Growing Heirloom and Unusual Vegetables
By: Virgil L. Jones, Master Gardener
Maybe you have been growing the same varieties of peas, potatoes, green beans, tomatoes, corn, etc., for many years, and perhaps this year you would like to grow some different varieties for a change.
While many gardening catalogues offer new varieties of vegetables every year, some turn out to be very good, but others are a disappointment. If you want to try different varieties of vegetables, then heirloom or unusual vegetables may be the ones you are looking for to grow. There are many sources for seeds of these types of vegetables if you know where to look.
As you probably know, heirloom seeds are seeds of plants that have been grown for generations by people in different parts of the world, and because of their many excellent traits, such as resistance to disease and insect damage, superior flavor, drought tolerance, or other attributes, seeds of these plants have been saved for future generations of gardeners. They are not hybrids, so will come true from seed, whereas plants grown from seeds of hybrid plants can revert back to their parentage.
What we consider unusual vegetables in our area are simply vegetables grown in many other parts of the world, but are not very well known here because they are not featured in catalogues or in seed racks seen in retail outlets. The reason for this, of course, is they probably do not sell well because of their unfamiliarity. It is unfortunate, as many of these unusual vegetables are better flavored and easier to grow than those offered in catalogues or by local retailers.
If you are interested in growing some heirloom vegetables or unusual vegetables this year, and most avid gardeners do like to try growing new varieties, there are many different websites where seeds can be ordered.
For instance, would you like to try many unusual, but excellent green beans, eggplant, tomatoes, potatoes, corn, peppers, peas, etc., then you can order these seeds. Most of these seeds are organically grown by growers who offer many, many varieties of seeds which our ancestors, or even our grandparents or parents grew in their gardens.
Did you know that Stowell's Evergreen Corn is a variety of sweet corn that used to be pulled up before the ears were completely ripe, hung upside down in a cool place, and the ears lasted well into winter in a semi-fresh state. Or, how about a bean that is used in South America that can be popped, just like popcorn, and is called the Nuņa popping bean.
Or, how about tomatoes that come in all colors, such as red, purple, striped red and yellow or green and yellow, or many other combinations of color, shape, and other characteristics, but all very tasty.
Or potatoes that come in a variety of colors, such as purple, yellow, pink, striped, variegated, but with excellent flavor. The same can be said of sweet corn, eggplant, and many other vegetables.
If you are interested in locating sources of colorful and flavorful vegetables, here are some websites of growers who offer such vegetables:
http://www.underwoodgardens.com/
While University of Missouri Extension does not endorse businesses, organizations or products, these are but a few of the websites offering these heirloom and unusual vegetable seeds. There may be many more, but if you would like to try to grow something different in your garden this year, you will be pleasantly surprised. While most of these websites primarily offer vegetable seeds, some of them also offer heirloom flower seeds of plants grown in our grandparents or parents gardens, and by growing these wonderful flowers, can bring back many pleasant memories of our childhood days.