‘My Girl’ Tomato
Medium to large, plum-shaped, red fruits with few seeds. Thin skinned tomato that is very sweet in taste. Originally donated to Garden Organic from George Roberts Seedsman of Daventry in the 1950’s.

‘Kenilworth’ Tomato
Classic round, red sumptuous tomato with a sweet and herby flavour. Donor George Garratt sourced this from the last commercial grower who stocked shops in Kenilworth up until the 1960’s.

‘Ryder’s Midday Sun’ Tomato
Plump, yellow tomato. Donated by J M Cullen from Friston, Sussex who had grown them since the 1960s. Originally from the seed company Ryder’s of St Albans, just before the firm was sold in the 1970s and all its varieties were discontinued.

‘Rousham Park Hero’ Onion
Flat and yellow-skinned onion. Originated around the end of the 19th century at Rousham Park, Oxfordshire and was once a favourite for exhibition.

‘Blue Coco’ Climbing French Bean
Violet pods, purple tinged leaves and lilac flowers. Good rich, meaty flavour delicious steamed, eaten raw or in stews. Seeds originally donated from Robinson’s of Lancashire.

‘Mrs Fortune’s’ Climbing French Bean
The plant grows to 6ft and is very prolific with pale blue flowers. The pods are smooth, medium green background with dark blue shading and develop into darker blue. The seeds are white with maroon mottling when ripe. They are very tender and not stringy. The seeds were donated by two friends who share an allotment next to each other in Bristol. One of them used to visit an elderly lady called Doris Fortune, in the early 1960s and was given some beans by her. They originated from an old retired gardener who tended the Royal Families garden at Windsor.

‘Gravedigger’ Pea
Very sweet flavour with excellent cooking qualities. Obtained from Mr Thompson, a retired farmer from Meer End, near Honiley. He originally got them from his neighbour Mr Beal who in turn got them from his friend, the gravedigger living at Kidlington, near Oxford.

‘Jeyes’ Pea
Sweet, solid peas, delicious fresh, but will also freeze well. Donated by D Bland of Wellingborough in Northants, this variety is believed to have originated in the Luton area about 60 years ago. Vegetables of New York (1928) states that Messers Jeyes was a Northampton-based seed merchant.

‘Brighstone’ Dwarf French Bean
Pods are dark green heavily flecked with mauve and are about 5” long, curved with pronounced beak. The fresh beans cooked very well and taste nice and sweet. Found on the Isle of Wight, known as Brighstone, a village in West Wight, which has a history of shipwrecks on the dangerous shores. The story goes that the bean seed came from a wreck before the turn of the century. Local gardeners have grown this bean on allotments for years.

‘King of The Ridge’ Cucumber
Well shaped fruits, growing to about 10 inches long. The fruit is sweet and juicy when young but skins need peeling for salads. They are suitable for chutney or stir-fries even when mature, after removing seeds. Thought to date back to 1930s this variety was originally supplied by Unwins seeds, but has been available since 1993.

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