The Heritage Grain Conservancy is a farmers' cooperative to collect, conserve and restore delicious world heritage grains that are on the verge of extinction. We offer high quality landrace populations that have been evaluated in our SARE-funded trials for robust health, yield and quality.

 

Heritage Grain Membership - $100. per year.
Members receive a packet of each of our 8 available varieties, plus an elite landrace population collected in Europe or the Fertile Crescent, that has been evaluated in New England for local-adaptability and exemplary baking quality. Contact Eli for individualized support to procure wheats of special interest, historic varieties, from your family history or unique wheats for artisan products. Ask for what you seek.

HGC Mideast Program

Contact Eli for special orders: growseed@yahoo.com

All photos and text are copyright by E.Rogosa 2009 and may not be used without written permission.

 

 

Emmer (T. dicoccon) was the wheat of Ancient Egypt, used for the original matzah, and in the early years of Biblical Israel. Emmer was found in the Jericho cave where Bar Kokhba rebels hid from the Romans in 135 CE

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Emmer is being rediscovered as a gourmet grain due to its rich flavor and high nutrition. Our organic emmer is grown in the US from an ancient Ethiopian variety brought to Israel by Ethiopean Jews.

 Emmer

Whole Grain

1 lb Emmer

Sephardic Emmer Recipes from the Mediterranean Kitchen

$12.00 - 1 lb whole grain organic emmer

 

bulk discounts for synagogues and day school fund-raisers

  

Einkorn (T. monococcum), the oldest wheat-related grains, was found ancient Jericho and Turkey dating from 11,000 years ago. Einkorn is higher in protein, magnesium and carotenoids than modern wheat.

Einkorn is safe for most gluten allergies. Consult with your doctor before use. See:<celiac.com>

 Einkorn Flour

3/4 lb Einkorn stone-milled Flour

milled fresh on order

$8.00 plus shipping

Einkorn Flatbread

$12. plus shipping

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Biblical

Spring Durum

The ancient wheat variety discovered in the Masada Fortress by Yigal Yadin, translator of the Dead Sea Scroll, stored 2,000 years ago by King Herod. This is the wheat eaten by ancient Israel. but today is almost extinct. Collected by Nikolai Vavilov in 1926. and by Eli Rogosa in Wadi Fukin

 

Khorani 

 Mida

Hard Red Spring Bread Wheat

developed early 1930s in North Dakota

A hearty, disease and rust resistant wheat with high yields, excellent baking quality and rich flavor. Seed is fat and glowing deep brown.. Stock seed grown by Mark Fulford and Cr Lawn in Maine.

Mida is a genepool of Emmer x Marquis x Fife x Russian Kota x Florence

Field of Mida in Maine

Mida

Caucasus-Crimean Genepool

' 'Looking at the field of ripening grain, Vavilov realized it was not a uniform wheat cultivar, but a panoply of intermixed strains of grain that formed a resilient polyculture. It was necessary to collect hundreds of seedheads for a representative sample of the vast biodiversity in a single field...The traditional farmers' methods of crop selection enhance landrace wheats' biodiversity; Their criteria of complex traits include: flavor, texture, health, maturation and more.' Where Our Food Comes From. Gary Nabhan p. 139

Plant a resilient wheat polyculture that can adapt to your unique fields and local weather:

Elite landrace winter wheat genepool: Crimean Turkey Red, Hungarian Bankuti, Ukrainka and Ancient Georgian Heritage Bread Wheat

Out of stock due to great demand. We planted our stock seed out and will offer our new harvest next season after Aug 1, 2010

Plant each seed 12" apart in deep-dug well-fertilized soil. Plant a low-growing clover or spread mulch between wheats to suppress spring weeds. Heritage wheats are at least twice as tall with a larger root system than modern wheats. Save the seeds from the robust plants that best thrive in your unique soil and micro-climate. Exchange seed with your neighbors to build a community wheat supply.Traditional farmers grow mixtures of landrace populations, allowing nature and farmers to work together to evolve a locally-adapted landrace. Current research confirms that wheat cultivar mixtures tend to yield higher.

 

Field in France where HGC collected rare wheats

 

Galilee field where HGC collected biblical wheat

 Ethiopian Blue Tinge

earliest maturing in our trials, purple-blue seed rich in anti-oxydents with a rich, sweet flavor
 

Available after Aug 1, 2010

WINTER WHEATS

 Ukrainka

The most robust and highest yielding landrace in our trials of 96 world winter varieties.

 

Available after Aug 1, 2010

Crimean Turkey Red

delicious, winter-hardy hard-red wheat grown, excellent for dark European peasant breads Collected in Crimea on the Black Sea in 1900 by Mark Carleton. This is the original population of Turkey Red of reknown, that was brought over to Kansas in the 1870's.

 

Crimean Turkey Red

Available after Aug 1, 2010

Red Lammas

winter wheat

the earliest wheat grown in colonial New England, brought over by British farmers in the 1600's, is excellent for scones and light breads.

In the Modern Husbandman, 1784, William Ellis wrote:

'Red Lammas is deemed the 'King of Wheats' for having deservedly the reputation of the finest, full bodied flour. It fetches the best price at market.'

Red Lammas

Available after Aug 1, 2010

  Rare Seed

Rouge de Bordeaux

Winter Bread Wheat

preferred by French artisan bakers,

soon to be available in North America!

Paysans-boulanger Nicolas baking with Rouge de Bordeuax

Avg Height 40", 5.5 heads per plant,, 35 seeds per head, Yield per plant: 8 grams, 1000 seed weight: 42 grams, Planted Sept. 20, 2007 - Harvested July 29, 2008

Rouge de Bordeaux

available after Aug 1, 2010,

 Tunis Black Awn

Stunning, log black awns make majestic sheaves, grown from seed collected in Djerba, Tunis, where ancient Israelis Kohamin settled after Babylonian Conquest.

 

 

  Zanduri

ancient wheat native to Georgian mountains, known as 'the King's wheat' for its delicious flavor, still used for ceremonial meals. Collected by Nikolai Vavilov in 1930s, but today almost extinct

Click for Georgian Legend-Dance

Georgian folk and food traditions are an ancient fusion of Asian, European, and Middle-Eastern influences as old as agriculture itself. Georgians are known as the world's greatest dancers!

 

Zanduri

(T. timopheevii)

available Aug 1, 2010

Wheat Posters

 Heritage Wheat
sizes

 Wheat Biodiversity
sizes

 Ancient Wheat
sizes
BOOKS

 Seder Zariim L'Zemananu

The Way of Seed for Our Times

ancient teachings of blessings and seed in the first volume of the Mishnah - 30 pages pdf

$8.99

 Seed Stewards

Seed-Saving Activity Guidebook

grade-by-grade hands-on seed science

- 41 pages-pdf

$12.95

All photos and text copyright by Eli Rogosa and may not be copied, used or adapted without written permission.

Restoring Our Seed

New England Seed Conference