Heirlooms of Importance

By Kathleen Ernst

I didn’t set out to write an “issue” novel when I began The Heirloom Murders, second in my Chloe Ellefson series.

I did want to include a plotline about the importance of preserving heirloom varieties of fruits, vegetables, and flowers.  Historic sites like the real outdoor museum Old World Wisconsin, where my fictional protagonist Chloe works as a curator, play a key role in perpetuating these heirlooms.

And as I’ve written here before, it is important.  When I worked at Old World Wisconsin back in the 1980s and ‘90s, I learned how much genetic diversity we’ve lost in the last century or so—over 90%, by most estimates.  

Small seed companies have been overrun by big ones.  Small family farms have been gobbled by huge factory farms which practice monoculture.  Consumers have come to expect produce that looks good after long traveling half-way around the planet, which encourages growers to focus on only those varieties that can make the trip.

Educators at historic sites help visitors consider that some endangered variety might be the only one that can stand up to the next pest, disease, or drought.   

And happily, more and more home growers are raising heirloom verities.  I try a few new ones each year in my own garden.  Initially, I hoped that The Heirloom Murders would help introduce the fun and of raising heirlooms to a few more gardeners, perhaps in turn keeping a few more varieties vibrant.

But when I started writing The Heirloom Murders, I discovered some pretty scary stuff.  A few mega-companies have been working hard to take control of the world’s food supply.  They promise farmers in rural areas that their company’s genetically-modified seeds will produce better yields and resist drought, parasites, and insects.  If the sales pitch works, people stop growing their time-honored varieties of grain or vegetables and buy the genetically-modified seeds—sometimes taking out loans to do so.

Tragically, things don’t always work out as promised.  In India, for example, many farmers who purchased genetically modified seed have experienced total crop failure.  Traditionally, farmers would save seed and replant the following year, but the new genetic modifications force farmers to buy more seed from the company each year.  According to a watchdog organization, an estimated 125,000 farmers in India have committed suicide after crop failure and financial ruin.

The situation so frightening that a number of countries around the world, from Poland to Peru, are banning the sale and use of genetically engineered seeds.

So as it turns out, the importance of preserving heirloom seeds is even greater than I knew.  I felt good about including that theme in my mystery.  And that made it especially rewarding to learn that The Heirloom Murders was being awarded the Anne Powers Fiction Book Prize by the Council for Wisconsin Writers.  (That's me at the awards ceremony, below.)

By the way, if you’d like to learn more about heirloom gardening, check out Putting Down Roots:  Gardening Insights From Wisconsin’s Early Settlers, by my friend Marcia Carmichael, Historic Gardener at Old World Wisconsin.  Marcia’s book earned Honorable Mention in the Outdoor Writing Category of the CWW’s awards.

And if you’ve got some space in your garden, why not try some heirloom seeds?

Visit http://www.seedsavers.org/ to get started.

You can learn more about the Chloe Ellefson mysteries at http://kathleenernst.com

Going, Going, Gone?

by Kathleen Ernst

One of the great things about writing novels is having the opportunity to explore interesting topics along the way. Since my Chloe Ellefson mysteries are set at historic sites, I have all kinds of opportunities to introduce readers to aspects of the museum world.

When planning book 2, The Heirloom Murders, I decided to shine a light on the role historic sites play in preserving old agricultural traditions. Interpreters at living history sites help perpetuate not just old methods, but historic livestock breeds and antique varieties of fruits, vegetables, and flowers.

It’s a pretty big deal. According to the USDA, we’ve lost ninety-seven percent of the vegetable varieties once grown in the United States. People have gotten out of the habit of saving their own seeds, passing them along, swapping with neighbors. Large seed companies have overtaken small local ones. Vegetables grown today are largely chosen for their ability to look good after being shipped long distances. Luscious-tasting varieties that didn’t look pretty were discarded. We’ve lost a lot of flavor and diversity along the way.

Even worse, some of those old varieties might have been the only type to withstand the onslaught of some new pest or disease. In The Heirloom Murders, Chloe explains the situation to cop Roelke McKenna this way:

Chloe tapped her pencil against her clipboard. “You’ve heard of the Irish potato famine, right? Mass starvation, mostly because a blight hit the potato crop?”

“Yeah. Lots of Irish people came over here.”

“Right. All the potatoes in Europe succumbed to the disease. But in the Andes, people were growing hundreds or thousands of potato varieties, and some of them proved to be resistant to the blight. If that hadn’t been the case, we wouldn’t be eating mashed potatoes for dinner every Thanksgiving.”

I didn’t know anything about heirloom gardening until I went to work in the historic sites biz myself, way back when. Now I grow heirlooms in my own gardens. Mostly vegetables, but a few flowers too.

My first goal for any novel is to tell a good story, about characters that readers will come to care about. But if a couple of readers get intrigued by old varieties of vegetables, fruits, or flowers too…well, that would be pretty darn cool.

All photos were taken at an agricultural fair held at Old World Wisconsin, which has an extensive historic agriculture program. For more information about heirloom seeds, check out Seed Savers Exchange.