Of those, only Kelvedon Wonder gets a mention in Wikipedia: 65 days, 1997 RHS AGM winner

What fun! I found her book really inspiring. But it was also a little frustrating, because so much has changed that isnt represented in the books. There are, for example, some really vibrant online communities with farmers and backyard gardeners doing breeding.

Can I ask how you actually figured out how to contact the USDA gene bank? that part wasnt clear to me from the book.

just go to this link.
http://www.ars-grin.gov/npgs/index.html

But I would caution that the seed storage facilities are intended to be used for serious plant breeding efforts.

DarJones

Yes, many people are turned down for their requests because they are just asking for seed for normal garden purposes. I have found that most pea varieties I try are beat down by the heavy rains here* and can't grow to well when the clay soil gets compacted, I'm trying to get more sturdy varieties. I'm sure these varieties do fine elsewhere, just not for me :( I hope that all the English landraces can offer the genes for sturdiness and tolerance of heavy (and I mean heavy) clay. The USDA has such a treasure trove of genes, I'm working now on making new Tom Thumb-type lettuces for cold frame growing, courtesy of seeds from the USDA.

* I grow peas in the winter here, hence the heavy rain.

Of the varieties listed, I've grown only one, "Gruno Rosyn". That was in 2005. I didn't list it in the SSE Yearbook this year due to seed age, and no one else is currently listing it. I plan to grow it again in 2013, to replenish my stock.

"Gruno Rosyn" is a soup pea with very large, wrinkled seed. The peas are greenish when first harvested (hence the name) but darken to brown in storage. This is definitely an indeterminate variety, with vines 6-7' tall. The flowers are an attractive dark purple.

"Acacia Leaved Purple Wonder"... that sounds similar to the "Purple Pod Parsley" that I have been working on for several years now.