Showcasing traditional vegetable varieties

The Netherlands Centre for Genetic Resources has issued a brochure to draw attention to its ?Orange List? of traditional vegetable varieties. Owners and users of traditional varieties are invited to share their information; the list is undoubtedly not complete.The Orange List is a database of traditional varieties of more than 30 vegetables found in seed catalogues, lists of varieties and other literature between 1850 and 1950. It also includes supplementary information such as descriptions of the variety and photos, plus information about the variety?s availability. The Orange List contains nearly 4500 vegetable varieties representing the Netherlands? biocultural heritage, including 745 varieties of potatoes and 166 cucumber varieties. Many old varieties became neglected after the Second World War as the emphasis in farming was on increasing yields. However, the traditional varieties are often the starting point that modern varieties are based on. Keeping old vegetable varieties available means they can also be used for future varieties of cucumbers, chicory and carrots. They also often have a different shape, colour and flavour. Source:WageningenWorld nr2 1013 ? ? ? ? ?