Genebanks

November 9, 2016March 4, 2026

A giant of seed conservation passes away

His work showed that long-term seed storage was not only feasible but also relatively inexpensive, and he played a key role in setting up and managing seed banks. In the mid-1970s he chaired the expert group on seed storage of the International Board For Plant Genetic Resources, which was aiming to conserve crop diversity. There are now more than 1,400 seed banks all over the world.

That would be Prof. Eric Roberts. “Lector, si monumentum requiris, circumspice.”

November 8, 2016March 4, 2026

Nibbles: Sweet potato, Horse genetics, Sandy Knapp video, Rumphius, Rice breeding, Banana breeding, Medieval vegetables, Tomatoes & witchcraft, Native American corn

On a day that we hope will be historic for the right reason…
The history of the sweet potato.
The history of the horse.
The history of the study of plant diversity. And more.
The history of IR8.
The banana is not yet history.
The history of vegetables. And more.
The continuing history of Iroquois corn.

November 8, 2016March 5, 2026

I’m with them

genebank-ladies

A very unrandom selection of participants at the latest Annual Genebanks Meeting of the CGIAR, which took place at the Australian Grains Genebank in Horsham and AgriBio, La Trobe University, Melbourne last week, and is the reason for our silence lately. Dr Sally Norton, our host, and the director of the AGG, responsible for over 100,000 accessions, is sitting down, second from left. Thanks, Sally. And thanks to Mellissa Wood on Facebook for the photo.

October 12, 2016October 12, 2016

Nibbles: Illicit ag, Illicit stats, Irish folk meds, Medieval farming, Zoo methods, Date collection, Apple breeding, Ancient cannabis, Old yeast

Sorry about slow blogging lately. Life caught up with us. Slowly getting back in the saddle…
ISIS benefitting from agricultural production as much as oil.
Why we should drop “statistically significant.”
Irish folk medicine being used. Again. Or still.
Back to the future of farms, medieval edition: it’s the faldage, stupid.
Botanical art in history.
Applying zoo methods to plant conservation. Maybe should be the other way too?
The future of dates is in the US?
History of the Honeycrisp apple, for all you Red Delicious haters out there.
Ancient stash found. Down to seeds and stems.
Keep warm with some nice Latin American drinks.
Or beer made from old yeast from a shipwreck.

October 10, 2016October 5, 2016

Brainfood: Genomic data edition

When more is better: how data sharing would accelerate genomic selection of crop plants. It’s the data sharing, stupid.
Genomic prediction contributing to a promising global strategy to turbocharge gene banks. See what I mean?
Conservation of Animal Genetic Resources – A New Tact. Yeah, for animals too.
Indigenous stocks as treasure troves for sustainable livestock production in the 21st century: Insights from small ruminant genomics. See what I mean?