Heirloom Produce

I spent a whole afternoon absorbed in writing a post about genetically modified seeds. It was a good little piece that gave a representation of what has happened in the agriculture industry around the world. When I was done I looked at it and decided that it really did not have a place in this web log. So instead of talking about all of the depressing things that are going wrong in agriculture I decided to write about all of the exciting things that are happening. So let us talk about Heirlooms.

Strictly and heirloom is a variety that produces seed that is true to that variety. Some say an heirloom has to be fifty years old but it really only takes about seven to eight seasons to establish a new variety from a first generation hybrid. Kristin tells people that heirlooms are the endangered species of produce. She is right, heirlooms are becoming increasingly rare compared to the agribusiness hybrids. The ability to reproduce is not the only thing contributing to the culture of dedicated heirloom seed savers. The remarkable flavor and texture is what most of heirloom produce was bread for.

When my brother and I discovered that most of the seed varieties today are grown more for their shelf life than their flavor it bothered us. We wanted flavor and texture that would excite a child to eat things like kale and zucchini. Old varieties had been bred for their flavor and usefulness in cooking. As we began to talk to people about these heirloom seeds it was exciting to find so much interest. The sad truth is in America we have lost ninety percent of our agricultural-biodiversity. Besides the ecological dangers of limiting bio-diversity, having only two or three kinds of tomatoes is BORING!


I fell in love with Heirlooms when I had my first Brandywine tomato. The history behind the Brandywine is a little cloudy. What we do know is that Ben Quisenberry introduced the seeds to the Seed Savers Exchange around 1982. According to his account he had gotten the variety from Doris Suddeth Hill. She had told him that the tomato had been in her family for eighty years. (Rosa Bianca Eggplant>)

We grew some of Doris's old seeds in our test garden. I waited with anticipation watching that first tomato start out as a flower, then plump up to the size of my fist. Then it began it's magical change from green to red with the summer heat. I watered it and mulched the plant with hay. If ever a plant could reciprocate love it would have been that Brandywine, for all the devotion I gave it.

The day finally came when it was time to harvest the first of the brandywine tomatoes. I noticed something disturbing. A groundhog had gotten to it before me. (Are you kidding me?!) So, I waited a few more days for the second picking. When I sliced it, it cut like butter. The skin was thin and the inside a watery-meaty texture. We put thick slices on toast with mayo and sea salt. When I took that first bite I literally closed my eyes. The tomato had no sinewy feeling and no grainy texture. It just melted into a wonderful tomato flavor. It had no harsh acids and the flavor was complex. It is a shining example of what we have lost when we traded heirlooms for the convenience of the supermarket.

Someone once asked me in confusion, "why wouldn't you just go to the grocery store to buy a tomato?" For me the answer to that question is, "Brandywine."

I will grow it every year for the rest of my life and every winter, have longing thoughts about it. The Heirloom excitement does not stop with tomatoes. We grow delicious peppers, eggplants and onions. When you think of string beans you think green. Now imagine yellow, purple and red. Tomatoes are red, green, yellow, orange, pink, purple and white. Heirlooms offer wonderful variety and contribute to biodiversity.

Check out this link. Most of our produce comes from the Baker's Creek catalogue. Their website is a wealth of information about heirloom produce.