‘Redina’ red leaf lettuce bolts in the heat of summer, setting flowers and then seed to save.
Along with juicy-ugly tomatoes, fresh herbs, and those peppers that made the best hot sauce, gardeners should harvest the seeds from their most prized plants of the growing season. In my Bronx community garden plot, one basil plant is reserved for setting seed, while the others are for eating with Arthur Avenue smoked mozzarella and in-season heirloom tomatoes.
Saving seeds carries on the work of our ancestors, who selected plant varieties using excellent foresight—and their taste buds. An ancient practice dating back to the Stone Age, the first saved seeds were part and parcel in man’s transition from hunter-gatherer to farmer. As plants began to be domesticated, varieties were selected for their flavor, beauty, resilience, and abundance.
Ken Greene, co-founder of the Hudson Valley Seed Library, is one of the most honest plant people we’ve ever met. Ken cares about plants in a way that is inspiring, moving, and intoxicating. At the Hudson Valley Seed Library he and his band of seedy friends are leading a full-blown local seed revolution. The Seed Library is a throwback to a time when seed sellers put fascinating pictures on their packages and pithy descriptions in their catalogs, to a time when every kitchen gardener saved his or her favorite seeds and passed them down from generation to generation. To that end, the Seed Library sells memberships (ed. note: we think a Seed Library membership makes a great holiday gift!) that offer discounts to those growers who return some of their seeds to the Library in an effort to expand the pool of Hudson Valley-grown varieties. Ken also commissions a group of local artists each year to illustrate beautiful Art Packs for a handful of varieties.
As you can tell, we really like Ken and the Seed Library (And we’re not alone. Check out this great profile from the New York Times). They’re helping preserve local plant diversity and educating a new generation, teaching them that gardening isn’t just a way to eat good food, it’s also a thoughtful act that resonates through generations. We were delighted when Ken agreed to share his list of “Favorite Things” for holiday giving. As you’ll see, Ken always has seeds on his mind. Who knew seeds could act as inspiration for such beautiful gifts?
Sonia Uyterhoeven is Gardener for Public Education.
We have spent the past few weeks talking about cleaning and storing your seeds. I mentioned a few blog entries ago that a simple way to clean and store tomato seeds is to squeeze out the contents of the tomato and soak it in water – washing away any coating that surrounds the seed. You then dry the seeds on a paper towel and store.
Aficionados have a more elaborate method of cleaning tomato seeds that involves fermentation. Tomato seeds are surrounded by a jelly-like coat that contains a germination inhibiting substance. The coat prevents the seeds from germinating too early so that tender seedlings do not emerge in the fall or winter.
Fermentation also protects the seeds against bacterial canker and is a good way of ensuring that your seeds are disease free. Fermentation is not the only way to control seed-borne diseases. Washing seeds in plain water, in salt water, in hot water (around 122°F – boiling water is 212°F – so this is just hot water) for 15 minutes are all methods for controlling seed-borne diseases.
The process for fermenting tomato seeds is simple. Scoop out the seeds and all the pulp and juice into a glass jar. Cover the seeds with water and set the seeds aside storing at room temperature. Check daily and stir the mixture. After 3-4 four days the viable seeds will have sunk to the bottom and the pulp and any poor quality seeds will have floated to the top (they are lighter). Pour off the gunk from the top; strain out the seeds and rinse in a sieve.
Dry on a paper towel and store in a Ziploc bag or plastic container in a cool, dark place. The seeds will stay viable for up to 4 years. Remember not to store your F1 hybrids as they will not come true to seed. Your heirlooms are ideal for storing. Most tomatoes are self-pollinating but you do get cross-pollination from time to time.
If you want to make sure that your tomatoes don’t cross-pollinate you can create a barrier by covering them with a pollination cage – use remay or a fine mesh screen so that bees will not be able to your plant – or you can space different varieties at a good distance from each other. There is a difference in opinion on spacing – some say 10 feet is sufficient – others 25 feet and some say for truly pure seeds you need up to 100 feet. For the homeowner, crossing of heirloom seeds should not be a major issue – leave that concern for the grower.
At your next family reunion picnic you may run into some long lost relatives. Perhaps you’d think distant cousins, twice removed on your mother’s side, but in fact Lazy Housewife, Radiator Charlie, and Collective Farm Woman are beans, tomatoes and melons, respectively, more likely to be found on your plate next to grandma’s famous potato salad than out back bobbing for apples or spitting watermelon seeds.
By definition, heirloom vegetables are vintage varieties that have been preserved by passing seeds down from generation to generation. Heirlooms have often been selected for taste, appearance, and eating quality, and the demand for heirloom vegetables is rapidly increasing, especially among gardeners looking for unique flavors and freshness. While many heirloom vegetables are now available at farm stands, varieties of tomatoes, beans, and cucumbers are the most popular.
Among edible heirlooms literally thousands of varieties are available, many handed down, others swapped with fellow gardeners, and a growing number purchased from the ever-expanding selection of specialty seed purveyors. For The Edible Garden, the Home Gardening Center’s Lois Loeb Vegetable Garden has been redesigned by Rosalind Creasy into New York’s best heirloom vegetable garden. Using seeds from Seed Savers Exchange, this garden features a bountiful array of beautiful and delicious heirloom vegetables, herbs, and edible flowers. Seed Savers Exchange is the foremost organization dedicated to preserving agricultural diversity through the preservation and sharing of heirloom seeds.
At Shop in the Garden, we offer a wide variety of heirloom seeds, exclusively from Seed Savers Exchange, as well a great selection of heirloom tomato, pepper, and eggplant seedlings. You can also find fabulous garden gear online. So whether you are a longtime heirloom vegetable advocate (and there are many) or simply a home gardener looking for more variety, flavor, and excitement in your harvest basket, give heirloom vegetables a try. Who knows, in our hectic day-to-day existence, it may just be time to find the Lazy Housewife in all of us.
