Apache bean

Determinate. This Italian variety gives plenty of long yellow fruits, very sweet but not too juicy. Perfect for sauces and canning. Do not let its funny name scare you. Package: 30 seeds

Heirloom variety introduced to the Saint Lawrence River Valley by French settlers in the 17th Century. It is still eaten today and makes delicious pea soup. High yielding plants. They will need trellising and can grow up to 1 meter tall. The Potager d'Antan reports this story : « According to an old European tradition dating back from the 15th Century, Hubertus, patron saint of hunters, was associated with the pea soup. To make a long story short, during his lifetime, in the 7th Century, Hubert went astray, hunted on Good Friday, and while pursuing a stag, he had a vision in which he saw the animal with a crucifix between its antlers and heard a voice enjoining him to lead a holy life. Hubertus later performed many miracles, evangelized pagans in distant countries, and erected temples dedicated to the Lord. He died on May 30, 727. His relics were translated on November 3, 743. His feast day is November 3 in Belgium and May 30 in France. In memory of Saint Hubert, European settlers in Quebec supposedly kept the name of this pea variety, used in the preparation of the « hunting soup ». For the complete story, visit the Potager d’Antan website. This variety is very rare and is considered endangered.   Package: 30 seeds

Rare, hardy and high-yielding variety. Once grown by Iroquoian people. The plant can reach up to 2 m in height, and has white and purple flowers. The pods can be eaten when still young as green beans. Its name, skunk, refers to the gorgeous black and white marks characteristic of the beans. They can also, although more rarely, be entirely black. Their flat-shape is reminiscent of lima beans. Once fully ripe, they are ideal for soups. We have tried them for baked beans (fèves au lard) and they are delicious mixed with some Kahnawake Mohawk beans. This bean was rediscovered by Chester in Vermont and saved by Gail Flagg from Fort Kent, Maine (U.S.). Ideal for the Three Sisters, to be grown with the Canada Crookneck squash. Package: 25 seeds

Also known as the "Montreal Market Muskmelon" or "Montreal Nutmeg Melon". This mythical green flesh melon with a nutmeg flavor has almost disappeared.

 

The earliest records come from the Jesuits, who cultivated this variety in the Montreal Plain in 1684. According to the Potager d'Antan : "this melon went through many selections during the 17th Century, before being introduced under the name "Montreal Melon", in 1870. In the 1880s, it was listed as one of the best seller in New England by American seed company Burpee".

 

Very popular at the beginning of the 1900s and until the 1950s, it was largely commercialized and grown by three families : the Aubin, the Décarie and the Gorman. But lack of labour force, rises in wages and the spreading of the city triggered its decline. As highways paved the island, it slowly faded from our collective memory. When farms vanished from Montreal, it risked being obliterated. Until a journalist found its trace in a seed bank, in the United States.

 

This melon is a living proof of our seed and food diversity decline. Save your seeds and share them.

 

Heirloom variety. Listed on Slow Food Canada's Ark of Taste.

 

Pkt : 12 seeds.

Dwarf bean variety that produces a seed halfway between pea and fava bean. According to the Potager d'Antan : « It was still being cultivated in 1999 by a 80 year old man from Lotbinière, Monsieur Laliberté, who confirmed us the plant was unique in Canada. (...) Given by Laliberté's son to Antoine D'Avignon, Seeds of Diversity guardian angel. Antoine passed away in 2003. His sister, Mme. Gisèle D'Avignon, gave us the seeds. » Delicious in pea soup, a traditional meal in the province of Quebec in the past century. This variety is very rare and is considered endangered.   Package: 25 seeds

Heirloom variety. Beautiful and delicious blue leaves with purple spines. Hardy, resistant to diseases and much bigger in size than other kale varieties. Harvest baby or full-grown size leaves. Their taste is even better after frost. This variety entered Canada around 1885 with Russian traders.   Package : 150 seeds.