Here’s a fun thing. There’s a group pool on Flickr, the photo sharing site, called “tomatoes!” ((And also similar pools for lots of other plants.)) All kinds of pictures of all kinds of tomatoes, and very beautiful is all that diversity to look at too. But you can do more. Like for example map where the photos were taken (assuming the photographer uploaded a georeference). Which could give you a snapshot of where tomatoes are grown or consumed — or maybe just particularly loved. You can also generate a kml file. Here’s what you get when you view it in Google Earth:
Haven’t quite worked it out. This doesn’t seem to be all the georeferenced tomato photos from Europe in the group. Maybe just the latest to be uploaded. But I can’t help thinking this is a great way of displaying the geographic distribution of agricultural biodiversity.
Nibbles: Earth, Cheese, Silkworms, Biodiversity, Food, Cows, Pigs, Blog, Oysters, Organic
- Stunning images of Earth from space. Direct agricultural (biodiversity) interest at 3, 6 and 15.
- A cheese that’s full of agrobiodiversity. In more ways than one.
- Agrobiodiversity useful in space. And from space.
- Biodiversity in Africa. Agriculture mentioned, and not just in a bad way. Nice maps too.
- Eggplants. Agrobiodiversity. Cooking. Sex. Video.
- Sad story of a farmer losing his cows. Not just cows, “the oldest pure breed on Earth.”
- Farmers bred colourful pigs for the sheer hell of it.
- CABI blog reviews 2008.
- Keeping oysters healthy is hard.
- Legendary breeder Khush says organic rice not a good idea.
- Variation Under Domestication. Darwin’s Origin blogged.
Nibbles: Map, Healthy foods, Ireland, Farmers’ Markets, Tea, ACSS, Coconut
- Bill funds Africa soil map.
- Healthy foods. Pace the blogger, I could probably get all of them in Nairobi.
- First Irish farmers came and went.
- Pssst! Wanna start your own Farmers’ Market?
- Tea.
- The African Crop Science Society has a website.
- Coconut: the lazy man’s crop. Thousands of women batter down Sun Star’s doors.
Nibbles: Brew, India, Coffee, Quinoa, Sheep, Snails, Maps
- Beer diversity to die for. Luigi comments: “Only 300?”
- Giant claims, some false, for genetic resources in North-East India.
- Coffee good for wild tree biodiversity. Joe unavailable for comment.
- How Alejandro Bonifacio saved quinoa. PROINPA comments: “And me?”
- Sheep manure’s contribution to Portuguese rye agriculture.
- Circum-Mediterranean escargotières.
- Map it or lose it.
Nibbles: Journal, Biofuel source, Old seeds, Bees, Aquaculture, Millennium Seed Bank, Pests, Earthworms, Jellyfish, Cuba, Japan, Kerala, Queensland, Goats, Cacao, Savanna, Global maps, Nepal
- New Gene Conservation is out. Put out more flags.
- Biofuel from coffee grounds? Right. Hope the stuff was shade-grown, anyway.
- Is a lupin or date palm seed the oldest ever found? Let the controversy rage.
- Bees scare caterpillars as well as pollinating plants. Thankfully, Europe is on the job, colony-collapse-wise.
- Trouble for Scottish farmed salmon. And the wild ones may have their problems too. But aquaculture in general is booming, they say.
- Google Earth discovers forest. Not agrobiodiversity, but fun nonetheless.
- “It doesn’t just take in seeds – it sends them out.”
- Maize pest will love climate change. Well, some of them anyway.
- The latest review of earthworms discussed.
- Jellyfish and chips?
- Eating local pretty much unavoidable in Cuba. Yes, everyone wants to be a locavore these days.
- Japanese amateur botanists get into genebanking.
- “108 dishes based on jackfruit and seed varieties that are facing extinction were also exhibited at the festival.” 108?
- Queensland markets its tropical produce via a new website. No reason why others shouldn’t do the same, is there?
- “People shouldn’t underestimate how important a goat can be for a family in Africa.” Having had to assist in slaughtering one over Christmas, I certainly don’t.
- A rapid run-through the history of chocolate.
- Long-fallow agriculture in Mali leads to more, more diverse and taller trees.
- Global accessibility map published. Also one of fires, and intact forests. Let a thousand agrobiodiversity mash-ups bloom. Thanks, Andy.
- Nepal has lots of medicinal plants. Funny they don’t seem to feature in the Western Terai Landscape Complex Project.