Old Traditional Vegetables

Thank-you for your interest in the old traditional vegetable varieties. It has now been over 30 years since the hobby of saving our endangered food heritage became a registered business as Eden Seeds. In the late 1980's plant variety right legislation brought Australia in line with other Western nations to enable greater patenting of newly bred varieties for those who could afford it and had an interest in new hybrids.

In that time an estimated 60% of open pollinated varieties have disappeared from the major seed company lists. We have a small a small and dedicated band of growers keen to return seed to us to ensure that some of these dropped varieties remain available to home gardens and many small commercial vegetable growers.
 

The Largest Range

We have the largest range of old traditional vegetable and flower varieties on offer in Australia as well as herbs, trees, grains, green manures and seeds for sprouting. So thank-you to those keen growers. By using these seeds in your garden you support them in their endeavours. Seed saving techniques are not hard to learn and many varieties may be saved from any sunny household garden. Several well researched publications are available with the Seed Savers Network of Australia publication of such high standing that it is now translated into several languages.
 

Best Quality

The old varieties are our Food Heritage, selected to be the hardiest, most nutritious and best tasting.
 

Hybrids are Genetically Modified

Most concern about genetically modified food today centres around splicing of genes from one species into another. However the every day hybrid most often found in every supermarket is also genetically modified by man's interference with the natural pollination process. Hybrids are the result of closing of the vegetable flower and pollinating it from itself. This is an inbred. Then two inbreds are forcefully pollinated to create a hybrid which is nominated F1. When these are further closed and forcefully pollinated the result is known and F2.

Once again, thank-you for supporting our company and our growers who wish to give you the choice to use open pollinated varieties for your enjoyment and benefit.

Enjoy your gardening.