heirloom-seed

The Ommas-Aarden Story

Researching the damage caused by genetically altered seeds, and headlines like...
"Industry Aims to Strip Local Control of Food Supply" helped us decide to take responsibility for
our own food source; and to help others take responsibility for theirs. So Ommas-Aarden Heirloom Seed
was created. Our ability to grow our own is in jeopardy, and we've got to get ourselves back to the garden.
I searched for a name that signified an earlier time. My mother-in-law raised her children on this land and
her grandmother name is Omma, (Dutch for Grandmother) and 'Aarden' is Dutch for earth.
Ah, - Grandmother's Earth - perfect !

I have saved seeds for the last 20 years. I can certainly teach others how to do it too. Since I didn't want
to waste my time on nutrient-low foods, I looked up the healthiest foods and found this site, whfoods.com;
it taught me where my energy should be spent in my own garden. Saving seeds is easier than you
might think ! There were so many seeds when I harvested, I couldn't possibly use them all, so I thought
I would sell them, and teach people about the nutrition each variety holds. I designed the seed packet
to have all the information needed to save seed and a little nutritional information to nourish the mind.

Heirloom seeds come from non-hybrid (open-pollinated) varieties of vegetables. Growers can save
their own seeds from heirloom seeds, as opposed to most modern hybrids which produce sterile or
unreliable seeds. The term heirloom is used because the seeds for many of these varieties were saved
by hand for generations. Farmers of the past dedicated their entire lives to producing seeds for plants that
would grow well in their local area, only to have them go extinct due to commercial interests. On average,
food travels over 1,000 miles to get to your plate. 70 to 90% of the food in any store is *GMO ! It's time
to turn this around and get local. The more I learned, the more I knew this was the path for me.

GMO companies like Monsanto are part of the pesticide industry and they have been aggressively buying up
seed companies for more than 20 years. I don't want to rely on them for my seed... I don't know if the seed I buy
from them isn't genetically modified, or hybridized past the point of healthy. I question what they have done. I
know their priority, and it's not health, either yours or mine. Large corporations aided and abetted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) have lowered organic standards. We will not stoop that low. Seeds are
treasures and seed diversification is essential if we are to withstand food viruses such as the one that caused
the Great Potato Famine in Ireland in the 1840s. With proper storage, most seed can last indefinitely. We need to
take back responsibility for our food source and our health. Fortunately, this is neither difficult nor time consuming.
Together we will take back control over nutritional integrity. It can't get more local than when you grow your own -
from your seed. No more worries about the food grown for the masses being tainted because when you grow your
own, that concern is minimal. The fresher your food source, the more nutritious it is. When you grow with your own seed, you and your family don't have to rely on anyone to provide something that you can provide yourself.

What seed we don't grow here in Lewis County, New York, we buy or trade with other small family organic farms. Pesticides, fungicides and chemical fertilizers annihilate soil. The food grown in these conditions isn't healthy.
If the minerals aren't in the soil, they won't be in your food. We believe heirloom seeds go hand in hand with
organic gardening and organic farming. The more people know about how to grow their own food and save seed,
the better. Nutritional information and seed saving how-to come with all vegetable seeds that we sell.
Our goal is to offer the best varieties for you to begin your own seed saving adventure.

We encourage you to save the seeds from individual plants that meet your standards.
We adhere strictly to the Safe Seed pledge, returning to the earth with seed from an earlier time,
before corporations took control over and advantage of our food sources.

Ommas-Aarden Heirloom seed. -- We must work together to assure the future of our
food source. Remember -nutritional information and seed saving instructions comes with all vegetable seeds.

*Genetically Modified (GMO) seeds are patented and require a license fee and a contract to use certain pesticides. Some GMO crops are designed to produce sterile (terminator gene technology) seeds. GMO seeds mix both plant and animal matter in ways that nature never intended. Recent studies showed that GMO crops have 10% lower yields, and create genocide on the cycle of life.
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.........................Ommas-Aarden Seed List for 2009 with more to be added
.................................................~.Available at.my online store ~

..................
.....Beans - Triumph De Farcy - beginner.....Lewis County tested
........................48 days - Slender, crunchy pods have a distinct, rich flavor. Bears very early and very heavily. ........................Harvest frequently to ensure the crop keeps producing.

