Heirloom Seeds

All these varieties have been passed down through multiple generations of gardeners because of their outstanding qualities, whether that's amazing flavor, beautiful looks, disease resistance, storability, or vigorous growth and high yields. There is some debate in the seed world about what qualifies as an "heirloom" - at Sow True, we define "heirloom" as having been developed before the advent of industrial agriculture. All the varieties in this collection have been around since 1950 or earlier. Many of them date to the 19th century, and a few are even older!  Did you know that all heirloom seeds are open-pollinated, but not all open-pollinated seeds are heirlooms? Some great OP varieties were developed very recently.

Showing 49–72 of 247 results

Drying Bean Seeds - Six Nations Iroquois

Phaseolus vulgaris HEIRLOOM. Six Nations Iroquois is a variety of beautiful cranberry-type beans that are cream-colored and splattered with burgundy markings. Bush-type plants are heavy producers of beans that have great...

Drying Bean Seeds - Tiger Eye

Phaseolus vulgaris From Chile or Argentina, these beans have a rich and meaty flavor with skins so thin they seem to disappear! Dried beans are a lovely amber color with...

Drying Bean Seeds - Whipple

Phaseolus vulgaris HEIRLOOM. Although its exact history is lost to time, this old family heirloom is named after a pioneering family who settled in Oregon's Willamette Valley in the mid-19th...

Eggplant Seeds - Kopek, ORGANIC

Solanum melongena HEIRLOOM. This very rare eggplant variety was collected by the USDA in South Africa in 1956, but we suspect it is likely much older and may have originated...

Eggplant Seeds - Listada de Gandia, ORGANIC

Solanum melongena HEIRLOOM. Elegant, oval-shaped white fruits with striking purple stripes make this Spanish eggplant a standout. The compact, 14-inch-tall plants thrive in very hot weather, and are prolific producers...

Eggplant Seeds - Long Purple

Solanum melongena HEIRLOOM. Long Purple eggplant is a very heavy producer of tender and slender Italian-style fruit with gorgeous dark purple coloring and mild flavor. Stocky plants grow up to...

Eggplant Seeds - Rosa Bianca

Solanum melongena This Italian heirloom produces enticing lavender fruits with white blushing, adored by chefs and home gardeners alike for their creamy texture and no bitterness. Harvest when softball sized...

Endive Seeds - Green Curled Ruffec

Cichorium endivia HEIRLOOM. This old French heirloom, sometimes known as frisée, is a cold-hardy green with heavily serrated, frilly leaves, and white-blanching hearts when grown to full size. It can...

Fava Bean Seeds - Aquadulce

Vicia faba Give these fava beans a long, cool season and they’ll produce loads of 12- to 16-inch long pods full of huge beans with rich flavor and a wonderful...

Flint Corn Seeds - Japanese White Hulless Popcorn

Zea mays HEIRLOOM. This refined variety of popcorn pops up tender and flavorful with no hard hull pieces. Vigorous 4-5' tall plants produce several stubby 4-inch ears each. This variety...

Flint Corn Seeds - Pennsylvania Dutch Butter Flavored Popcorn, ORGANIC

Zea mays HEIRLOOM. Grow your own popcorn that’s so flavorful, you’ll hardly need butter! Growers widely agree that this is the best popcorn they’ve ever tasted. Vigorous, 8-foot-tall stalks produce...

Gourd Seeds - Birdhouse Bottle

Lagenaria siceraria HEIRLOOM. Bottle gourds, also known as birdhouse gourds or calabash, are known for their rounded shape, which makes them perfect for making containers, large scoops, musical instruments, and...

Gourd Seeds - Luffa

Luffa aegyptiaca HEIRLOOM. Luffa plants have so much more to offer than just bath sponges! Grow them for their ornamental, care-free, rampantly exuberant vines which produce lovely 2" yellow flowers...

Gourd Seeds - Tennessee Spinning Top

Cucurbita pepo HEIRLOOM. Small 2-5" bottle-shaped gourds with green striping. The dried gourds are great for ornamental and craft use. Children used to spin the dried gourds like tops. Direct...

Hot Pepper Seeds - Cayenne Long Red Thin

Capsicum annuum HEIRLOOM. The (in)famous pepper! 4-6" long fruits arrive early and ripen from green to red. Thin walls makes for easy drying. Why buy Cayenne from the grocery store...

Hot Pepper Seeds - Chinese 5-Color

Capsicum annuum HEIRLOOM - Fruits start out a gorgeous, royal purple and as they mature they run through the rainbow transforming from purple to cream, yellow, orange, and red once...

Hot Pepper Seeds - Fish Pepper, ORGANIC

Capsicum annuum ORGANIC. HEIRLOOM. Fish pepper probably came to the United States from the Caribbean in the late 1800s, and quickly became a garden staple among the African American community...

Hot Pepper Seeds - Serrano Tampiqueño

Capsicum annuum HEIRLOOM. A pungent pepper, in the nose-clearing yet addictive sort of way. 30" plants produce abundant 2" fruits that ripen from green to red. Excellent for a wide...

Italian Softneck Garlic

Allium sativum ARTICHOKE TYPE--  A wonderful old Italian heirloom that has been stewarded by our grower in New York state for decades. Lovely, spicy flavor gives just the right amount...

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Kale Seeds - Lacinato, ORGANIC

Brassica oleracea ORGANIC. HEIRLOOM. The Italian darling of gourmands the world over! Also popular with kids for its nickname: Dinosaur Kale. Dark green, deeply savoyed leaves conjure images of prehistoric...

Kale Seeds - Red Russian

Brassica napus HEIRLOOM -From Russia, by way of Canada, with love. With reddish purple petioles and veins, these delicately lobed leaves change from grey to purple as the weather cools....

Kale Seeds - Willem’s Blue Groninger, ORGANIC

Brassica napus HEIRLOOM. ORGANIC. This seedstock came to us from Experimental Farm Network, who received it from seedsaver Willem van Leeuwen of Pennsylvania. Willem's Blue Groninger kale originated in Groningen,...

Kohlrabi Seeds - Purple Vienna

Brassica oleracea HEIRLOOM. Slightly larger than Early White Vienna, this standard home and market variety features purple skinned bulbs with greenish-white flesh and small tops.

Leek Seeds - Giant Musselburgh

Allium porrum HEIRLOOM. Only the toughest leeks could come from Scotland, and this one rises to the occasion! Exceptional variety, very cold hardy with large stalks that grow to be...