What is an Antique/Heirloom flower?
The most widely accepted definition is antique or heirloom flowers are open-pollinated varieties that originated 50 or more years ago. Open-pollinated flowers are fertilized by insects, hummingbirds or wind, and the resulting seeds will produce plants that are identical or very similar to the parent plant.
Heirlooms have typically adapted to whatever climate and soil they’re grown in and are resistant to that region’s pests, diseases and weather extremes.
The definition of the word heirloom, when describing plants, is highly debated. Here are some opinions:
1. The age or date point on cultivars must be over 100 years old.
2. Must be older than 50 years.
3. Anything prior to 1945 (the end of WW II). This was the beginning of widespread hybrid use by growers and seed companies.
4. 1951 is the last year a plant can be originated and still be called an heirloom. That was the year widespread introductions of the first hybrid varieties hit the markets
5. Another set of experts declare heirloom cultivars those plants that have been nurtured, selected and handed down from one family member to another for many generations.
There is another definition similar, but definitely different, called “commercial heirlooms.” They were introduced generations ago and had enough merit to have been saved, maintained and handed down even when the seed company or business has gone out of business and the seeds have been dropped from the market.
For the rest of Diane Gibson's column, see the Nov. 19 Galva News.
