EP. 37: Cempaxochitl, Papalo, and more tastes of Mexico with Maria Hernandez of Cruz Family Little Farm

EP. 37: Cempaxochitl, Papalo, and more tastes of Mexico with Maria Hernandez of Cruz Family Little Farm

Author: Seeds And Their People November 15, 2025 Duration: 1:08:52
This episode features an interview with our friend Maria Hernandez of Cruz Family Little Farm about an hour northwest of Philadelphia in Gilbertsville, Pennsylvania. Maria grows vegetables, herbs, and flowers for her community, including many Mexican specialties, some of which she shares through our seed catalog as well. We discussed Maria's life from growing up with eating mangos with chili in a hammock in her grandmother's orchard by the river in Mexico as a child, to moving to NYC, and then starting a farm in Pennsylvania. We walked the field visiting her favorite plants, including Cempaxochitl, which filled her grandmother's house with their aroma and beauty. Cempaxochitl are orange marigolds planted in May or June and harvested for Day of the Dead celebrations in October.  SEED STORIES:  Cempaxochitl Papalo Epazote Cilantro Macho Jicama Flor de Jamaica (Roselle) Tomatillo LINKS: Cruz Family Little Farm web page Cruz Family Little Farm at Truelove Seeds Cruz Family Little Farm: Facebook, Instagram, TikTok THIS EPISODE SUPPORTED BY: YOU! Please become a Patron for $1 or more a month at Patreon.com/trueloveseeds Scribe Video Center and WPEB, West Philly Community Radio ABOUT: Seeds And Their People is a radio show where we feature seed stories told by the people who truly love them. Hosted by Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. trueloveseeds.com/blogs/satpradio   FIND OWEN HERE: Truelove Seeds Facebook  |  Instagram  |  Twitter   FIND CHRIS HERE: Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden  

There’s a whole world of history, culture, and personal connection tucked inside every seed packet, and that’s the world Seeds And Their People explores. This isn’t just a gardening show; it’s a series of conversations that dig into the rich soil of human experience. Hosts Owen Taylor of Truelove Seeds and Chris Bolden-Newsome of Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden sit down with growers, seed savers, and community elders to hear the stories that these living heirlooms carry with them. Each episode feels like a quiet chat on a back porch or in a garden row, where the talk inevitably turns to the seeds that have been passed down through families and communities. You’ll hear about the journey of a particular bean variety, the memories tied to a specific tomato, and the profound cultural resilience that keeping these seeds alive represents. The podcast moves beyond simple horticulture to touch on food sovereignty, ancestral knowledge, and the simple, powerful act of planting something with a story. It’s for anyone curious about where their food really comes from, not just geographically but historically and emotionally. Listening, you begin to understand that a seed is never just a seed-it’s a keeper of traditions, a spark of identity, and a quiet promise for the future, all held in the palm of your hand.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 40

Seeds And Their People
Podcast Episodes
Ep. 9: Anan Jardali Zahr’s Palestinian Kitchen [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 50:13
In this episode, Palestinian chef Anan Jardali Zahr describes her beloved foodways and ingredients, including Molokhia, Kusa, and Zaatar. Anan was born in Akka, Palestine and came to California at age 11, after the Six-D…
Ep. 8: Lettuce Amongst the Stars: Frank Morton of Wild Garden Seed [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 55:13
Frank Morton of Wild Garden Seed in Philomath, Oregon visited our Truelove Seeds farm during a cross-country road trip in July, 2019. Frank began in the early 1980s as a salad grower providing greens for grocery stores t…
Ep. 7: Karen Farmers from Burma [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:17:30
This episode features four interviews with Karen farmers from the mountains of the Karen state of Burma (Myanmar) who spent roughly a decade in Thai refugee camps before resettling in South Philadelphia. They now grow th…
Ep. 6: Fish Pepper [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:12:53
This episode is all about the Fish Pepper, an extremely flavorful, productive, and decorative variety that makes an excellent hot sauce. The white unripe fruit were used to flavor seafood dishes in the Black catering com…
Ep 5: Rau Đay, Lalo, Saluyot, Ewedu, Molokhia [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 27:40
This episode is all about one plant with countless names: Molokhia (Corchorus olitorius). You may know it as Jute, Jew's Mallow, Egyptian Spinach, any of the names in the title of this episode, or as something else altog…
Ep. 3: Ira Wallace and Southern Exposure Seed Exchange [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:09:40
In this third episode, Ira Wallace from Southern Exposure Seed Exchange talks about her faves: collards and roselle. She also describes her life growing up, her work with southern and African Diasporic seeds and stories,…
Ep. 2: Kristyn Leach and Namu Farm [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:00:49
Welcome back to Seeds And Their People! In this second episode, Owen interviews his seed friend Kristyn about her Korean seed stories, her food, farming, and activist community, and our mutual love for Jewel in the Palac…
Ep. 1: Seeds And Their People - Meet Chris and Owen [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 41:58
Welcome to Seeds And Their People! In our first episode, we share some seed stories that are important to us, our ancestors, and our story as partners in life and love. You'll hear about the Irish Lumper potato, the fiel…