassicas

    • 3.8 How to Save Beet, Chard & Spinach

    • 3.9 How to Save Onions & Leeks

    • 3.10 How to Save Carrot & Celery

    • 3.11 How to Save Corn

    • Guided Nature Meditation: The Ocean Within

    • Week 3 Lesson Notes

    • Engage: Week 3 Assignment

    • Test your Knowledge: Week 3 Quiz
  • 6

    4. Harvest, Save & Share Your Seeds!

    • Satsang: The Secret Relationship Between Amma & Nature with Brahmachari Rishi Chaitanya

    • 4.1 Seed Harvest Methods

    • 4.2 Processing Wet Seeded Crops & Fermentation

    • 4.3 Processing Wet Seeded Crops Part 2

    • 4.4 Processing Dry Seeded Crops

    • 4.5 How to Dry & Store Your Seeds

    • 4.6 Creating Your Own Varieties

    • 4.7 Amma's Adopt a Seed Campaign

    • 4.8 Share Your Seeds: Get Involved!

    • Guided Nature Meditation: The Love Behind the Creation

    • Personal Closing Prayers with Sarvaga and Sugandhi

    • Week 4 Lesson Notes

    • Engage: Week 4 Assignment

    • Test Your Knowledge: Final Quiz

    • Closing Remarks

    • Before You Go...

    • Closing Prayers
Open to All
No experience or pre-requisites needed. Both beginners and those with a background in gardening will benefit. You need not have completed any prior Amritaculture courses to join.

Class Structure
This course is designed with weekly lessons that provide a step-by-step progression through seed saving. Lectures detail the basic fundamental principles and highlight Amma’s teachings and advice regarding heirloom and hybrid seeds. There are complete, detailed instructional videos for every major plant family, including all common vegetable crops.

Supplemental videos are included as well, such as "How to Protect and Attract Pollinators."

Contact:
For questions about this course, please contact:
[email protected]

"Just as the seed bows low beneath the soil

in order to grow into a tree—to evolve into the Self, we must bow low to all of existence in utter humility."

- Amma (Mata Amritanandamayi)

Meet Your Instructors

Contributors to the GreenFriends collaboration Lets Grow Seeds

Seed Saving Instructor, Founding GreenFriends Member

Sarvaga, Amritapuri

Aum Namah Shivaya,
I feel so honored to share this seed saving course with all of you! My journey with seeds began 18 years ago. Amma gave me some seeds and asked me to plant the first tulasi garden in Amritapuri. I have had the opportunity to garden in India and coordinate the GreenFriends program on International tours ever since.

Amma’s direct guidance has awakened a passion in me to help spread the simple, yet vital knowledge of seed saving—a way to deepen our connection with our plants, strengthen the stability of our food systems, and actively protect our Earth’s threatened biodiversity. Please join us in preserving our diverse seed heritage for future generations.

Seed Saving Instructor

Sugandhi, Amritapuri

Aum Namah Shivaya,
Welcome to all my dear sisters and brothers. My pranams to you for your willingness to learn something new, especially something so central to Amma's teaching around caring for Mother Nature.

My name is Sugandhi. I'm so happy to share what I have learned about seed saving from over a decade of serving in the Amritapuri Gardens and with GreenFriends. I hope that through this course you'll not only gain a better understanding of the technical aspects of seed saving, but also discover how this practice can deepen our connection to Mother Nature and Amma's teachings. Thank you so much for joining us. I look forward to connecting with you!

Connect to your roots!

Participate in preserving Nature through the ancient and traditional practice of Seed Saving!

I'm Ready!