Heritage Seed Library

13/10/2026

Here's your first sneak preview from the ! This is a blushingly beautiful celery from our Collection, first introduced in 1894. 🩷

This hardy, traditional trench celery variety produces large, pink stems that can be blanched easily and quickly. Retains its colour even when cooked!

Like the sound of this seed? Don't miss the launch of our 2027 Seed List on 17 November! And if you're not a member, head to gardenorganic.org.uk/join to support our charity's vital conservation work.

08/10/2026

We had a brilliant time at The Organic Growers Gathering, facilitating a seed swap between growers at Sandy Lane Farm, in Oxfordshire.

Gardeners had the opportunity to get their hands on Heritage Seed Library varieties such as 'Alex' pea - an extraordinary variety with 12 peas to the pod 🫛 - and 'MacGregor's Favourite' beetroot, a multipurpose variety grown for both its tender leaves and long cylindrical roots.

Thanks to everyone who came to support us and the event.

07/10/2026

Last week we were delighted to be hosted by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and the team at River Cottage. Fifty supporters of the Heritage Seed Library (HSL) gathered to celebrate 50 years of this remarkable initiative. We discussed HSL's fantastic and vital work, and shared ideas of how to develop and grow for the next 50 years.

The River Cottage team cooked up a delicious lunch of Heritage Seed Library veg, grown on site, and we enjoyed an interesting tour of the garden with head gardener Graham. Our thanks to everyone who joined us, and to LGT Wealth Management for supporting the event.

If you missed Fiona's interview with Hugh on our podcast earlier this year, you can listen again at https://audioboom.com/posts/8903968-inside-the-river-cottage-kitchen-garden-with-hugh-fearnley-whittingstall

05/10/2026

We're excited to announce that our will be launching on 17 November! This year's has:

✨165 beautiful heritage vegetable varieties – a new record!
✨27 newly introduced heritage vegetable seeds
✨107 varieties certified as organic
✨6 seeds to try, if you're a member
✨1 amazing way to support our charity & conserve heritage seeds

Keep your eyes on our socials for updates, sneak previews and behind-the-scenes visuals. And, if you're not a member of the Heritage Seed Library, visit gardenorganic.org.uk/join to become part of a growing movement of seed champions!

02/10/2026

Catrina, head of the Heritage Seed Library is taking part in a Seed Guardian panel event in Derby, 1pm-2pm, on 3 October - as part of the We Feed The World project.

The Seeds Take Root event marks the closing of the five-month The Gaia Foundation project, which combines storytelling with photographers, poets and inspiring custodians of soil and sea.

Find out more and book https://wefeedtheworld.org/event/derby-event-the-seeds-take-root/

Free event at QUAD and Electric Daisy, Derby. Photo exhibition, film screenings, seed panel and workshops, composting, music and celebration.

02/10/2026

Our seed relay has reached our volunteer Seed Guardian Christine. She's chosen the Scottish 'Alex' pea to grow in her lovely garden in Ayr.

She says: "I grew this variety last year for the Heritage Seed Library - so it’s lovely to think the relay seeds may be the ones grown here and they have come full circle!

"I first grew the seeds while working as Education Gardener at Dumfries House, when we entered into a partnership with Garden Organic to demonstrate heritage varieties. My daughter, also called Alex, worked in the garden with me and one of her specific responsibilities was to design the planting plan of the 'Heritage Seed Bed', including the Alex pea. As the variety also comes from Ayrshire - all these coincidences mean this variety holds a special place in my heart."

Thank you for these fantastic Chris - and for the incredible work you do for the HSL! 🙌

01/10/2026

Catrina, our head of the Heritage Seed Library, picked up a lovely harvest of 'Kew Blue' climbing French beans from Kew Gardens recently 💜 The team at Kew Gardens have been growing these as HSL Seed Guardians this year.

This variety has been handed down for at least three generations. The purple-pink flowers are complemented by purple-tinged leaves and stems, and followed by flat purple pods.

What a beautiful harvest!

29/09/2026

Join us at Transition Worcester Community Garden for a fascinating talk and interactive workshop about seed saving on 22 October.

We'll be leading a hands-on session so you can prepare seeds for storage, including both wet (tomatoes) and dry (beans) techniques. And sharing more about our project - which aims to conserve, share, and safeguard rare, heirloom vegetable seeds across the Midlands.

The session, part of week, runs 1pm-3pm. Find out more and book at https://ow.ly/YLOl50ZSiMt

25/09/2026

Food culture and resilience for future generations can get passed on in a single seed 🫘 This was the theme of our talk at the recent Future Food Symposium.

Research manager Anton Rosenfeld and Heritage Seed Library seed officer & community horticultural project coordinator Lucy Shepherd gave a number of presentations, including one about 'Growing Resilience from the Ground Up', which looked at community conservation of heritage crops for a changing world. The talk told stories of how seeds travel with families and contain memories of people, even after they have died - and demonstrated how the HSL preserves so much more than just seeds in its collection.

The online annual event was hosted by the University of Nottingham, University of Essex, University of Reading, University of Sussex and the University of Birmingham. It brought together researchers, practitioners, policymakers and advocates at the cutting edge of food systems research and practice. A great event.

(This lovely illustration was created by Emma Lazell)

24/09/2026

The 50th anniversary celebrations for our Heritage Seed Library continue as our unique Seed Relay arrives at Dumfries House - home of The King's Foundation.

Education gardener Julie Dougall has chosen pea 'Gladstone' to sow in the organic education garden at the 18th-century stately home - where the grounds are managed entirely on sustainable gardening practices. A big thank you to the Foundation for including our heritage seeds in its plans. 🌱

Find out more about how you can take part in our celebrations at gardenorganic.org.uk/hsl-50-anniversary.