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 2022 Heirloom Seed Catalogue

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Daniel O’Rourke Pea

€3.50

An Irish heritage variety, originally saved in the Russian gene bank and repatriated to Ireland. These plants grow quite tall (2m) so a strong fence is required but you will be rewarded with prolific small pods and sweet peas, best eaten while young. Good disease resistance, the peas can also be left to mature and dry off to be used as a soup pea in winter. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 70

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Hurst Greenshaft Pea

€3.50

An exceptional pea, winning the RHS Award of Garden Merit in 1993. A reliably producer of very heavy crops. Grower Matt Dwyer comments “One of the best peas I have grown”. Unusually long (10cm) pods grow atop 1m tall vines, with the pods containing a bounty of 9-11 peas. Growing over an extended season, a prolific producer of sweet, tasty peas that are wrinkled at maturity. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 50

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Purple Pod Capucijners Pea

€3.50

This variety gets its name from an order of monks in Holland who have long been custodians of diverse fruit and vegetables. A tall, vigorous plant (up to 2m), so needs good support. It has beautiful pink/white flowers and attractive deep-purple pods. At the ‘Scoil Chroi’ school garden in Galway, students especially enjoyed the purple peas dried for soup. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 50

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Twiggy Pea

€3.50

This variety hails from the ‘Court of Eden Seed Savers’ in Holland. Approximately 1.2m tall, this variety produces full pods, with up to 8 peas per pod. The plants are quite remarkable, with beautiful, extensively curled ‘twig’ like tendrils, which are beautiful for garnishing dishes. Excellent flavour. Average seeds per pack 50

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Ultra U Pea

€3.50

This beautiful tall pea came originally from the ‘Northern Irish Organic Garden Society’, having been grown in Ireland for three generations. Growing to a height of 2.5m, these plants need good support, but it’s worth the effort as the plants give a great abundance of large pods, filled with the sweetest of peas. Thanks goes to our loyal supporter Liam Gaffney for sending this seed for us to grow on and for coming to visit us in person this year. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 50

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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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Stenu Pea

€3.50

This is a tall variety, up to 2m in height, so the plants will need good support. the word ‘Stenu’ itself means wall or rock in several Eastern European languages, perhaps referring to what it was grown on. Gorgeous pink-purple flowers produce pods of up to 8 peas. Lovely eaten raw when young, and they sweeten up even more when cooked. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 50

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Thomas Laxton Pea

€3.50

Named after the famous plant biologist and pea breeder Thomas Laxton, a heritage variety dating back to the 1800s. Quite an early-maturing pea, with 7-9 peas per pod, and a long harvest season. The vines are relatively short, reaching almost 1m in height. Cold resistant and particularly suitable to a maritime climate such as ours. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 50

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Luang Prabang Mangetout Pea

€3.50

A wonderful mange-tout found in a market in Laos, coming to us via Liam Gaffney from Adam Alexander. There are on average 7 peas to a pod, and as plants grow to approx. 2m tall they need good supports. A wonderful productive crop of green pods comes after colourful purple and mauve flowers. The pods (7-9cm) which dry to a stunning brown and speckled purple colour, can be allowed to swell and be shelled as mature peas. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 50

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Blaushokkers Pea

€3.50

A unique Dutch heritage pea, ‘Blauwshokker’ translates as ‘blue pod’, referencing the stunning indigo-blue pods of this variety. The vines reach 1.8m in height, with striking bi-coloured purple/blue flowers that add great ornamental value to the garden. The sweet, green pods can be eaten young as mangetout, but this pea is especially wonderful in soups and stews, as was the tradition in Holland and Germany. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 50

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Clarkes Beltony Blue Pea

€3.50

This variety has a sweet and smooth flavour. Crops well over a long period. Donated by the Heritage Seed Library but originally of Irish lineage, and was kindly sent to us by supporter Liam Gaffney. It has been grown on the family farm of a Mrs. Anderson in Co. Tyrone. Average seeds per pack 50

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Douce Provance Pea

€3.50

This is a lovely, reasonably compact variety, reaching a little under 1m in height. A fast-growing early cropper, suitable for either autumn or spring sowings, though may need additional protection when temperatures are cold. The tasty peas are sweet, delicious eaten fresh, cooked or frozen. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 50

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Table Talk Pea

€3.50

This is a vigorous, thick-stemmed variety. Reaching heights of 2.5-3m, adequate support is definitely required for this robust pea. Lovely white flowers and soft marbled green leaves develop as the plant grows, giving way to a plethora of pods. Highly productive, with pods containing an average of 8 large peas developing well into the season. The peas are delicious – very sweet and crunchy when raw, softening after cooking. If you have the space, this is a highly recommended variety to grow. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 50

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Amish Snap Sugarsnap Pea

€3.50

As the name suggests, this lovely snap pea was originally grown and developed in an Amish community. The vines grow to a tallish 1.5-2m in height, so support will be needed. A very good producer throughout the season, providing plenty of tasty pods. The 4 to 8cm long pods contain between 4 to 8 peas, and are sweet and crunchy picked right off the vine. Certified Organic Average seeds per pack 65

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