There is nothing I love more than stepping into my kitchen garden and harvesting vibrant, flavorful produce to create meals that nourish both body and soul. Growing organic heirloom varieties allows me to connect to nature, honor ancestral gardening traditions, and savor the exceptional flavors that modern hybrids (and grocery store produce) simply cannot match. I’m sharing the best heirloom vegetables, herbs, and flowers for USDA hardiness zones 5b-8b, focusing on varieties that are easy to grow, packed with flavor, and versatile in the kitchen.

What Is an Heirloom Variety?

Heirloom varieties are time-honored plant cultivars passed down through generations, often treasured for their rich history, unique characteristics, and incredible taste. Unlike hybrid plants, heirlooms are open-pollinated, meaning they produce seeds that grow true to type year after year. You can harvest the seeds, plant them the following year and trust that the same genetic qualities of the plant will grow. When grown organically, these plants are cultivated without synthetic pesticides, herbicides, or fertilizers, aligning with USDA organic standards. This ensures the health of the soil, the environment, and, ultimately, your family.

Top Organic Heirloom Varieties for Your Kitchen Garden

Tomatoes

Heirloom tomatoes are the crown jewels of the kitchen garden, bursting with flavor and vibrant colors. Come August and September, my kitchen counter becomes an altar to the tomato gods. My canning supplies come out and I spend my weekends making salsa, tomato sauce, bruschetta, caprese salad, or simply eating fresh slices of meaty heirlooms on garlic toast, the Spanish way.

• Brandywine

  • Why Grow It: This classic heirloom tomato boasts large, meaty fruits with a perfect balance of sweetness and acidity.

  • How to Use: Slice for sandwiches, chop into a Caprese salad, or simmer into a rich tomato sauce. Layer a meaty slice over cottage cheese or burrata on toast grated with garlic and olive oil drizzle for the perfect late summer snack.

• Black Krim

  • Why Grow It: Known for its smoky, slightly salty flavor, this deep purple tomato thrives in zones 5-7 with proper support and regular watering.

  • How to Use: Roast for soups, dice into salsa, or enjoy fresh with a drizzle of olive oil.

• San Marzano Roma

  • Why Grow It: San Marzano tomatoes are a prized heirloom variety from Italy, renowned for their sweet, low-acidity flesh and thick skin, making them ideal for sauces.

  • How to Use: Simmer into a rich marinara, slow roast for a deep, caramelized flavor, or can for winter use. These are a staple for making pizza and pasta sauces.

• Golden Jubilee Tomato

  • Why Grow It: This golden-yellow heirloom is sweet and low in acidity, making it ideal for those who prefer milder tomatoes. It’s also a prolific producer.

  • How to Use: Slice for fresh salads, pair with basil for a colorful Caprese, or can for a vibrant yellow sauce.
    
    

This is no ordinary backyard filled with uniform shrubs, nor religiously mowed each Saturday afternoon before the broadcasted game. This is a place where the soil remains true and the plants shape-shift with the seasons. It is dry yet lush; windswept yet calming. It’s made to be lived in, to be wildcrafted with and to be engaged with in reciprocity . It’s also made to be an example to others of the miracles possible when we return to our roots. This is a landscape, rewild.

Welcome to my pit of despair. I say that with a cheeky grin and a bit of sarcasm, but not much. Full transparency: this patch is just one of many dreadfully hideous spots on this land. In an effort to dispel any myths about a perfect garden (or hence a perfect life) that I may have inadvertently construed through my blogging, I’m here to unearth the reality.

As this season of rising and restless energy matures into the bright season of vitality, I’m here with an update. Despite the hardships, there is still an abundance of beauty and good things that grow.

It’s seemed like a long time coming, but we’ve finally planted trees along our northern border. After considering and imagining countless trees and tall shrubs of all varieties, I elected to plant a dozen Green Giant Arborvitae trees. This hedge of trees is already transforming the feeling in our backyard and I can’t wait to watch them grow together in the coming years. After so many long days of toiling, moments like this make rewilding this land all worth it.

Installing a regenerative orchard is a process that requires a foundation of knowledge. It would be foolhardy to plant any ol’e fruit tree in any ol’e patch of land, so I’m sharing some of my best master gardener tips to help you learn how to plant fruit trees.

For those that aren’t obsessed with gardening, it may come as a shock to learn that it is absolutely necessary to shop for seeds in January. However, January is truly the best time to shop for seeds preceding any spring gardening activities. Purchasing seeds early helps us plan our kitchen gardens appropriately and schedule out the best days to sow seeds before seed-starting season arrives in March.

Weeding has become an essential self-soothing routine these weeks at home lately. On the worst of days it’s a task to distract me. Other days it feels more like a sacred meditation, or an intimate dialog between me and Her. In this therapy session with nature, she reminds me that things are not always as they seem. Labels are deceiving. A “weed”, after all, is only a flower growing in a place where someone doesn’t want it.

Growing our own food to be more self-sustaining has never been more important than it is right now. During these fearful times of this evolving economic and pandemic crisis, knowing that I could grow all of my household’s food if necessary gives me great comfort. If you are anything like me, you are dying to get seeds into the ground in as soon as possible so your family can be that much closer to eating delicious home-grown veggies. Knowing what to plant and when can be overwhelming as a beginner gardener, but I’m here to demystify this process, share my best tips as a master gardener, and help you get your dream kitchen garden started.

When I add a new tool to my collection, I’m not just buying a tool to get the job done, I’m buying an extension to my hands that will garden and forage with me for the rest of my life. These tools will become my allies and comrades in all my ventures, and so I regard tool buying as one of my most important gardening and foraging tasks. Nevertheless the sheer amount of tools on the market can be overwhelming. Knowing what tool is best for what job, or learning what tool can help make many tasks easier takes time and experience. So I’ve compiled a guide to share the gardening and foraging tools that I cannot work without. And I’ve shared what tasks I use them for, too.

Seasonal living, and the artful practice of connecting nature, is tonic for the body and soul. It is all about taking care to notice the delicate transformations in our environment as they happen through the year and adjusting the way we live in response. It’s about being more in tune with each of the micro seasons that fall within a single year and the life cycles of the flora and fauna that inhibit our ecosystems. It’s about growing our awareness of the interconnectedness of all beings and engaging in communication with nature.

The primordial pull to gather, preserve, stock up, and nest before the first Winter storm is very strong. Autumn, with it’s cooler temperatures, presents the perfect time to do our best gardening work. It is the work that prepares our garden for the following growing season. Here are my fall gardening tips:

In springtime, the sound of trickling water signals the snow melting in the warmth of a brighter sun. The smell of damp earth indicates the thawing of the ground. The first fuzzy buds begin to form and shoots of green peek through the soil. The energy of life, and possibility, is palpable. Here are my spring gardening tips…

As we stride into high summer, I look forward to reveling in all the abundance that comes with a summer harvest. I’ll fill my basket until it’s heavy laden with ready garden ingredients. Then, I’ll dine al fresco on all of this delicious organic goodness. Here’s my midsummer garden harvest (and how I’ve grown them) that will soon be adorning my plates for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.