Commercially introduced by us in the U.S.
Phonetically pronounced: yell-oh-wa -ak-coy bamya tohumu
Widely known as Sultani among growers, Yalova Akköy is one of the most popular Turkish okra varieties. Vigorous plants produce long, light green pods in 45-50 days. Pods hardly get fibrous, and are not as slimy as most other varieties, when pickled. If you want to make a meal out of okra, we also recommend you to soak the sliced pods in lemon-water before cooking, to take the slime away.
Co-owner Mehmet Öztan typically harvests the pods the way his mom would buy the pods from the grocery store. Mehmet says: “I pick the long, slender pods for the best flavor and tenderness.”
This okra was unanimously picked by all 15 judges as the winner of a taste test among 60 okra varieties, conducted in 2018 by Chris Smith for his comprehensive book about okra, The Whole Okra: A Stem to Stem Celebration.
Many thanks to folks, specifically Leah Smith, at Sow True Seed for making it possible to have substantial seed stock grown for this okra so that we can offer it in our catalog.
Our current seed stock was grown by Browntown Farms of Freeman, VA.
- 12 hrs
- Planting depth: 1/2-1"
- Sprouts in 10-14 days
- Ideal Growing Temperature: 75-90F
- Plant Spacing: 18-24"
- Frost hardy: No
- Growth habit: Tall plants
- Abelmoschus esculentus
- Growing tips: Soak seeds in water for 24 hrs before seeding. Direct-seed after last frost in spring. Pick pods when young. Use gloves to pick dry pods when you save seeds.
Sierra Casselman (verified owner) –
Didn’t grow – I ran out of room. Will try next year.
Victor D. (verified owner) –
Planted this a bit too late, but they did okay. I liked the taste and that they were very easy to pick by hand. They break nicely at the stem.