‘Extinct Squash’ Grown From 800-Year-Old Heirloom Seeds

[Becky]

People often ask how long you can keep seeds for - well, the answer is, that under the right conditions you can keep them a very long time!

‘Extinct Squash’ Grown From 800-Year-Old Heirloom Seeds

A species of squash believed to be extinct has been grown from 800-year-old seeds found at an archeological dig.

A group of students in Winnipeg, Canada, proved that heirloom seeds can be viable even if they have been buried for centuries. They had a feast in September to celebrate the discovery.

Pretty cool eh?

 

[marlingardener]

Definitely cool! I know edible honey has been found in Egypt's pyramids, but I had never heard of seed being viable for so long.

 

[Java Guy]

That is absolutely amazing! I read the article to see why exactly this squash went extinct but there was no mention. Hopefully (and I am sure they will) they propagate this squash and make seeds available to all. I was just thinking, if these 800+ year old seeds were still viable, what is the length of time a seed can go without being planted. I guess I have Jurassic World on the mind, but wouldn't that be sweet if some of the plants from millions of years ago could be brought back? Imagine a 6 foot wide sunflower!!!

 

[CanadianLori]

And the zone in Winnipeg is 4?

 

[tasha]

What an interesting and amazing story! It would seem almost impossible to have fruit from something so old so it must have some magical properties and I would look into it a little further.

 

[IcyBC]

That is amazing and I love the color of that squash!

 

[Cassie K]

NICE! I save lots of seeds--which could be extinct some day~