Large plants, growing up to 3' in diameter. Leaf color is variable and ranges from yellow-green to green to blue-green. Leaves occasionally with a purple-tinged margin. Leaves are ovate with a rounded apex. Semi-prostrate leaves. Leaf midribs and veins light green to purple. Petiole pigmentation ranges from absent to purple. Leaves up to 15" long, 9" wide. Leaves are thicker with more texture. This variety was stewarded by Naomi Willis of Rocky Mount, North Carolina. Its a family heirloom collard grown by Naomi's mother and grandmother as early as the 1920s. Naomi donated this variety to Seed Savers Exchange in 1987 and commented in her correspondence, These seeds are not a true cabbage collard, as some of them will have purple edges on the leaves. The Summer flavor is a little different from what it is after a couple of frosts sends the sap down. One of her childhood chores was picking insects off the collard leaves and into a milk can of kerosene and water. She wasn't fond of the job, but was paid five cents for each full can. Naomi prepares the greens by cooking them in water with a piece of fat back or ham and seasoning them with hot pepper vinegar. SSE Accession # 107831
Listed in:
2012
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