Modern heirlooms saved by gardeners and passed on

Heirloom obsession

Old-time vegetable varieties activate senses while stirring memories

ARTICLE AND PHOTOS BY NICOLE ZEMA

Flavor is a language that tells a story without words.

The pursuit of tastes and textures from the past has many Virginians clamoring for heirloom vegetable varieties, made possible by the obsessive dedication of heirloom seed savers who ensure unique, old-time varieties endure. Like an oral history that was never recorded, heirloom varieties can be lost if not perpetuated, existing only in memories that inevitably fade.

“Heirloom” produce is loosely defined, though its varieties are distinctive.

“An heirloom doesn’t have to be very, very old, but it has to have been grown long enough ago to be a stabilized variety that has demonstrated its identity and value,” said Ira Wallace of Southern Exposure Seed Exchange in Louisa County. Its network of seed growers offer more than 700 varieties of seeds, specializing in heirlooms that perform well in the region.

“Traditionally, heirlooms have been maintained for 50 or more years by a family or community, though there are exceptions,” Wallace continued. “Many modern heirlooms were originally commercial varieties dropped from the seed trade, but have been saved by gardeners and passed on through the years since.”

OAK LEAF LETTUCE

DINOSAUR KALE

DEER TONGUE

SMOOTH KALE

Heirlooms harbor distinct flavors

Heirloom flavors seem to linger on the palate. Last year at Dorey Park Farmers Market in Henrico County, customers repeatedly asked farmer John Bryant for “smooth kale.”

“ ‘That’s what I ate growing up; that’s what my grandmother fixed,’ ” Bryant recalled.customers saying. “But I’d never heard of it.”

He shopped for smooth kale heirloom seeds, known as Vates kale, and planted them for harvest this year.

“It’s been around forever, and it is delicious,” Bryant said. “It is smooth, not tight and frilly.”

Bryant, general manager of Old Tavern Farms in New Kent County, grows both heirloom and hybrid vegetables and berries, and raises heritage hogs and chickens on his 400- acre farm. He is a steward of the same land his grandfather worked more than 100 years ago.

“DEER TONGUE HAS BEEN AROUND

FOREVER. IT’S A SWEET LETTUCE

WITH THE TEXTURE AND FIRMNESS

OF SPINACH. AND THIS TENNIS-BALL

BATAVIAN IS AN HEIRLOOM VARIETY

FROM MONTICELLO.”

— JOHN BRYANT

An otherworldly gradient of bluegreen hues shimmered on a row of Tuscan kale, an old Italian variety. Its neighbor, red Russian kale, was laced with purple-pink veins.

Of 30 different lettuce varieties, Bryant pointed to several heirlooms like Speckled Bibb and Oak Leaf that are good in salad mixes.

“Radicchio is a specialty item that restaurants want,” Bryant said. “Deer Tongue has been around forever. It’s a sweet lettuce with the texture and firmness of spinach. And this Tennis-

RUTGERS TOMATOES

AMISH MOON AND STARS WATERMELON

DEAN'S PURPLE BEANS

LEMON CUCUMBER

Ball Batavian is an heirloom variety from Monticello.”

Papa Cacho potatoes from Peru, oddly shaped Bennings Green Tint squash and Purple Top White Globe turnips are included in the farm’s roster of heirloom varieties. Heirloom beans also perform well and replenish nitrogen in the soil, Bryant said.

“Heirloom rutabagas are new to us this year,” he continued. “They are closely related to turnips but have a different flavor. They’re a good mashed potato substitute for paleo folks. And the greens are edible with very mild kale flavor, like broccoli greens.”

Chioggia beets were planted upon request for Chef Tammy Brawley of The Green Kitchen, who is the featured chef on Virginia Farm Bureau’s TV program, Real Virginia.

“Chioggia is an old heirloom variety but doesn’t really look different until you slice it open,” Bryant said. “Whiteand red-striped—it’s a real pretty beet. It’s got that original old-time beet flavor to it, though a lot of people say it has an earthy taste. You either love them or hate them.”

Bryant said the sugar content of beets has increased through selective

Radiator Charlie’s Mortgage Lifter:

What’s in a name?

The SESE catalog is punctuated with uniquely named varieties.

Mortgage Lifter is a popular heirloom tomato with a curious name, and the seeds tell a story.

M.C. Byles, known as “Radiator Charlie” for his car repair business in West Virginia, developed this tomato in the 1930s. While he had no formal education or botany expertise, he used a baby’s ear syringe to cross-breed four of the largest tomato plants he could find. The pollination and selection process was repeated for six years until he had a stable variety.

He sold the plants at a premium for $1 each, and paid off the $6,000 mortgage on his house in six years. breeding, as many newer hybrids are developed for modern tastes and commerce. Typical tomato hybrids are bred to be picked green and gas-ripened for commercial growing and shipping, so they’re intact when stocked in grocery stores.

Those hybrids have improved, Bryant said. “But heirlooms still have it over modern hybrids. And now to some degree, with the resurgence of farmers markets and local produce, there is certainly a segment of the population that wants an heirloom flavor.”

For Bryant, the taste and texture of heirloom tomatoes is iterated in Cherokee Purples. They grew in rows beside Brandywines, Rutgers and Mortgage Lifters on his farm.

“Their pepperiness—it’s what people say a tomato is supposed to taste like.”

Seed savers prep for next season

While Bryant works almost 24/7 on the farm, heirloom seed savers like Wallace carefully prepare seeds for next season.

“That’s what’s great about Ira—the labor and dedication,” Bryant said. “They take all that time to document and select the best seeds for the next year’s crop. We just have to go online and order!”

Wallace is education and seed selection coordinator for SESE, and author of The Timber Press Guide to Gardening in the Southeast.

Beginner seed savers can learn techniques online, but seed packets are affordable enough for home gardeners to attempt their own heirloom gardens.

Greasy beans have a funny name, and serious nutritional content. Those are Wallace’s favorite heirloom.

“They are hairless and look like they’re already buttered, but also are special because they remain crisp and tender even as seeds mature in the pod,” Wallace said. “That means you get a higher-protein vegetable that’s still tasty. They were traditionally called Leather Britches—hung up and dried in attics across Appalachia.”

Not every heirloom variety has a wellarticulated narrative, but the flavors alone help connect us to the past. There is comfort in the aftertaste, knowing such a savory experience is likely preserved for the future.

Marinated heirloom veggie salad

This simple salad is almost too pretty to eat, but don’t count on having leftovers! The distinctive flavors inherent in heirloom vegetables will keep your dinner companions coming back for more.

This dish marinates overnight—an effortless wow factor for a summer spread.

INGREDIENTS

1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved 1 medium zucchini, cubed 1 medium yellow summer squash, cubed 1 medium cucumber, cubed 3 medium peppers—sweet yellow, red and green, cut into 1-inch pieces 6-ounce can pitted ripe olives, drained 1 small red onion, chopped ½ to ¾ cup Italian salad dressing

DIRECTIONS

In a serving bowl, combine all ingredients. Cover, and refrigerate overnight.

Recipe by Mary Ann Renner, Greensville County Farm Bureau, adapted from the cookbook Bring it to the Table, The Surprising Southeast Virginia Farm Bureau Women