Why are growing numbers of people choosing to buy seeds from Irish Seed Savers?

The ethos here at Irish Seed Savers Association, is to conserve and distribute wonderful rare and heritage varieties, as well as to encourage the skills of saving your own seed and empowering people to do this in their own gardens, small holdings or farms.

All of our seeds are grown and saved in Ireland and are Open Pollinated which allows you to save your own seeds from them, keeping the variety true to type. By choosing Irish Seed Savers Open Pollinated Seeds you contribute to keeping food security in your own hands and Irish agricultural biodiversity alive and vibrant.

Download 2023 Heirloom Seed Catalogue

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Verdonnet Leek

€3.50

Originally from Switzerland, this old landrace was selected and bred by a Swiss farmer. We shared the seeds of this variety with our friends at Adaptive Seeds in the Pacific Northwest of the USA, where they have been undertaking leek trials. This reliable leek has good large stalks, dark green leaves and is hardy through winter. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 250

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Waltham Butternut Squash

€3.50

This is a vigorous and dependable variety, producing between four and seven fruits per vine. The lightly tanned, smooth skinned, bottle-shaped fruits have fine-textured, golden orange flesh. Exceptionally good keepers, this variety is perfect for storage if you can resist cooking up the fruits straightaway. The fruit have a small seed cavity with a low seed count, so it’s well worth saving your own!

Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 10

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Carruthers Purple Pod Pea

€3.50

This pea came from Patrick Carruthers in Co. Down, where it has been grown and saved for 25 years. Growing up to 1.6m, with lovely magenta flowers that are followed by striking purple pods. The young peas can be eaten fresh but are also great if left to mature and dry for winter storage, especially as purple pea varieties such as this one tend to be richer and less sweet than the greens. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 50

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McAnallen Sunflower

€3.75 (€3.75 incl VAT)

This is a remarkably large and robust sunflower. With food or oil crops in mind for the future this variety has serious potential. It is a striking and lovely plant, and also supports hordes of pollinator insects and birdlife. These flowers have been a gorgeous talking point in the Seed Savers gardens over the summers. Kindly donated by Brendan (RIP) & Bridget McAnallen of Co. Tyrone. Average seeds per pack 15

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Salsify

€3.50

A somewhat forgotten, mild-flavoured root vegetable highly deserved of attention. Opinions vary on taste ranging from Oyster-like to Asparagus or Artichoke. The wild crop relative of this cultivated crop was gathered by the Greeks and Romans for medicinal use for liver and gallbladder treatments and it was a staple on Victorian dinner plates. Michel Roux Jr, the Michelin-starred chef said: “Salsify is one of the most versatile and tasty root vegetables – from raw in coleslaw to roasted with spices. Truly delicious.” Also, a wonderful plant to have in the garden, growing to 100cm, for its beautiful edible purple flowers blooming from spring to autumn. Attractive to wildlife. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 150

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Sweet Pea

€3.75 (€3.75 incl VAT)

This tall, climbing sweet pea has traditional old-fashioned mix of pink, white, mauve and purple colours, and that most lovely evocative fragrance. Best given support to get the most out of this lovely flower. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 15

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Clay Pot Corn

€3.50

This maize corn variety gets its name from the clay pots that the seed was found in. The history of this corn goes back to the Anasazi people some 500 years ago, with this seed coming originally from Hopi elders. It grew very high in the tunnel, providing large colourful cobs with kernels in stunning shades of violet and black to shades of red, yellow, gold and cream. As this variety is a maize type, it is more suited for grinding into flour than eating as a sweet ‘corn on the cob’. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 26

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Gene Bank Courgette

€3.50

We had seven seeds in a packet from a German gene bank, dated 1999 with the place of origin given as Sweden, the description ‘vegetable marrow’. The plants grew amazingly well, quickly covering an entire bed in the tunnel with their small, tasty courgettes, though this crop comes into its own as the more traditional marrow.

Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 10

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Shetland Cabbage/Kale

€3.50

This is the oldest known local vegetable variety in Scotland, grown on the Shetland Isles since as far back as the 1500s. Due to the extreme weather on the Shetlands, the cabbage seeds were planted in “Plantie Crubs” (small circular stone-walled enclosures) before transplanting into larger fields, which were also enclosed in stone walls. This rare cabbage grew beautifully on a windy hillside in Clare, hardy right through the winter. The heads of this variety are quite open, the green leaves tinged a beautiful pink-purple, deepening as winter progresses. The outer leaves were traditionally used as animal feed. The cabbage itself has a distinctive peppery taste that was once a prized ingredient of mutton stew on the Northern Isles. Average seeds per pack 250

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Luccullus Chard

€3.50

This variety is of Italian heritage and was named after the Roman General ‘Lucius Luccullus’, renowned for his splendid banquets and vast gardens some 2000 years ago. It was introduced in 1914 and won the RHS Award of Garden Merit. Quite hardy through the winter, with heavily ‘crimped’, bright, lush green leaves and white stalks that are almost like asparagus when cooked. Young flowering stalks in spring can be eaten like sprouting broccoli. It has the seal of approval from ‘Scoil Chroi’, in Galway who shared that “Lucullus was a big hit with students of all ages, they loved it, devouring it raw”.

Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 200

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Rubin Lettuce

€3.50

A Swiss ‘ruby’ variety, this lettuce has an upright habit and a loose head of stunning, deep maroon leaves. A reliable, cold-hardy plant, excellent as a ‘cut and come’ variety.

Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 200

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Zebrune Shallots

€3.50

A superb French heirloom variety, often called Banana-type shallots for their torpedo shaped bulbs. The skin of this variety has a wonderful pink-brown colour, and it is very productive, producing good-sized bulbs which are useful for storing. Easy to slice and deliciously sweet and mild. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 250

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Verde a Foglia Riccia Lettuce

€3.50

Kindly donated to us by supporter Stephen Marsh, this is a lovely, large, green lettuce with an upright growing habit. The loosely curly leaves are very crunchy and strong-tasting, a great texture to have in a salad mix. Grows well year-round.

Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 200

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Viceroy Parsnip

€3.50

A rare heritage variety, coming originally from an heirloom collection offered by ‘Seeds by Size’ in England. This variety has long tapering roots, is sweet to eat and very hardy. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 1000

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Dorenia Tomato

€3.50

This fabulous variety was bred by biodynamic growers in Germany. The plants have good resistance to fruit-splitting and blight. It yields very well, providing plenty of juicy oval-shaped plum tomatoes throughout the season. Firm skin means the fruit holds it shape when cut, perfect for salads and sandwiches. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 35

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Ebisu Pumpkin

€3.50

A Japanese pumpkin also known as ‘Kabocha’ squash, grows several small fruits per plant with mottled green skin. The flesh is a deep yellow to orange with a firm, fine texture, quite dry with a sweet, delicate flavour, not unlike a sweet potato. The skin itself becomes quite tender when cooked so does not need peeling. Excellent keeping qualities. Ebisu is the name of one of the Gods of Luck, so it must be good to have in the garden! Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 10

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Runde Kugel Beetroot

€3.50

‘Runde Kugel’ translates from German simply as ‘round ball’. Deep red in colour with a delicious fruity and mild taste. Particularly good raw in salads.

Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 300

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Stamme Mix Onion

€3.50

This seed of Norwegian origin will produce a diverse range of onion shapes, sizes and colours. Expect to obtain a richly diverse, healthy crop of round to slightly flattened onions with colours ranging from light-gold and copper to purple. Well suited to our short growing season and temperate climate. Average seeds per pack 200

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Rainbow Quinoa

€3.50

This quinoa variety has a mix of the many colours of different types of quinoa: tan, red, orange and black. These plants make a stunning addition to any garden with their bright and colourful seedheads, not to mention the nutritional powerhouse of the seeds. Each colour has a slightly different attribute – sweeter, nuttier or chewier - we hope you enjoy them all! Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 300

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Amish Salad Tomato

€3.50

This rare variety comes from the Amish people of Pennsylvania. The bountiful plants give many trusses full of fruit all throughout the season. The plum-shaped fruit is medium-sized and pink-red in colour, with a lovely fresh sweet but tangy flavour. Excellent sliced for salads, and good cooked too. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 30

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