# Difference Between Heirloom and Organic Seeds ?



## Meerkat (May 31, 2011)

Can somebody tell the the difference in these two seeds .I can't see how there could really be a difference if its organic it should be from heirlooms.


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## goatlady (Nov 7, 2011)

Organic means it's grown without chemicals or chemical sprays and it is NOT genetically modified. Heirloon means an old variety seed which can be, or not, grown organically. Hybrid seeds can be organic or not, but never open pollinated (which means you can save the seed from year to year and when planted you WILL get the exact same original veggie). Cannot do that with hybrid seed - they will revert to one of the original parent plants crossed to produce the hybrid. Some hybrids can be heirlooms as some varieties have been around a loooong time. For survival gardening purposes most folks choose open pollinated seed so they will HAVE good seed when the economy/country collapses and there are no seeds to buy commercially.


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## siletz (Aug 23, 2011)

Yep, what goatlady said. Heirloom is just a way to say that variety has been around for awhile. So, if that variety of tomato has been around for 50 years or so, then it could be called an heirloom variety. Organic has to do with how the plant was grown that the seed came from. No pesticides were used in the growing of the plant that made the seeds you're buying.


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