F1 Seeds?

[burnie]

I've noticed on more than one occasion that some have a dislike of buying F1 seeds and don't understand why.
Not after opening up a huge debate, just curious as to why.

[Potstubsdustbins]

Probably because if you save seed they usually do not come true the next year. Then of course there are the folks who like to keep the heritage varieties going thank goodness.

[veggiechicken]

I'm mean!!
F1 seeds are more expensive and you can't save seeds from them.

[Alison]

I find a lot of F1 seeds are bred with the commercial grower in mind, uniformity often means ready at the same time which isn't what I want in the home environment. I also like to save as many of my seeds as possible which means I need to grow open pollinated types. Like said above I like to support heritage varieties and find many of them more tasty (not always true but often in my experience) and you get more for your money.

[sparrow100]

Same as the above really - I like the history behind the older varieties, I like seed saving for myself and to share, and I don't want to pay a premium for tiny amounts of seed. That said I grow F1 sweetcorn fairly often, and the occasional F1 chilli. I think F1s have their place, but I wouldn't want that place to be at the exclusion of other varieties.

[Elfeda]

I know few grapes grow only from F1 seeds, as they are bred for British short summers and adverse situations. if you know what variety you want to grow and buy only those seeds, then F1's can bought with in budget. one packet can last even 2 or 3 years if you know how many plants you need exactly.

with F1's, you do not have to waste produce, time and efforts to save and maintain the seeds.

[burnie]

Thanks for the replies, I too grow a mixture of both Heritage and F1, for example I shall be growing blight resistant Crimson Crush tomatoes just in case, but also growing Ailsa Craig, Tumbling Tom and Super Sweet 100. My Onions this year are F1 Red Pearl, also growing F1 Romanesco Celio, everything else will be non F1. I tend to choose my seeds on return for the effort put in with taste being more important than crop size/quantity, however being quite a way up north, I have to bear in mind a shorter growing season with cooler temperatures too. Pretty much everything will be grown either under glass or under fleece next year.

[Scarlet]

Same as the above really - I like the history behind the older varieties, I like seed saving for myself and to share. That said I grow F1 sweetcorn fairly often, and the occasional F1 chilli.

I'm with you and Alison. I love the history behind heritage seeds and like to support them by saving seed and swapping. That said, I prefer to grow F1 cucumbers I've had some disaster growing heritage cues and until someone recommends a variety that works well in the GH with a long season Im sticking with the F1s.

with F1's, you do not have to waste produce, time and efforts to save and maintain the seeds.

I find the exact opposit to this! Often F1s will produce and ripen all at the same time.

[Snadger]

I try to avoid F1's as much as possible. Purely because I can see a time in the future where you will only have a choice between F1 and GM!

[jackarmy]

Tend not t use if i can help it but as said earlier they have their place, especially for the outdoor toms like crimson crush and mountain magic, their the only outside toms ill be growing this year.

[Elfeda]

As OP says some have a dislike of supporting F1 seeds, though I am not against to that .. I only want to mention my complications to seed saving as when growing in small scale.

Scarlet, I mean you can eat all your produce with out having to spare the fruit/plant for seeds. ofcourse some crops doesn't take much attention to save seed but it's all goes under miss and hit. if you have limited space, F1's is an option that might help. I am not very sure which fruits we eat ripen here ? not many. only tomatos are coming into my mind. or courgettes?

courgettes any way aren't very reliable for me.am in confusion to choose F1's or openpolinated courgettes though I do not save any seed from them.

keeping F1's aside and when it comes to seed saving: I save seeds only to the ones really like it,so it goes mostly unplanned. planned seed saving requires to lable them since from sowing,transplanting and then protection it from crosspolination. it prevents me to sow more than one or two varieties . I also had to plan all my seeds months ahead to check every thing goes all right.


but definitely I appreciate everyone who is into seed saving and helping continuity of the old varieties and also keeping seeds costs at bay to an extent.

[Chris11]

I grow mainly heritage and OP varieties for the same reasons as others have posted.

But F1s have their place, whether it's blight resistance tomatoes, or the commercial varieties that offer the uniformity that the supermarkets and most shoppers want. Although for me, good to see the recent wonky veg and perfectly imperfect ranges in supermarkets.

(And what's the plural of F1? Don't think it's F1's )

[vixylix]

I think there is a place for both - the non-F1 / heritage varieties tend to be much more exciting, whereas the F1s are potentially more reliable or productive. The frustration for me is where some seeds are difficult to find whether they are F1 or not - if you want to save seed that is not helpful at all.

I got some free F1 Medina grafted chillies through the mag this year and they were by far the earliest and most productive chillies I grew - but they didnt look any different to a chilli you'd buy in a shop - which loses half the excitement for me.

So for me both can be useful - the F1s to make it more likely you have crops available when you need them - and the non F1s for the more exciting stuff!

[sparrow100]

The other thing to bear in mind is that F1s aren't a guarantee of uniform etc crops. They aren't infallible and can be as fickle as any other seed given growing conditions they don't like or pests they struggle to resist. My leeks certainly bear that out! Heirloom seeds can be just as reliable as F1s and just as productive.

It's just that F1s are bred for certain features - that could be something as useful as blight resistance or it could be growing to a height of 45cm and then stopping - and it's easier/cheaper for seed merchants to keep producing F1 seed than to go to the time and expense of stabilising it to an open pollinated seed variety.

[MarkPelican]

I grow heritage tomatoes because I find they taste nicer. (I grow F1 hybrids at the allotment (Crimson Crush and Mountain Magic) because they stand a chance of ripening). But I have a point of view that says "the Heritage varieties continue to be grown because they are liked by the person who grows them, the F1 hybrids because it suits the commercial industry"

I've also found a few times that F1s go out of availability (I assume either because the parents have failed or because the producers want to grow something else).
The agricultural industry would have us all growing F1 or even GM because that way they are in charge.