Put an Heirloom in Your Garden Plant breeders have done some amazing things in the last few decades. Great strides have been made towards improving yields and disease resistance. With recent advances in biotechnology we even have genetically engineered marvels like cotton that can be over-sprayed with roundup and corn that makes its own insecticide.
Many modern varieties are hybrids.
If you save the seed from a hybrid there's no telling what you'll get, but chances are it wont resemble the parent plant. Heirloom varieties usually can't compete with the hybrids when it comes to yield, but I have to believe that they were saved for a reason. Heirlooms are the plants that our forefathers survived on. They may not look as pretty, ship as well, or have the same shelf life, but every heirloom has some unique or interesting characteristic which is responsible for its popularity, and hence its survival. Whether it's 'Rutgers' tomatoes, 'True Hubbard' squash or 'Danver's Half Long' carrots, heirlooms offer something a little bit different.