The Open Pollinated Seeds Overview – Are They Really Needed?
The world that we live in today is fast changing. Changing is the opportunity for better paying jobs and changing is the health of majority of individuals. Thus, people are becoming more health conscious about themselves and their new generations too. While consuming food, people now bother to check if it has been produced with healthy and natural seeds or not. The quality of vegetables and food stuffs available in the market today is degrading day by dag with much of adulteration. People have now started planting their own seeds in the garden because of its natural goodness and ample availability at times when needed. However, before using open pollinated seeds, you need to consider certain factors so as to make sure that you have bought the best.
Any seed catalog would have you poring through a wide variety of seeds on offer. Most of these seeds in these catalogs are said to be hybrid. These hybrids are the result of seeds obtained from plants that have been cross pollinated. For instance if two different tomato plants have different traits, both of which are desirable, the plants will be cross pollinated. The hybrid seed is obtained from the plant that has been cross pollinated.
Hybrid seed really began to dominate the seed market after World War II. Until then, most of the seed used was open pollinated. Hybrid seed often produces bigger crops than open pollinated, but the seed produced from hybrids is basically useless. Much of the seed from a hybrid will be sterile, and the resultant plants will not be the same as the parent. The plant will often have undesirable qualities that will ruin it as a food plant. Besides hybrid seed, there is now genetically modified seed. This seed is the result of the splicing of DNA from one organism into the plant. Such traits as ability to use only one kind of fertilizer, or the ability to repel insects are often put into genetically modified seed. There has been little or no testing done about the possible long-term effects of the resultant plants on those who eat them.
Open pollinated seeds, on the other hand, is nature’s product. Open pollinated or heirloom seed will ‘breed true’ year after year, because there has been no alteration of the plant’s genetic material. You will be able to use open pollinated seed that you save year after year, with no compromise in quality.
Even though it is probable that you will be saving the seed from your harvest, you must get the seed in the first place. There are several options available when you decide to use open pollinated seed. It is quite possible to use ordinary seed catalogs to choose your seeds. Most of these will label whether the seed offered is hybrid or heirloom (open pollinated). You can pick through the offerings and make up a list of open pollinated seeds without too much trouble.
While you have the option of saving seed from the harvest, your initial crops would require you to get seed to grow them. If you prefer to use open pollinated seed there are a number of options that become available. Seed catalogs would have the options for you and you can quite easily see whether your choice of seed is of the heirloom which is the open pollinated variety or of the hybrid type. This allows you to make a list of the open pollinated seeds that you want without much of trouble.
The source of open pollinated seeds sold by major seed companies may not be to your liking. Some open pollinated seeds that come from foreign sources may not have come from plants that have been properly supervised to grow seeds that are healthy and free of pesticide.
There are companies that specialize in open pollinated seeds and these are the best sources for purchase of such seeds. The best seeds are the ones that have been produced by small United States farmers that follow the practices in use for organic farming. Such companies offer seed survival packages or single packets of seeds that will be sufficient to grow vegetable plants in an acre of land. You need to confirm that the seeds have been independently tested for germination to ensure their freshness.
Stored seeds are prone to deterioration by the effects of insects, mold and moisture. Excessive moisture can lead to the growth of mold. Moldy seeds are of no use. Moreover, insects try to eat away the seeds if the packaging is not proper. Insects use these seeds as their food. Thus, while storing seeds you should be cautious about these factors.
Make sure that the open pollinated survival seeds that you purchase are properly packaged. The best packaging is probably mylar, and many of the companies selling open pollinated seeds will enclose their seeds in this. Not only will mylar keep the seeds safe from moisture and insects, it will also protect them from the deleterious effects of the light. Most seeds packaged in mylar can be kept for five years, and if they are frozen, will last for ten.
