By: Carson Arthur
With all of the research I’ve been doing into vegetable gardens lately, I’ve decided that I want to invest in heirloom varieties this year.
For the last few years we have been hearing about the foods that we are eating being GMO (Genetically Modified). I’m going to confess that while I was aware of this, I didn’t really take the next step and apply it to my own life.
Now that there is more research coming out and more experts raising the red flag, I am officially paying attention. GMO’s are vegetables that have been altered on a genetic level by scientists manipulating their DNA strands.
This is done for various different reasons like production and the health of the plant. While this doesn’t sound that scary, new varieties of corn, wheat and soy that are ‘Round-Up Ready’ get me a little nervous.
I have used this powerful weed killer very sparingly outdoors on the weeds that I couldn’t naturally eliminate.
To think that we now have plants that can survive being saturated by these chemicals because of artificial genetic manipulation doesn’t do anything for my appetite! Instead, I invested in an heirloom seed company right here in Quinte called Edible Antiques.ca. Now I’m going to grow varieties that were raised by gardeners and not by scientists.
Want to save seeds like a pro? Here are the simple steps that I recently learned to growing your own heirloom tomatoes from scratch!
1. Start with a squishy tomato from the farmer’s market or your local grocer. Riper tomatoes are easier to work with when trying to remove the seeds.
2. Cut the tomato in half and using your finger, start scooping the seeds into a jar with a lid.
3. Once you have all of the seeds scooped out into the jar, add a few tablespoons of water. Give it a little shake and tightly seal the jar. The bad seeds and the meat of the tomato will float to the top while the good seeds sink!
4. Put your jar in the window or on the fridge. (This part is a little gross) You are trying to promote mold! Fermenting your seeds helps to remove the jelly-like casing off the seed so that it will keep longer.
5. After 3-5 days, drain the smelly water from the jar, carefully saving the seeds that have settled on the bottom.
6. Put these seeds out on your BEST china. (I’m not sure why, but they seem to know when you use the cheap stuff.) Once the seeds have dried out on your plate, they can be used right away or saved in a labeled envelope for up to 10 years!
It’s really that easy to save your own seeds but if you still want safe food and don’t have the time or patience to harvest seeds, just order them online like I did! Whichever way works best for you, grow the food that you are going to eat! Avoid the chemicals and have confidence that you are really eating nature’s best.
Many thanks to our guest blogger Carson Arthur