Abelmoschus esculentus
Origin: Western North Carolina
Improvement status: Breeding population
Seeds per packet: ~40
Germination tested 12/2024: 88%
Life cycle: Annual
Those of you who previously bought the Ultracross Okra from us (or another source) got to experience a population with 85 mother varieties, and likely a few more pollen-parent varieties, that was highly diverse, featuring close to an approximation of the full diversity of okra. While that was a wild and wonderful experience for those of us who had the chance to grow it, you might have noticed that it had quite a few plants with less-than-ideal traits, like spiny pods and leaves or excessive height and branching. This version was designed to be an improvement, featuring only superior culinary types that are also easier to deal with in the field.
The brainchild of our friend Chris Smith, founder of The Utopian Seed Project and James Beard Award-winning author of The Whole Okra: A Seed to Stem Celebration, this "Ultracross Okra 2.0" is a cross-pollinated mash-up of Chris's 32 favorite okra varieties, featuring a beautiful range of pod shapes and colors (in future years, we will probably go back to just calling it "Ultracross Okra", since the earlier 1.0 version will not be grown again, at least not by us or by Chris). This okra population will shift and adapt as the years go by and we encourage you to save seeds from your own favorite plants.
From Chris: "In 2024, we planted 32 of my favorite okra varieties. We didn’t plant anything too tall or too short, and certainly avoided anything spiny, but we did combine a wide mix of pod phenotypes. Our aim is to stabilize traits like spinelessness and height, while maintaining high pod diversity.
Here is the parent list for Ultracross Okra 2.0: Alabama Red; Aunt Hettie's Red; Beck's Big Buck; Bowling Red; Brandy Red; Cajun Jewel; Candle Fire; Chatham Red (6+ Petal); Cherokee Long Pod; Dad Speagle's Special; Essoumtem; Grandaddy’s Okra; Hill Country Red; Hire Okra; Hodnett Special; Hoopers Okra; Jimmy T; Lady's Choice; Motherland Okra (pollen donor, A. caillei); Mr Bills Big; Okinawa Pink; Old Black Man; Puerto Rico Everblush; Pusa Makmali; Pusa Sawani; Red Okra 98; Red Velvet; Salmon F4; Stewart Zeebest; Tony’s Okra; UGA Red; Volta; and Yuma Red."
These seeds were grown by Chris and The Utopian Seed Project in western North Carolina.
GROWING TIPS: In places with long summers, direct-sow once soil begins to warm in the spring (when you might plant sweetcorn or green beans), or else start a couple weeks before last frost indoors. Plants thrive in rich soil and full sun.
