Behind the Catalog Cover Shot
Behind the Cover Shot: The Seeds That Started It All
The 2025 Seed Savers Exchange Catalog proudly offers more than 600 unique, open-pollinated varieties, but its cover showcases only two—the delightfully delicious ‘German Pink’ tomato and the mighty yet majestic ‘Grandpa Ott’s’ morning glory (with the historic barn at Heritage Farm providing the backdrop).
As a child growing up on a farm near Festina, Iowa, Diane Ott Whealy, SSE co-founder, would frequently visit the nearby farm of her grandparents, Baptist John and Helena Hackman Ott. She recounted in her memoir, Gathering: Memoir of a Seed Saver: “There was a warm spot on the south side of the hog barn where…one shorter row [of the garden] was reserved for the seed of ‘German Pink’ tomato.”
After harvesting, those ‘German Pink’ tomatoes, sprinkled with sugar, would be served on white platters. Diane also recalled a thick wall of morning glory vines growing up twine strings covering the east side of her grandparents’ porch. The heart-shaped leaves created a cozy sanctuary of green, highlighted by bursts of deep-purple blooms with a scarlet-red center. ‘German Pink’ tomato recipes
Years later, Diane and Kent Whealy planted their first garden and visited her grandparents to ask for the seeds Diane remembered from her childhood. Grandpa Ott went back into his bedroom and came out carrying a small, white cardboard pill box with the tiny, black morning glory seeds and a small envelope of ‘German Pink’ tomato seeds. He said these seeds were brought over by his parents when they immigrated to Iowa from Bavaria, Germany, in the 1800s.
“Holding those seeds in my hands, I realized I had a living link back to my ancestors,” Diane recalls today. “Later that year, Grandpa Ott passed away, and we realized that had he not given us his seeds along with the stories, they would have been lost.”
Thinking of how often that might happen with other heirloom seed varieties inspired Diane and Kent Whealy to start Seed Savers Exchange with these two founding varieties in 1975.
Today, 50 years later, Seed Savers Exchange stewards approximately 20,000 heirloom varieties at its Heritage Farm headquarters in Decorah, Iowa, including the ‘Grandpa Ott’s’ morning glory and the ‘German Pink’ tomato. Both remain central symbols for Seed Savers Exchange, representing both the identity and purpose of the organization.
The tomatoes grow each year in Diane’s Garden, while the self-seeding morning glories have climbed up the side of the historic barn every year since 1988, creating a wall of green vines just like those that once covered the side of Grandpa Ott’s front porch.
Grow a Piece of History
Help keep these stories alive by becoming a steward of these treasured family heirlooms.
How to grow ‘German Pink’ tomato
Start ‘German Pink’ seeds indoors six weeks prior to the last frost date for your area. Plant the seeds to a depth of ¼ inch in trays or pots, making sure to keep the soil moist.
Transfer them to 3-inch pots when their true leaves appear. After hardening off your plants, transplant them outdoors two to three feet apart in nutrient-rich soil when soil temperatures reach at least 50 degrees Fahrenheit and the danger of frost has passed.
Be sure to provide the plants with some sort of support such as a trellis, cage or stakes. Water your plants at their base to avoid wetting the leaves, which will foster fungal diseases.
You will soon be harvesting plenty of the gorgeous, pink-hued fruit. Be sure to save some of the seeds for the following year!
Shop ‘German Pink’ tomato seeds
How to grow ‘Grandpa Ott’s’ morning glory
Morning glories prefer full sun and moist, average soil. Support the plants with a trellis or teepee. This self-sowing annual can climb to 15 feet tall if given the proper support.
Morning glories are aggressive and spread easily. To avoid spreading to unwanted areas, deadhead the flowers before they go to seed.