Luigi Guarino

June 28, 2009

Chicks on film

Through interviews and reenactments, The Natural History of the Chicken investigates the role of the chicken in American life and tells several remarkable stories.

Via.

June 28, 2009June 28, 2009

Nibbles: Bats and bananas, Extension, Russian animal harvests, Rice improvement, Sacred groves

“Wild bananas share with bats a long history that started some 50 million years ago.”
Jeremy waxes lyrical about extension.
Ah, those age-old Russian pastimes, hunting walrus and farming deer horn.
Kellogg’s reaches out to PhilRice genebank.
Indian sacred groves need help.

June 26, 2009June 25, 2009

What I’m doing on my holidays

Must remember to ask if they have any of this.

June 25, 2009

BBC’s Nature Inc. tackles “one sexy tuber”

…some agribusinesses and farmers are seeing sustainable profits and productivity in encouraging crop diversity.

This I gotta see. But, alas, probably wont. Please watch and let us know how exactly agribusiness is encouraging potato diversity.

June 25, 2009June 25, 2009

You know you have a Kikuyu in the house…

…when you find the pumpkin (kahurura) plants defoliated to colour the mashed potatoes.

Fresh Nibbles

Why the modern food system prizes uniformity even though resilience depends on diversity. Spoiler alert: follow the money.
Historic crop varieties are finding renewed relevance as farmers contend with more volatile weather, emerging pests and changing markets. Let’s hope there’s money to conserve them.
India’s traditional wheat varieties contain diversity that could help breeders develop crops better able to withstand heat and drought. Let’s hope there’s money to conserve them.
India announces significant progress in conserving its wild rice genetic resources. Great that there was money to conserve them.
Community seed banks across Kenya are calling for formal recognition and sustained support, arguing that locally managed collections strengthen seed sovereignty, preserve traditional varieties and help farming communities adapt to climate change. Yes, but are they enough without national genebanks?
Researchers are racing to conserve wild coffee species whose genetic diversity may provide the resistance and resilience needed to secure tomorrow’s morning cup. Is the industry contributing, though ?
New history of the macadamia traces its remarkable journey from Australia’s native forests to a global crop, while underscoring why conserving the remaining wild populations is essential for the crop’s long-term future.
Researchers at the University of the South Pacific investigate how taro can withstand climate change, combining research with conservation to help protect one of the region’s most culturally and nutritionally important staple crops.
Chester Zoo collects seeds from highly threatened cacti, because why not?

Published on July 14, 2026