Ask Stephanie
Georgia Organics Adminstrative & Membership Coordinator Stephanie Hass has a Bachelor's degree in Horticulture (University of Georgia, Athens). She's an experienced gardener and is taking questions from growers at stephanie@georgiaorganics.org. Plus, she's sassy.
March 2010
Q: When shopping for plants and seeds, what’s the difference between genetically modified, cultivated and heirloom varieties?
Thank you for your question, it has successfully awakened the cogs in my brain this morning. These are the differences between GMOs (Genetically Modified Organisms), Cultivars, and Heirloom varieties.
GMOs, like their name suggests, are crops that have had their genes physically altered at seed. The most common example is the “terminator gene” created by the USDA (in collaboration with corporate interests). They have effectively restricted gene expression such that the second generations of a crop’s seeds are sterile. This is beneficial to those who seek to have a monopoly on specific varieties of plants; however, the effects on biodiversity could be devastating. The concern is that these plants would pollinate (by wind) neighboring non- GMO species and render them sterile a well.
Cultivar is an abbreviation of 'cultivated variety'. Each cultivar is a different version of a plant species that is not genetically different enough to be a separate species. They can be produced by natural mutations, bred deliberately, or they can be discovered in the wild. Typically, cultivars are the result of parent plants that are crossed for their desirable characteristics. Cultivars can show wide variation or they can be heavily selected through multiple crosses. A cultivar’s name is typically noted in single quotes ( i.e. Cryptomeria japonica 'Elegans').
There is some debate over what is technically considered an “heirloom” variety. There is a school of thought that says the true-to-type seed of a plant must exist for a length of time (be it 50 or 100 years) before it can be deemed heirloom, and there is another that suggests that any seed variety predating 1945 (the proposed inception of conventional breeding) is an heirloom variety. The idea behind both suggestions is that these plants are authentically reflective of what has been grown throughout a significant period of human history. Heirlooms have cultivars that are either naturally occurring or selected for, as do conventional varieties. These plants are not used in large scale agriculture, and they are typically grown by gardeners who have an interest in history, fostering diversity (as these plants are open- pollinated) and flavor.
I hope this is helpful to you, and I hope that you can now choose your plants with these elements in mind, enabling you to make decisions that are best suited for your garden.
Best,
Stephanie Hass