Do You Heirloom?
Heir·loom /ˈerlo͞om/: denoting a traditional variety of plant or breed of animal which is not associated with large-scale commercial agriculture. "his garden is filled with heirloom vegetables" Definitions from Oxford Languages
These are just some of the reasons that I LOVE growing heirloom plants.
Growing heirlooms in your Kitchen Garden brings diversity and beauty, but also ensures that plants are their happiest and best performing. When matched with the right climate and soil, heirlooms are known to be more pest and disease resistant than their commercial cousins, due to their adaptations over their many years of growth.
But the true wonder of heirlooms is their varied histories and stories, as heirloom plants are those grown from seeds which have traditionally been kept within families and passed down along the generations for at least 50 years. Saving seeds is a time honoured practice around the world and has allowed us to keep these incredible species growing.
Collecting heirloom seed is as easy as picking ripe fruit and rinsing the seeds and drying them. 1-2-3 - Easy as that! Store your seeds in an airtight container out of direct light and next season you're ready to plant your favorite heirlooms again.
DID YOU KNOW?
Many heirloom tomatoes are sweeter than commercially grown fruit and lack the various genetic mutations that give tomatoes that grocery store uniform shape and colour. Heirlooms however are delicate, as they are grown for flavour rather than shelf-life and their colourful skins can bruise easily, which means enjoying them right at the peak of the season is key and exactly what you want from a Kitchen Garden.
TIPS:
Heirloom varieties are open-pollinated, which means that when planting saved seeds, if two or more varieties are planted closely you may end up creating a new variety!
Yellow heirlooms tend to be more mild with reds and the greens have a light, zesty bite. The darker varieties are more savory than sweet.
“Garden as though you will live forever.”