Row 7 Seeds

I read with interest an article in the Food section of The New York Times a couple of weeks ago about a new seed company, Row 7 Seed Company, that in their words, is “built on chef-breeder collaboration.” Started by Dan Barber, chef at Blue Hill and Blue Hill at Stone Barns restaurants, plant breeder Michael Mazourek of Cornell University, and seedsman Matthew Goldfarb of Fruition Seeds, their goal is “to make ingredients taste better before they ever hit a plate.”

Too many fruits and vegetables are bred to grow easily and quickly, transport well, and look nice at the supermarket…just think winter tomatoes. However they are not usually bred for flavor. These innovators are out to change that. They continually speak with chefs about how they would change vegetables to improve their dishes and then set about breeding plants to try to achieve these goals. In addition, they have partnered with a broad network of farmers around the country to grow them, and chefs to use and promote these new varieties in their restaurants.

On a sustainability front, all seeds are grown organically in the United States and are non-GMO. They are also not patented, and on their website, the company actually encourages farmers and gardeners to save seeds and start their own breeding projects.

They started selling seeds a couple of weeks ago, with seven varieties available for sale: an orange “flame” beet, a hybrid squash that turns from green to bronze on the vine so you know when it’s ripe, a habanero pepper without the heat, a slightly bitter but flavorful cucumber, a small, creamy potato, and two varieties of butternut squash, one of which fits in the palm of your hand.

I bought four varieties (three of which are pictured here) just to try out in this year’s garden. I am especially looking forward to serving the 898 Squash as part of a small plates menu. At harvest, I will report back to tell you how they taste.

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