Glossary of Essential Gardening Terms
Are you confused about the difference between heirlooms, hybrids, and GMOs? If these terms are as clear as mud, this list of essential gardening terms will help.
Heirloom is a variety of plant with a history of being passed down through generations. An heirloom is open-pollinated (it will produce true-to-type seeds), but not all open-pollinated plants are heirlooms. It’s loosely agreed that heirloom varieties are at least 50 years old or more.
Open-pollinated (OP) refers to plants with seeds that will “breed true.” When the plants of an open-pollinated variety self-pollinate or are pollinated by another representative of the same variety (via insects, birds, wind, or human), the resulting seeds will produce true-to-type seeds and plants/fruit roughly identical to the parent plant.
A Hybrid is the cross-pollination between two or more plant varieties to achieve the best attributes. Seed companies produce hybrid varieties, which may take years to develop. They are proprietary to the seed company and may not always be available. Hybrids were designed to meet various consumer needs, such as disease resistance or storage/shipping qualities, to name a few. Some common hybrid tomato varieties include Big Boy and Early Girl and the famously sweet, Sun Gold cherry tomato. Seeds saved from hybrid plants do not breed true and will not produce plants similar to the parent.
Genetically Modified Organism (GMO): Genes from one species are artificially implanted into the DNA of another species, resulting in combined genetics that would not exist in nature. Corn and Soybeans are the two most genetically modified vegetables. GMO seeds are rarely available for consumers to purchase.
Open-Pollinated and Heirloom vs. Hybrid: OP plants will produce true-to-type seeds; hybrids will not. Hybrids vs GMO: Hybrids are created through cross-pollination. GMOs are genetically modified and do not occur naturally.
Variety: Naturally occurring selections within a species. The term variety is often interchanged with cultivar. For example, tomato varieties include beefsteak (large) and cherry (small).
Cultivar: Selections resulting from human intervention. Within each variety are cultivars. The beefsteak variety of tomato has many cultivars, such as Mortgage Lifter, Black Krim, etc. Cherry tomato cultivars include Mexico Midget or Black Cherry.
Organic Seed: Seed saved from plants grown under certified organic practices. Must have the Certified Organic seal to be marketed as organic seed. See why organic matters here.
Annual: A plant that completes it life cycle in one season. It will germinate, flower, produce fruit/seeds, and die in one season. Most vegetables are annual plants.
Biennial: A plant that takes two years to produce fruit or seeds. Carrots and parsley are examples of biennial plants.
Perennial: Plant lives for more than two years. Examples in the vegetable garden include asparagus, chives, oregano, and raspberries.
Additional terms can be found on my blog post: A Glossary to Seed Starting
Tomato Terminology
These are just a few terms to help understand the descriptions given for tomatoes.
Tomato Maturity: Early Season = 60-70 days Mid Season = 70-85 days Late = 85-95 days
Indeterminate means that the plant continues to grow until a killing frost. Fruit in all stages of development may be on the plant simultaneously and harvested over a long period of time.
Determinate means that the plant sets all its fruit within two weeks. Harvest time is shorter as all the fruit develops around the same time. Tomatoes in this category are often used for canning as the fruit can be processed at the same time.
