A Closer Look

I oppose the genetic modification of seed. Altering the genetic makeup of seed would interfere adversely with the entire ecosystem. It is certainly not the answer to world hunger. Some of the profits from the purchase of non-organic seed goes to research into genetic modification. People who buy this seed usually do so without knowing or thinking about this fact.

I also oppose the patenting of seed. Seed varieties do not "belong" to one person or company or nation. Seeds and plants evolve over time to suit a particular environment, and rightly belong to everyone. In a nutshell, by patenting seed, powerful nations could gain control over food supply of vulnerable countries. This has already started to happen and must be spoken out about and stopped.

Some commercially produced seeds have chemical coatings, some of which are very harmful to health. Seed offered here has had no such treatment and can be handled safely.

An F1 hybrid is a cross-fertilisation between two particular parent plants, known only to the breeder. By crossing in this way, many large seed companies have control over what varieties they breed and their customers have to return to buy more each year. Also in the main they are breeding seed for commercial production - that is to get a harvest all at once, and to get tough crops that will survive miles of transportation. This often entails controlling the crop with chemical fertilisers, herbicides, fungicides, and pesticides. Good flavour is very often sacrificed along the way.

Organic seed, by contrast, is open-pollinated. This means that you can save your own seed and always grow an identical crop in the future. The varieties offered on this website are ideally suited to the home-grower or allotment holder by having a long cropping season, and they will yield tender vegetables with delicious flavour.

Save your own seed It is currently the case that a small number of people representing large companies have the last say in 'looking after' our genetic heritage. This cannot be right, and is certainly not right or good practice in our opinion. Many varieties have already become extinct because of this. Therefore we encourage you to save seed and safeguard our bio-diversity. The more people who save seeds, the stronger and the wider our genetic heritage will be. Plants adapt to the environment they are in. The plant, as an organism, will respond to its environment. By collecting, and re-sowing the seeds of a variety of plant, means that the variety is given new start and an opportunity to adapt for future generations.