When the Past Becomes the Present

By Kymisha Montgomery, CGC Urban Agriculture Coordinator

I’m always looking for new crops to add to my garden. Of course, like all folks, I love what I know and keep it dear to me. But still, my curiosity leads me down paths of wonder. Where did a specific crop originate, what were the recipes being used and at what period of time were they most popular? Each crop has an origin and a history of how it came to be. What’s so cool about growing heirloom crops—those that have been grown and shared from generation to generation—is that now you become part of the story and, ultimately, part of its history.

Over thousands of years, humans have been cultivating and growing their own vegetables. Many began the tradition of saving seeds to preserve dietary staples or crops that were used in traditional ceremonies. Heirloom seeds are seeds that have been saved and produced true-to-type vegetables for 50 years or more. Typically, they have been saved because they exhibit a particular quality, often their flavor. It’s amazing to know that thousands of people had to grow heirlooms crops in order for me to enjoy them in my garden.

In my mind, tribes, families and other early groups of people were growing vegetables with much success, but somewhere down the line, some plants cross pollinated and produced another crop with distinct characteristics, which led to the beginnings of heirloom cultivars. Saving the seeds of these cultivars—which were passed down from generation to generation as though they were precious and valuable and extremely important to the health and wealth of their families—was as important in their story as any material item of wealth today.

Unlike hybrids, heirloom crops have not been modified or tampered with, which leaves them with their own unique and delicious flavors. Flavors that our parents, their parents and our great grandparents may have enjoyed from years ago can be found in these crops. To save them is to save and preserve food culture.

Let’s keep heirloom varieties where they belong: in our gardens and on our tables for generations to come.

Look for CGC-grown heirloom garden starts at GrowFest on Saturday, May 4!