.....Lettuce - Buttercrunch Bibb - beginner.....Lewis County tested
........................Matures: 50 Days. Dark-green leaves form small, compact rosettes around yellow, blanched
........................hearts. Sweet, crisp leaves have a rich buttery flavor and texture. Our most popular ........................butterhead.
........................
.....Lettuce - Red Romaine Cimarron - beginner .....Lewis County tested
........................Matures: 60 Days. Our best selling romaine ! Add to salads color along with the unmistakable
........................ texture of a delicious romaine. Broad, flat, crisp leaves range from dark red to bronze..
........................
.....Lettuce - Red Saladbowl - beginner.....Lewis County tested
........................Matures: 60 Days. Looseleaf. The beauty, flavor and tenderness of Saladbowl with the
........................color of red-tingedleaves. Excellent flavor, withstands hot weather.
............................................................................
.....Pea - Super Sugarsnap - beginner.....Lewis County tested
........................Matures: 62 Days. Snap pea. Edible pods. increased disease resistance and crisp flavor.
........................Use both as sugar pod or shelled. In my opinion, the best green pea on the planet.
........................5'-6’ vines should be trellised.
.....................................................
.....Tomato - Mt. Roma Paste - beginner.....Lewis County tested
........................Matures: 68 Days. A new earliness standard for tomato pastes.
........................Compact plants produce firm, 2-3 oz elongated fruits, even in cold areas.
........................Bred from the older heinz varieties. Disease resisitant

.....Tomato - Riesentraube Cherry - beginner .....Lewis County tested
........................Matures: 75 Days An old German heirloom from the mid-1800's. Sweet red 1 oz fruit
........................grow in large clusters and the name means "Giant Bunch of Grapes". A popular small
........................tomato with seed collectors. All the flavor of a beefsteak packed into a tomato the size
........................of a large concorde grape..Large plants produce massive yields.

.....Tomato - Mortgage Lifter Beefsteak - beginner.....Lewis County tested
........................Matures: 80 Days. Enormous beefsteak developed in the early 1930's in West Virginia by M.C.                         "Radiator Charlie" Byles. Large, meaty, mild-flavored tomato has few seeds and is the perfect                         tomato sandwich tomato. Ranges  from 21/2 lbs up to 4 lbs each.
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**takes 2 years to make seed
Experienced Seed Saver - will cross with it's own kind
Expert Seed Saver - 2 years to make seed, biennial

The next 3 will cross with each other
....Broccolli - Decicco - experienced.....Lewis County tested
........................Matures: 65 Days.This old-Italian heirloom is the best open-pollinated variety we have
........................tested. Delicious, tender, sweet and dependable. Leave plants in the ground after the
........................first cutting for another harvest in the fall.
........................
**Kale - Dwarf Siberian - expert.....Lewis County tested
........................Matures: 55 Days. Short plants with intensely ruffled, dark-green leaves make this kale
........................easy to mulchfor winter.storage under the snow. In harsh, high altitude gardens, one of
........................the most dependable sources for nutrition.
....
**Brussel Sprouts - Long island Improved - expert .....Lewis County tested
........................Matures: 110 Days -America's most popular, open pollinated brussel sprout. Taller, 24"
........................stalks yield amazing amounts .of sweet, oval shaped. medium- sized sprouts. sweeter
........................and more tender after temperatures fall below freezing.
........................
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**Asparagus - Mary Washington- expert .....Lewis County tested
........................Perrenial - Best of the Washington varieties..Earlier than some - Rust Resistant. Matures
....................... enough to harvest 2nd or 3rd year. If composted well, an asparagus bed could last 20 years.

**Carrot - Scarlet Nantes - expert -.....Lewis County tested
     .................. will cross with other carrots and Queen Anne's Lace, (wild carrot)
     .................. Matures: 65 Days. A timeless heirloom favorite. Bright-orange, very sweet, slightly
     .................. tapered, 6-7" roots with characteristic nantes rounded tip. A good keeper. Excellent for juice.

**Beets - Early Wonder Tall Top - experienced .....Lewis County tested
     .................. Matures: 48 Days Our earliest and most popular variety. Produces an abundance of
     .................. delicious young greens suitable for spring salads and round, exceptionally sweet, 3-4" tubers.
........................
.....Radish - Champion - experienced .....Lewis County tested
........................Matures: 25 Days. Our favorite round, red radish. Exceptionally sweet flavor !
........................Stays crisp even when large.
........................Ideal for extra early harvest in and among later maturing broccoli, brussels sprouts and
........................cabbage.
........................
.....Spinach - Bloomsdale Long Standing - experienced .....Lewis County tested
........................Matures: 42 Days. Sweet, rich flavor and good texture have assured the popularity of this
........................heirloom.for generations. Tender, large, thick crinkled, deep green leaves on upright stems.
........................
.. ..Cucumber - Marketmore 76- experienced .....Lewis County tested
........................Matures: 76 Days. A trustworthy gauge for taste/reliability. Consistently produces through hot
....................... and cool weather. Perfect dark-green, 8-9" cukes. Always crisp. Always sweet. Disease resistant.
.......
Melons, squashes and pumpkins will cross with each other in the same family, it's best to keep at a distance
.....Squash - Baby Blue Hubbard (rare) - experienced.....Lewis County tested
........................Matures: 99 Days. Very very rare. Save seeds from those that mature first. Very flavorful.
........................
....Zucchini - Black - experienced .....Lewis County tested
........................Matures: 46 Days. Because of its storage and shipping qualities, black zucchini has
....................... become the favorite for market gardeners. Dark-green, long, straight, cylindrical fruits
........................on fairly heavy bush.
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