Minnie Mizelle Cabbage Collard variety description
Fairly uniform variety. One plant is a bit greener in color than the other plants that are yellow-green. Also, one plant formed a sport and is 2 plants in 1 and is a more erect. Shorter plants measure 14-18 inches tall and 31-54 inches wide. Leaves are spatulate in shape and have many lobes and a wavy margin. Plants are semi-prostrate and form well-developed heads. Variety was damaged by temperatures around 20 F, but was not killed. Not too sweet, but rather has a more earthy mustard like flavor.
Minnie Mizelle Cabbage Collard variety history
An heirloom collard from Henry Mizelle of Williamston, North Carolina. Henry’s wife, Minnie Mizelle, saved seed of this variety for more than 60 years before she passed on in 2006 at the age of 90. Minnie shared the collard seeds with a number of local gardeners. She originally received this variety in the 1940s from her aunt, Martha Jones. In 2006, Henry gave seeds (of this variety and several others) 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 Accession. Seed Savers Exchange requested this variety in 2016 from the USDA Accession collection (G 32754).
Seed Status:
This variety is low quantity in the Seed Savers Exchange collection and is currently being regenerated at several locations around the country.