- From Green Revolution to Green Evolution: A Critique of the Political Myth of Averted Famine. Did not avert famine, but it was still important.
- Comparative transcriptomic analysis provides insight into the domestication and improvement of pear (P. pyrifolia) fruit. Much diversity was lost during domestication, but some was gained during improvement, though in different parts of the genome.
- Association between vitamin content, plant morphology and geographical origin in a worldwide collection of the orphan crop Gynandropsis gynandra (Cleomaceae). It’s the E and S African stuff you want.
- The abandonment of maize landraces over the last 50 years in Morelos, Mexico: a tracing study using a multi-level perspective. Don’t blame the youth.
- Elucidating the genetic basis of biomass accumulation and radiation use efficiency in spring wheat and its role in yield potential. Landraces and synthetics can be used to increase yield potential.
- Variation for Salinity Tolerance During Seed Germination in Diverse Carrot [Daucus carota (L.)] Germplasm. 4 cultivated accessions from Turkey out of 273 were best, and the wilds were no good, for a change.
- Salt stress under the scalpel – dissecting the genetics of salt tolerance. Need to break it down into its component parts. See above for an example, I guess.
- Ecological-economic trade-offs of Diversified Farming Systems – A review. Need to take the long view.
- Late Pleistocene human genome suggests a local origin for the first farmers of central Anatolia. Until the next one comes along.
- Training in Plant Genetic Resources Management: A Way Forward. I hope so.
- Whole-genome resequencing of 472 Vitis accessions for grapevine diversity and demographic history analyses. “The network of the domesticated grapevine cultivars is an indication of a highly complicated breeding history of European domesticated grapevines that started thousands of years ago.”
- The Minimum Dietary Diversity for Women of Reproductive Age (MDD-W) Indicator Is Related to Household Food Insecurity and Farm Production Diversity: Evidence from Rural Mali. Women from food insecure households less likely to reach MDD-W.
- Novel sources of resistance to root-lesion nematode (Pratylenchus thornei) in a new collection of wild Cicer species (C. reticulatum and C. echinospermum) to improve resistance in cultivated chickpea C. arietinum. Goon news for hummus.
- Determining factors for the diversity of hulless barley agroecosystem in the Himalaya region — A case study from Northwest Yunnan, China. Religion helps.
Nibbles: Grape breeding, Vanilla breeding, DSI policy, ITPGRFA, Maori taro, Dhofar memories
- Marker-assisted breeding in grapes: like skimming through a book looking for key words.
- Vanilla genome: going from no-frills vehicle to luxury sportscar.
- CGN on what to do to ensure continued access to that book — or car.
- A topic which is all the rage right now in the ITPGRFA, on which this is a one-page primer.
- 14th century Māori grew taro as well as sweet potato.
- Great infographics on the fascinating region of Dhofar in southern Oman, in which I collected germplasm many years ago. Great opportunity to reminisce.
Brainfood: Agrobiodiversity drivers, Wild bean adaptation, Berseem breeding, Millet mutants, IK conservation, NUS, Vertebrate threats, Ethiopian nutrition, Maize landraces, Maize phenotyping, Musa chemotypes, Ancient farmers, Vavilov’s steps, Bean diversity, Wild wheat
- Agricultural Biodiversity Maintenance in a Coastal Socio-Ecological System: the Pearl Lagoon Basin, Nicaragua. Roads are not always bad for agrobiodiversity.
- Signatures of Environmental Adaptation During Range Expansion of Wild Common Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris). Candidate genes for increased water use efficiency identified.
- Genetic Improvement of Berseem (Trifolium alexandrinum) in India: Current Status and Prospects. Including using wild relatives, which was surprising to me.
- Generation and characterization of a foxtail millet (Setaria italica) mutant library. Who needs landraces.
- Storing and sharing: A review of indigenous and local knowledge conservation initiatives. Ex situ predominates, and local custodians are often excluded. Where have I heard this before?
- Prospects of orphan crops in climate change. They’re great. But didn’t we already know this?
- Energy and nutrient production in Ethiopia, 2011-2015: Implications to supporting healthy diets and food systems. I guess maybe we didn’t know it. Production has increased, but at the expense of diversity, and nutrient deficits remain.
- Hotspots of human impact on threatened terrestrial vertebrates. 1200 species impacted by threats over >90% of their range. I wonder how many livestock wild relatives.
- Testcross performance of doubled haploid lines from European flint maize landraces is promising for broadening the genetic base of elite germplasm. “Idle genetic diversity from gene banks” gets busy.
- High-throughput method for ear phenotyping and kernel weight estimation in maize using ear digital imaging. Apply to above?
- Genetic analysis of Okra Yellow Vein Mosaic Virus disease resistance in wild relative of okra Abelmoschus angulosus Wall. ex Wight & Arn.Smacks of desperation.
- Metabolite profiling characterises chemotypes of Musa diploids and triploids at juvenile and pre-flowering growth stages. Unsurprisingly follows the genetics.
- Late Pleistocene human genome suggests a local origin for the first farmers of central Anatolia. Not much migration after all.
- Following Vavilov’s expeditions, Sardinia (Italy). Lots of changes in 90 years. There’s a shocker.
- Analyses of African common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) germplasm using a SNP fingerprinting platform: diversity, quality control and molecular breeding. Lots of naming inconsistencies among breeding materials. Another shocker.
- Potential of Aegilops sp. for Improvement of Grain Processing and Nutritional Quality in Wheat (Triticum aestivum). Not just Fe and Zn.
Nibbles: Neolithic, Agroforestry, California dreaming, Not that pawpaw, Droning about salinity, Rocket science
- Beer before bread? Sure, why not.
- Melia is a big hit in Kenya. Must tell the mother-in-law.
- California goes back to the acorn.
- When it’s finished with that, it could try the stuff in this old orchard.
- Unfortunately no pawpaw there. Yet.
- No need to stress out about salinity, California.
- Rucola doesn’t need California.
Nibbles: Grapefruit breeding, Parent navel orange, Meyer lemon, USDA fruit collection, USDA art, Crop diversification, Kiwi genebank, Apple genealogy, Saffron
- Grapefruit has hit bottom, grapefruit breeder says.
- Here’s a solution: a fence.
- What would Frank Meyer say about any of the above?
- Or Todd Kennedy for that matter.
- Botanical art at USDA. Beautiful. And probably a grapefruit in there.
- Gear up for the European Conference on Crop Diversification, 18-21 September 2019 in Budapest, Hungary. Will grapefruit be on the menu?
- Never mind about grapefruit, get a load of this kiwi fruit genebank.
- Nice diagram of apple genealogy. Grapefruit next?
- I bet saffron goes well with grapefruit. Yeah, forced, I know. Sue me.