WILTON – A variety of corn that dates back more than 100 years has found its way back to some of the original soil it grew in, thanks to the dedication of homesteader Pamela Prodan.
Prodan and her partner Conrad Heeschen have been keeping the cycle of Byron Yellow Flint going for nearly two decades- planting, growing and eventually harvesting the unique variety. They not only use the corn to dry and grind into cornmeal for cooking, but also to feed to their chickens and to preserve for future growth.
“I am just this little link, in this chain of people growing and saving seeds,” Prodan said.
After being given the corn by expert seed saver Will Bonsall of Industry, Prodan decided to research more of the seed’s history. According to Bonsall, the seeds had been given to him by an elderly Wilton resident many years ago, pulled out of a shoebox from under a bed. The seed had originally been grown by Clare Mosher of Wilton, who passed it down through four generations. Clare’s daughter Thelma recognized the corn shown to her by Prodan, confirming that the variety had grown just down the road from Prodan’s property where the Moshers once lived.
“It makes me feel connected to the land, and to the people who have lived on this land,” Prodan said.
Before the Moshers, Byron Yellow Flint was grown by native tribes in the same area. Prodan said long before the Weld Road became the Weld Road it was referred to as Coos Road- the native term for “land of the pines”- and was used to get from Weld to Byron.
“I don’t feel like I can take credit for this,” Prodan said, though she does her fair share of keeping the heirloom corn in existence.
Each season, Prodan hand pollinates the rare variety, in order to keep it from cross breeding with other corns in her garden. The non-hybrid grain is known for being disease resistant and provides an early harvest, making it a good fit for Maine’s growing season. Prodan grows about 600 ears; Byron Flint isn’t intended for large-scale, commercial operations, she said.
“When you starting growing heritage varieties, you give up volume for taste,” she said.
Corn pollinates by wind, the tassels blowing from one plant to another. In order to prevent this from happening Prodan uses special paper bags that block cross pollination, which would contaminate the heirloom strain. She then manually pollinates each plant with the appropriate Byron Yellow Flint pollen. The process is time consuming, but worth it, Prodan said.
“It’s just something I do. It’s just gardening. It’s the right thing to do, especially in the case of heritage corn,” she said.
I find this very cool.I can remember Clare Mosher. I was up there many times with my Grandparents. Not to mention the display he had at the Farmington Fair. Thank you for keeping this tradition and variety of seed safe and alive.
Thank you for all your time and effort in saving heritage seeds for future generations! So very important!
Thank you Pam for saving a local strain. We all owe you a debt for being such a devoted seed saver. I hope the Byron Yellow Flint ends up in one of the growing seed banks starting. This is a lovely article!
I think that’s spectacular what Pam does with the corn. Keep up the great work! I have always really appreciated agriculture in our society.