Question | Types of seeds?

[Scrappy Coco]

Greetings,

I've just recently joined this forum, about five minutes ago or so, and I'm all-ready to get started. I've been searching on online shopping sites for seed packs, and I've finally found one that I fancy. Now the issue that I've come across to is the following - The company or person who are selling the seed packs have declared the following, "All of our seeds are non-hybrid, non-gmo, heirloom", which immediately dissuaded me from buying it. And the reason that stands behind my fear for that declaration is, I'm neither a native speaker, nor native American, whether it seems like it or not, and I just couldn't find the right translation for that sentence. Is it normal, though? "Non-hybrid, non-gmo, heirloom"? Is it supposed to be like that? And if so, what does it mean?

Thank you for your time and assistance in advanced, Liron.

[Scrappy Coco]

Thank you very much for the assistance Marlin, I appreciate it.

[tomc]

Greetings,

I've just recently joined this forum, about five minutes ago or so, and I'm all-ready to get started. I've been searching on online shopping sites for seed packs, and I've finally found one that I fancy. Now the issue that I've come across to is the following - The company or person who are selling the seed packs have declared the following, "All of our seeds are non-hybrid, non-gmo, heirloom", which immediately dissuaded me from buying it. And the reason that stands behind my fear for that declaration is, I'm neither a native speaker, nor native American, whether it seems like it or not, and I just couldn't find the right translation for that sentence. Is it normal, though? "Non-hybrid, non-gmo, heirloom"? Is it supposed to be like that? And if so, what does it mean?

Thank you for your time and assistance in advanced, Liron.

Liron welcome,

There are (to me anyway) both reasoned and irrational fears expressed in the declaration of "Non-hybrid, non-gmo, heirloom" status.

My milage on this topic is not going to be the same as every one else's.

Fear issues:
GMO = genetically modified organisms is a concept promoted to make an intelectual patent out of providentially provided biome. A genetically modified organism, once modified can't be undone. It is an ephemeral fix for permanent conditions (like predation), that uses (for example) fractions of tetracycline as markers for its intelectual ownership. GMO's also often have resistance to Roundup built in which has other health issues.

There are usual and customary botanic terms that all seed companies use. The term "heirloom" were arrived at by consensus with some seed savers (about 30 years ago). It has no universally accepted meaning by patent offices anywhere. So, as a result some growers mean it to be an "open pollinated" plant, in production at least 50 years. Other less scrupulous growers use 'heirloom' to mean pretty much anything they please.

Hybrid (or F1 hybrid) means the first generation of a specific pair of closely related plants that tend to grow uniformly and nearly identically. Often with added vigor. That clonal vigor goes away if you plant the F2 generation of those plants and they revert to parental characteristics. Seed savers often cannot be bothered to grow out the six or seven generations it takes to select back to the parents.

The people with the biggest bone to pick with F1 hybrid seed, are seed savers like me. The people with the biggest problem around GMO are still speculative, but if inital study is correct, its suppresion of fertility of people and livestock might be "one a those problems" people just won't get over.

[watermelonpunch]

"All of our seeds are non-hybrid, non-gmo, heirloom", which immediately dissuaded me from buying it

Interesting. Since that sentence is meant as a positive attribute & selling point, rather than a warning.
(obviously directed at an organic lover target market)

Maybe seed sellers ought to consider this, and rather than this simple vague pop-culture politically loaded lingo type thing, simply state what the seeds behave like in plain language.

It certainly highlights the problems with politically loaded labels becoming meaningless & only seen as tag lines used by "those people who... [fill in the blank]".

[cynthia_h]

That particular language (set of words) is known as The Safe Seed Pledge (it's actually a shortened form of the Pledge; see links below). Independent seed sellers agreed on it in 1999 to differentiate themselves from "large" (mostly farm-seed) sellers and assure their gardening customers that they were buying seeds that would breed true, that had no "Roundup Ready" characteristics, and the like.

If gardeners (us) have different wording suggestions for The Safe Seed Pledge, it's probably going to be more effective to communicate these suggestions directly to the seed sellers so that they can consider the changes and perhaps update The Safe Seed Pledge.

For more background, see

Council for Responsible Genetics

High Mowing Seeds (with complete statement of Safe Seed Pledge)

Cynthia H.
Sunset Zone 17, USDA Zone 9

[Susan W]

SC is right in asking, especially as being new to the game. Thank you Cynthia for clarifications as that does help.

Every discipline, or whatever you want to call it, has code words and vocabulary. There are many here who couldn't read a yarn catalog, but is totally ingrained in my vocabulary. And the other part is using the buzz words for most effectiveness, the most punch and hopefully the Sale! I mentioned a vendor at the farmers market explaining her heirloom tomato starts. When asked what 'heirloom' means, she replied, well, it's not gmo. She didn't lie, but using buzz words for effectiveness.