Raffi: New page: Seed Savers Exchange defines an heirloom as any garden plant that has a history of being passed down within a family, just like pieces of heirloom jewelry or furniture. Some companies ...

2009-02-18T21:55:19Z

New page: Seed Savers Exchange defines an heirloom as any garden plant that has a history of being passed down within a family, just like pieces of heirloom jewelry or furniture. Some companies ...

New page

[[Seed Savers Exchange]] defines an heirloom as any garden plant that has a history of being passed down within a family, just like pieces of heirloom jewelry or furniture. Some companies have tried to create definitions based on date, such as anything older than 50 years.

The genetic diversity of the world's food crops is eroding at an unprecedented and accelerating rate. The [[vegetable]]s and [[fruit]]s currently being lost are the result of thousands of years of adaptation and selection in diverse ecological niches around the world. Each variety is genetically unique and has developed resistance to the diseases and pests with which it evolved. Plant [[breeder]]s use the old varieties to breed resistance into modern crops that are constantly being attacked by rapidly evolving [[diseases]] and [[pests]]. Without these infusions of genetic diversity, food production is at risk from epidemics and infestations.

If you have rare heritage varieties of seed in your family, you should send some to [[Seed Savers Exchange]].

==External links==
*[http://www.seedsavers.org/Content/instructions.htm SSE: How to save heritage seeds]

Heirloom - Revision history

Raffi: New page: Seed Savers Exchange defines an heirloom as any garden plant that has a history of being passed down within a family, just like pieces of heirloom jewelry or furniture. Some companies ...