Hard Headed Cabbage Collard

Variation in population. Leaf color highly variable from yellow-green, green, and dark green. One plant with blue-green leaves. One plant has a prostrate growth habit, while others are more open. Leaf blistering is slightly variable from low to moderate. Leaf margin is variable from entire to wavy. Petioles slightly more enlarged on two of the darker green plants. Plants have moderate heading capabilities. Plants measure 16.5-26 inches tall and 28-48 inches wide. Variety has tough and stringy leaves, but is slightly sweet. This collard is from Ronald and Mary Spain of Jacksonville, North Carolina. Their source was Mary’s aunt, Gladys Stevens Russell, who received this heirloom collard from her parents. Therefore, this same line of collard has been passed down for several decades. In 2004, Ronald and Mary gave some seeds to Dr. John Morgan, a cultural geographer and professor of geography at Emory & Henry College, who was collecting heirloom collard strains for preservation on behalf of the USDA. Seed Savers Exchange received this variety in 2016 from the USDA collection (PI 662802). SSE Accession # 133033