What is an Heirloom plant anyway ?

Design and InstallationGarden Caregarden TriviaIndoor plantsPlant Health Care
Written By Peter Morris

Have you ever been in a restaurant and they offer your heirloom tomatoes or heirloom potatoes and you wondered what the heck that even means ( but felt too silly to ask ).

An Heirloom Blue potato - yum !

Well wonder no more ! From hear on in you will be the King or Queen of Heirloom !!!!

An Heirloom

While the term "heirloom" is often associated with tomatoes, the word may also be applied to any open-pollinated fruits, vegetables and flowers that were introduced more than 50 years ago. Open-pollination occurs when bees and other natural pollinators fertilize the plants.

There is an immense variety of Heirloom tomatoes out there !

It is a plant that used to be commonly grown and eaten in human history but is no longer widely available due to today’s practices of commercial agriculture.  They come with long histories and have been grown for many years, passed down from generation to generation. Often viewed as traditional, they are much more than colorful fruits and uniquely shaped veggies. They are good because they have passed the test of time.

Heirloom potatoes

There really is no strict definition of what an heirloom variety is other than its NOT a hybrid plant - which is never considered an heirloom.

Commercial farmers grow monocultural crops - meaning only one variety of a plant. These are also those that will ship easily and look appetizing.  Since attention to flavor is not high on the list,  this is why tomatoes bought at your local supermarket tend to be watery and have little flavor.

Full flavor Heirloom corn

Growing them 

There is nothing better than home grown tomatoes - we plant many on rooftops in Manhattan - just ask your Plant Specialists expert to weigh in on choices. Kids love the cherry tomatoes that just keep going and going and going all Summer long.

Cherry tomatoes !

Growing heirloom plants in home gardens and on rooftop gardens is very popular today because heirloom vegetables are fun to grow and taste a heck of a lot better. Many can even be grown in containers.

Squash grow well in containers

Why not try growing these historic plants in your garden next season? Go online and search for groups that trade seeds ( Etsy is a very good source for this ) or get some heirloom seeds from family members or other people you know.

Heirloom variety seeds

Remember that heirlooms do best when kept in the same general location as where the plant was originally grown, but over time, whatever seeds you get may gradually adapt to your growing conditions. Have fun !

A rainbow of carrots

For luscious Heirloom veggies next year - Call Plant Specialists TODAY !

Our Plant Garden Care Team can source and plant them for you in the spring!

Don't delay – the sooner the better !

GREENING NEW YORK FOR OVER 51 YEARS !

Article written by our Staff Horticulturist, Peter B Morris, BSc, MSc, MBA

All photographs used with permission from @SHUTTERSTOCK

Peter Morris

Peter was born and raised on a beautiful green island in the midst of a tropical rainforest. He was introduced into the world of plants at the age of six when his grandmother, an avid Spanish gardener herself, asked him to help her grow seeds for her pepper garden. He was hooked! By the time he was a teen, he had his own rose and orchid collection numbering in the hundreds. Botany was in his blood, and that is what he set out to study.

His passion brought him to NY in the late seventies to further his education. His tenacity allowed him to work full time at Plant Specialists while he completed a MS in Plant Biology. As a manager at the time he felt unsatisfied with his knowledge of business and business processes. Peter felt compelled to learn, so he then pursued and completed an MBA in Quality Management within a few short years.

Peter’s other passion is teaching. His natural ability is quickly consumed by our staff in all subjects in Botany, Horticulture, and Landscaping. He created an immense reference library of more than 3,500 plants providing an invaluable resource for our staff.

Peter’s breadth of knowledge and wisdom allows him to effectively diagnose the needs of plants. Sometimes just by walking into a garden he can create a prescription that fixes even the hardest issue. He is our Staff Botanist, Diagnostician, and all around Mentor. Recently, he has put his immense knowledge and skills into developing a new department that focuses on Plant Healthcare. As he puts it, “Magic through Science”. The PHC staff that surround him have avidly consumed his teachings. Substantially developing their own plant wisdom, many have taken on difficult plant health issues with spectacular results.

Plant Healthcare has been an instant success with customers! The proper treatment of insects and diseases including Organic methods has made pest control a necessity for every plant. Correcting hormonal imbalances caused by planting in containers or refurbishing soils leached of nutrients by irrigation systems are big challenges PHC has become quite comfortable addressing. The scientific approach to the complex demands of keeping plants healthy in our harsh city environment has made many a customer say WOW!

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