Free rare heirloom tomato/pepper seeds Sunday 3/29/26 at Soergels 1pm
Grow something fun and different this season and come visit with me and other gardeners on Sunday March 29, 2026, 1 p.m. at Soergels
We are going to have fun at Soergel’s Garden Center on Sunday March 29, 2026 at 1 p.m. while I’m giving away a bunch of unique heirloom tomato and pepper seeds, then presenting a free seed starting demonstration.
Soergel’s Garden Center is located at 2573 Brandt School Rd, Wexford, PA 15090.
I’ll have ‘Limbaugh Legacy Potato Top’ and ‘3945’ seeds, but also some cool varieties donated by Mark Barnett of Old South Seeds.
I’ve been giving away the Limbaugh seeds since 2000. It’s a big, pink, meaty beefsteak that many claim is the best tasting tomato ever.
‘3945’ was found on a battlefield during WWII and grown in Pittsburgh for 70 years. It’s a medium sized slicer with great flavor.
Check out the other interesting varieties I’ll be passing out-
‘Mongolian Dwarf’ tomato.
‘Mongolian Dwarf’
Created by Novosibirsk breeders that also goes by its Russian name “Mongolskiy Karlik”. It is a great container variety if someone has limited space and has impressive fruit size for a plant it’s size, great for slicing. It is quite hardy as it is resistant and more cold tolerant. Grows low to the ground in a sprawling dense growth habit. grows about 2 ft tall. Tomatoes do not need to be tied up and production can be legendary. The fruit itself has a good solid flavor and sweetness depends on the warmth of the season. This variety is highly sought after for its unique characteristics and some grow it over winter indoors as a winter slicer.
‘Merced’ tomato
‘Merced’
If you're a fan of early to mid-season, delicious red slicing tomatoes, Merced is an absolute MUST grow!! This is an open pollinated version of the old hybrid variety Merced that was originally released by Northrup King Seed Company. I purchased my seeds from the late Ted Maiden. Ted's seed source came from a family in the Willamette Valley area that had been growing this variety for many years and stabilized it. The regular leaf, semi-determinate plants are fairly early, incredibly healthy, fairly compact and top out about 4 to 5 feet tall. They load up with perfectly round, very dense tomatoes that are heavy for their size. They ripen to beautiful red, almost blemish free, very meaty/heavy tomatoes that are just delicious! They average 8 to 12 ounces, but some can be over a pound. Sweet, but with a little tang to balance out the flavor. One of the meatiest slicing type tomatoes I've ever grown. This is an amazing "all-purpose" tomato. Delicious as a slicer, but also can be used for canning, and to make sauce, paste, etc. I made a wonderful sauce out of some of these! I trial many different varieties each season and I rarely grow any specific variety year after year, but Merced is a tomato that I will grow every single year...It's just that good!!
‘Sarit Gat’ pepper
The Sarit Gat pepper is a Canary Yellow cayenne type from the country of Kosovo. The Sarit Gat chiles ripen from green to yellow and are 4 to 6 inches average in length. They are extremely productive as most Cayenne are. The Sarit Gat chiles have citrus fruity flavor tones and a nice upfront burn like other Cayenne types. The Sarit Gat chiles are great for salsa, seasoning and pickling. The Sarit Gat chile plants grow 3 to 4 feet tall.
‘Sugar Rush Stripy’ pepper
By far one of the most beautiful and intriguing pepper varieties. The Sugar Rush Stripey matures from a creamy peach color to a gorgeous reddish striped beauty. They grow to about 4-6 inches in length and shaped like other Sugar Rush varieties but some of the pods will be curved and bulbous. The flavor is sweet and fruity and have heat similar to a cayenne pepper. The walls are fairly thick so they are hearty and crunchy. They go great with cheese and crackers or even filled with cream cheese. The plants are very productive and will grow to 4-5 feet tall. A must for any grower.
‘Gabi Hot Wax’ pepper