What’s all the fuss with Heritage Seeds?
Did you know that the survival of many of our Nation’s heritage and heirloom seeds currently weighs solely on the devoted work of backyard gardeners and local growing enthusiasts? They, and the families, communities and small seed companies that went before them, have faithfully saved the seeds of their strongest plants, carefully chosen for their flavour, resilience and productivity, and passed them on from generation to generation so we can enjoy the variety of shapes, colours, textures, and flavours of the heritage and heirloom vegetables that are available today.
This ancient tradition of saving the seeds of our best vegetable plants and passing them on to family members or trading them with neighbours and local farmers, has drastically declined since the 1960s as supermarket chains have grown in popularity, resulting in a huge loss of our cultivated biodiversity. Today over half the World’s seeds are controlled by three large companies, and many of these seeds are patented.
Supermarkets only want a few select vegetable species, that grow to a particular size and a uniform shape and that ripen at the same time, so modern farming methods have adapted to fulfil these requirements. Now, due to the intensive farming methods of monocropping, the loss of open pollinated seeds in favour of F1 hybrid and genetically modified seeds, and restrictive seed regulations, our heritage varieties are becoming more and more scarce. The world has lost over 90% of it’s overall biodiversity, with no sign of this decline slowing down.
Each heirloom variety carries their own unique story with them, and many people enjoy growing these plants just to preserve this history. They are often named after the gardener who first lovingly cultivated them such as ‘Grandpa’s Cress’ or ‘Uncle Bert’s Purple Kale’, or the place where they were mainly grown. The seeds of the Brighstone bean, as legend goes, were discovered on a shipwreck off the Isle of Wight and henceforth grown by the locals and handed on to the following generations. Some have their roots in romance such as the Llanover pea which has been grown in Llanover estate in West Wales (managed by the National Trust) since WW2 and were brought over by a German prisoner of war who returned to Wales to marry his sweetheart. Sometimes they come with a quaint tale about the character of the person they were first passed on by. Alice Whitis, who grew a variety of French bean in Kentucky that was later named after her, lived to almost 100. She was apparently a ‘stern woman who carried her shoes to church and put them on just as she arrived’.
But growing heritage seeds isn’t just about the preservation of a charming piece of history. It’s about fostering the lifeline of our most resilient food plants and passing them onto our children and our children’s children thus ensuring a robust food system for the future.
If we don’t carry on this tradition of passing on our heirloom seeds to other growers, many our nation’s edible plant varieties are in danger of being lost forever.
Amma asks that we try to grow heritage varieties of vegetables, particularly those that are climatised to our own growing regions, and that we look around for seeds that may be in danger of becoming extinct.
Are there any elderly neighbours in your vicinity who grow their own vegetables? They may grow edible or medicinal plants that were passed on to them by their elders but have no one ahead of them to carry on this tradition. Could you help to continue the lifeline of these plants? The Heritage Seed Library accepts donations of rare seed such as these.
Seed swaps are another great way of finding different and interesting seed varieties and networking with other likeminded gardeners. GreenFriends are holding their second annual seed swap on Saturday the 18th March 2023 at Amrita Hall, Bromley. We will have some rare and endangered seeds from the Heritage Seed Library up for adoption and an honesty table in the middle for swappers. More information to follow in future posts. Do come if you can!
Sources:
LetsGrowSeeds — Published by Mata Amritanandamayi Mission Trust
www.gardenorganic.org.uk — heritage seed list 2023
BBC article — Heirloom plants: Saving the nation’s seeds from extinction. Published 28 March 2020.
Embracing the World
Embracing the World (ETW) is a global network of humanitarian organisations inspired by the Indian-based humanitarian initiatives of the Mata Amritanandamayi Math. Embracing the World exists to help alleviate the suffering the burden of the world’s poor through helping to meet each of their five basic needs — food, shelter, healthcare, education and livelihood — wherever and whenever possible.
Amma, the founder of ETW, teaches that everyone — rich or poor — has the power to make a difference in the life of another, and that no selfless gesture is insignificant. Rather, it is the selfless actions we perform for one another that hold the keys to true peace — the peace of the individual, the peace of the community and the peace amoung diverse culture, nations and faiths.
GreenFriends
GreenFriends, the environmental branch of ETW, is a rapidly growing, global grassroots movement promoting environmental awareness and local participation in conservation efforts in over 23 countries. GreenFriends’ unique approach integrates ecology with the core values of selfless service and awareness of the unity of all life.
