Heirloom Tomato Seeds

All About Heirloom Tomato Seeds

Tomato Seeds

There are many different varieties of heirloom tomato seeds, and probably one of the most popular reasons people to plant these tomatoes is their local resistance to pests, local weather, as well as their unique look and flavor. Also, heirloom tomato seeds are frequently grown organically without pesticides, fertilizers, or growth hormones.

Heirloom tomato seeds are those varieties of tomatoes that were usually cultivated before 1950. This was before crop tomatoes were being grown in large quantities by crop farmers and genetically changed. The crop farmer hybrid varieties do not openly cultivate themselves, meaning that the farmer has to buy seed every year. Heirloom tomatoes are openly cultivated and will actually produce their own seeds for the next year, saving the farmer from purchasing new seed and being able to cultivate these tomatoes on a yearly basis without extra cost.

Also, many of the heirloom varieties of tomatoes are easy to grow organically. Since they are resistant to pests, you don’t need to use pesticides, and because they grow easily in local climates, you don’t need fertilizers either. This means that they can be organically grown in local soil; also, being organic is another popular reason for consumers to purchase the heirloom tomatoes.

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Planting Heirloom Tomato Seeds in the Garden Provides Color and Nutrition

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Heirloom tomato seeds pack a punch of juicy, mouth-watering flavor with every bite. Adding these varieties to a fresh salad, or to cooked sauces and colorful salsas will improve the flavor of family favorites. Their fresh flavor can’t be compared with the hybrids found in stores. An interesting fact to note is that while tomatoes are technically a fruit, many people refer to them as vegetables. Only fresh heirloom tomatoes grown on the vine deliver the taste connoiseurs crave.

Open and hand pollination is used for preserving heirloom strains of tomatoes, as opposed to engineered hybrids and GMOs. Gardeners can learn how to save seed from these and other heirloom varieties to plant the following year. By doing so, they are able to take a step towards sustainable living. These seeds continue to adapt to their climate with each generation.

Tomatoes grown from organic heirloom seeds will feature the attributes that carried them through the centuries. This includes excellent flavor and nutrition. In addition they are more adaptable than to a variety of climates and most types can be picked before a frost and still ripen. To get an early start in the spring, plant seeds 6-8 weeks prior to the last frost. Begin hardening the seedlings off a week or two before transplanting them by placing them in a protected area outside during the day. When transplanting, protect them from rodents, wind and too much sun using cans or other containers. Stake plants to protect fruit from ground moisture as well as rabbits. Trellises and cages work well for most varieties.

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Heirloom Tomato Seeds Are Popular With Home Gardeners

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Exactly what are heirloom tomato seeds? They are seeds that are still of the original varieties that have never been crossed in any way in the growing process. To provide the best looking fruit for the consumer market many tomato plants have been crossed, but the heirloom seeds have been saved in their original varieties. There are over 10,000 varieties of tomatoes available today according to one of America’s top tomato seed suppliers. Doesn’t this number seem absolutely mind blowing? Who would ever have thought that one fruit could have so many varieties?

Why The Popularity Of Heirloom Tomato Seeds?

It is a much publicized fact that the heirloom tomatoes have a much better flavor than the commercially grown tomato (the crossed varieties). In many cases the heirloom tomato is not the ‘perfect’ looking tomato but when it comes down to growing tomatoes for your own home use it is the flavor that is usually the most important.

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Varieties of Heirloom Tomato Seeds for Sustainable Gardens

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Planting a garden with heirloom tomato seeds, fruits and vegetables helps create a sustainable lifestyle. For generations people have planted and harvested crops, saving seeds for replanting in the spring, however with the introduction of hybrids and genetically modified crops this has become more difficult. These plants have been developed so their seeds will either be sterile or will revert back to lesser quality parent plants. This has led preservationists within the gardening community to increase their focus on heirloom tomato seeds.

Consumers who purchase their tomatoes in the store often complain about their lack of flavor and pale color. These are often grown by commercial growers using chemical based fertilizers,herbicides and pesticides some of which contain carcinogenic compounds. While this type of farming has become large scale and may to some extent be necessary to produce a large quantity of food for the world, it is not without risks.

As consumers become more health conscience, they pay more attention to the food they consume, including the method of production. Certified organic heirloom tomato seeds are a starting point for developing a healthier lifestyle. Certification of organic seeds is granted by the USDA through the Certified Organic National Program. When ordering seeds with this distinction documented proof should be available on the company’s pages.

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