Don’t be intimidated by terms on seed packages

When I was growing up, most of the vegetable seeds for our market garden arrived in February. I loved checking out the 50-pound bags of corn and pea seeds to discover what new varieties Mom and Dad had ordered. Carrying the promise of the harvest to come, the labels often had tantalizing photographs of mature, deliciouslooking vegetables. But they also had a lot of jargon that had me mystified, phrases like “an indeterminate, F1 hybrid with VFN resistance.” I suspect I’m not the only one who’s been intimidated by the seed package wording, so here’s what you need to know about the terms.

Variety is the single most important piece of information on any seed packet. The quality of the seed variety determines the quality of the harvest. Think of them like you would ingredients in a recipe. Quality yields quality. My best advice is to listen to the recommendations of friends, family and garden centre staff about varieties they love, and then be adventurous and try a few new varieties each year

Canada No. 1 is the grade standard for seed sold in Canada and is simply a way of assuring the buyer that the seed purchased is free of noxious weeds and that a high percentage of the seed will germinate. There is such a thing as Canada No. 2 seed, but I don’t recall seeing that designation on a vegetable seed label. If you find a No. 2 on a seed package, I’d give sober second thought before sowing it.

F1 hybrid means the seed is “first filial,” which refers to its genetic background. For example, if two very good varieties of corn (one with long cobs and one with sweet kernels) are each inbred in separate fields, the result is two separate, highly uniform varieties. One has nothing but long cobs; the other nothing but sweet kernels. If the two varieties are then crossbred, the result is (one hopes) a very uniform variety with long, sweet cobs. This new variety is a first generation hybrid or F1. Hybrids are grown for their near 100 per cent uniformity. With few to no rogue seeds in a package of hybrid seed, you get exactly what you pay for.

Open pollinated seed is like a wild child. Whereas F1 hybrids are all about uniformity and consistency, open pollinated vegetable varieties are not isolated. That means any pollen randomly floating through the air could be the parent material of the seed. Although there’s a greater chance of “off types,” the re- ality is there’s little variation in the seed. I’ve grown many open pollinated vegetables and have always found great uniformity.

Heirloom simply refers to seeds passed down from generation to generation. Tomatoes are among the cherished heirloom varieties. Let’s face it, tomato and other vegetable seeds wouldn’t be passed down unless they had some great attributes. The downside is many heirloom varieties lack the disease resistance of modern hybrids, but the shortcomings are often offset by superior flavour and texture. It’s a worthwhile trade-off.

VFN stands for verticillium, fusarium and nematodes and is commonly found on tomato seed packets. Yes, I know, this terminology makes F1 hybrid sound simple, but the good news is you don’t need to dissect these terms. The designation simply means the variety is resistant to root diseases (verticillium and fusarium) and small wormlike microorganisms (nematodes, which aren’t a problem in our area). You may also see packages with other uppercase letters (such as TMV) that refer to serious diseases of specific vegetables. If microbiology is your thing, then you’ll likely find terms like VFN exciting. Everyone else will just think OMG and LOL.

While it’s good to have an understanding of the information on seed la- bels, don’t be intimidated by the terms.

Over the years, what I’ve learned is that although seeds love warmth and moisture, they’re completely oblivious to jargon.

And no matter how much I learn about seeds, I’m still inspired by the pretty pictures on the new seeds we order.