Quote:
Originally Posted by Dalmatiansoap
Can someone plaese somehow translate/explain what "heiloom" realy stands for. It is a bit strange for me. Sorry  |
No problem. About 100 years ago in the U.S. there was a practice of selling "heirloom" seed -- especially grain seed. The price paid was high. There were some sellers of seed who would sell any seeds they could obtain as "heirloom". Farmers brought lawsuits against these sellers because the resulting crops were poor quality. A court in California (among others) established that seed labeled as "heirloom" must be at a minimum:
- Off-patent. This means that the seed is from plants whose U.S. Patent has expired (only takes 2 decades) or has been in circulation so long that it is not elligible for patent
- Reproduces true from seed when fertilized by pollen of the same cultivar
Over the years, advertisers have added things like "open pollination" and other gimmicks, but the reality in the U.S. is that only the above two requirements be met. So for example, the Burpee hybrid "Better Boy" is an heirloom.