[drooping daisy]

Hi 

I have been reading about Mummy Peas and would like to try and grow some this year. 

Can anyone help with locating some as I have been unable to find any information about suppliers so far.

Thanks for any help. 

[DD.]

There is little on these thrown up by a Google search.

Are you referring to alleged descendents of peas found with Egyptian Mummies?

[neal]

 I think the variety that you are thinking of are Tutankhamum peas.
They are or were held with The Heritage Seed Library only availible
to their members. Try here   gardenorganic.org.uk
Gardeners World did a programme called Growing Vegetables
around 2005-6 which included a piece about them ( the peas and library).
     
 
 

[DD.]

They're not in the new HSL catalogue.

[neal]

No they were only availible to members and were never for sale.
 
 

[DD.]

Hmmmmm.

This page implies that it's in the HSL catalogue

http://www.gardenorganic.org.uk/hsl/variety.php?IdNum=657

Not in mine it's not!

[neal]

From what i recall from some years back when i was a member you payed a annual
fee and the member got a seed list which you could select 5 packets of seeds. These
seeds were part of the membership fee they are not registered so cannot be sold so are
not in the mail order HLS catalogue it works out VERY expensive to obtain these seeds
with the membership fee @ £20 per year. Much cheaper to grow a modern type and they
taste better. 

By the way you only get about 10 seeds in a packet
 

[DD.]

Much cheaper to grow a modern type and they
taste better. 

Now that I would dispute.

As a seed guardian for HSL I grew and sent back several varieties of pea, retaining some for myself, which they tell you to do.

One of the varieties is absolutely superb in yield and taste, a fact backed up by others to whom I have sent seed.

I am now totally self-sufficient in Heritage pea seed, so it's costing me nothing for what I consider a superior pea.

Yes the HSL membership is £20 a year, but if there wasn't a fee there would be no HSL to protect these almost forgotten strains.

10 peas may not seem a lot, but when I did the seed guardian bit I carefully measured the return. The variety I mentioned had a 60 fold return. Therefore, (in an ideal world), after one year you have 600 seed, after just 2 you have 36,000 - way more than enough for anyone, so in fact in the second year you can eat some!

I have selected 6 varieties of pea for this year, in a couple of years I'll have a dozen or so pea varieties with hopefully a lot to give away, in the knowledge that those strains are being perpetuated.

A much more satisfying return than merely growing and eating a modern strain.

[gillie]

I am a member of the HSL as well.  I am not a guardian but I have been saving seed of a tomato variety which we consider superior to any that we have bought.

So I am now self-sufficient in tomato seed and have given some on to a lady who grows tomato plants for sale (I think that is legal!).

I tried saving Heritage pea seed but the mice always got to them first.

I do not recall ever seeing the 'Tutankhamun pea' listed by HSL.

Gillie

[DD.]

This implies that they are/were:

http://www.gardenorganic.org.uk/hsl/varieties.php

It is however, not the 2010 list.

[gillie]

I am a little concerned about HSL.  They seem to be pushing varieties which are unusual colours, have interesting  histories or are a bit strange rather than good honest high performing ones.

I grew the famous crimson broad bean once.  The crop was terrible and I have never grown it since.

Gillie

[zazen999]

Much cheaper to grow a modern type and they
taste better. 

By the way you only get about 10 seeds in a packet
 

AARRGGHH.

Sorry, but I totally disagree.

It's very short sighted to say you only get 10 seeds per packet, as what you get is seed of that type forever. What you also get, is the ability to swap with others to expand your range.

I am growing about 70 different types of beans this year, 2 years ago I started with 2 types. Last year, I swapped those 2 types with about 8 other seed savers, and got about 30 different types, enough to feed the family all summer [green beans] and winter [dried beans], to give them away to friends and family, and to swap with others. I did a main swap with another bean saver, who sent me 48 different types in return.

Seed becomes a currency in its own right after a while, which is just how it should be.

[Joolz]

Hi  

I have been reading about Mummy Peas and would like to try and grow some this year.  

Can anyone help with locating some as I have been unable to find any information about suppliers so far.

Thanks for any help.  

Dunno if this is it... The name is the same, but is this a sweet pea?
Scroll to the bottom for ordering info. I've never used the company myself though.
http://www.specialplants.net/seeds.html
Joolz

[gillie]

"This implies that they are/were: http://www.gardenorganic.org.uk/hsl/varieties.php
It is however, not the 2010 list."

The link between the Tutankhamun pea variety and ancient Egypt is tenuous to say the least.  The pea was grown on Lord Caernavon's estate, Highclere and Lord Caernavon is thought to have taken some peas from the tomb.  That is all we know.

Gillie

[drooping daisy]

Thank you for all your replies.

The peas I was referring to are eating peas (not sweet peas) and there is the legend that they were grown from seed found in an Egyptian tomb (don't know whose!!).

The reason I wanted to grow them was that, apart from the supposedly nice taste, they grow up to 7 feet tall.  As these peas dont seem very easy to get hold of please could anyone recomend a modern, tasty, tall growing pea as a substitute?

Thanks