Mainstream

July 13, 2014July 16, 2014

Canada at Brasil 2014 after all

As you watch the World Cup final, which is due to start any minute now, reflect on the fact that the players will be running up and down, as they have been throughout the tournament, on local Bermuda grass overseeded with perennial ryegrass produced by Manitoba farmers for DLF Pickseed. ¹ No country is self-sufficient even in turf grasses. Not even mega-diverse Brazil. But at least it now has something to blame for that 7-1. Apart from David Luiz.

July 13, 2014July 12, 2014

Nibbles: Millet festival, Seed eBay, Fonio frenzy, Kenya mangoes, Barbed wire, Potato diversity, Peruvian cuisine, Feeding Haiti, Shea paradox, Prosopis review, Nigerian genebank, COGENT meeting, IRRI genebank, Big Data on diseases, Genomics at UBham

There’s a millet festival in Chennai on 20 July. Any of our readers planning to go?
“…the first ever, non-profit “eBay” of seed…” And you can contribute, if you like. With money, that is. I wonder if there will be a festival at some point.
Fonio gets the Mail treatment (but no festival). Will it ever recover? Maybe this will help. For the record, it may have been the The Guardian that started this fonio frenzy. Anyway, here are the collections, if you think you’d like to contribute to the revolution. Like by organizing a festival. But why stop at fonio…
Sometimes, however, exotic is better: like mango in Kenya. There’s plenty of mango festivals (and a new genebank too) in India, but not in Kenya, as far as I know.
BBC radio programme on the history of barbed wire. Fascinating.
Not to be outdone, DW on potato agrobiodiversity, including the CIP genebank. Wow, in Spanish too. Ah, but do any of them have high levels of B-9 vitamin? No? I know someone who can change that.
More to Peruvian cuisine than potatoes, though. I feel a festival coming on.
Food aid vs agriculture in Haiti. Nothing to celebrate there.
Someone mention hard choices? Shea harvesting in Ghana presents a conundrum too.
What can I tell you about Prosopis? Some are good, others not so much.
I guess the same could be said for Solanums.
Around the world in 20 food photos. No festivals? Well, I think Ramadan qualifies.
“I have told you that NACGRAB would have been in a mess without the support of WAAPP.” Head of Nigerian genebank tells the world like it is.
Coconut genebank managers tell each other like it is.
Rice genebank makes an impression, visitor tells the world.
I suppose we should have at least one Big Data thing, right? Make that two. But that’s all you get.
Ok, then, one last one: diseases, genomics and, of course, football.

July 3, 2014July 4, 2014

Nibbles: Tree drought tolerance, Whisky history, Barley drought tolerance, Old veggies, Old potatoes, Llamas vs goats, Sustainable ag, Chinese herbaria

Drought tolerance? It’s the carbs.
Whisky 101.
Coincidental mashup of the above. Barley used in whisky production provides clue to drought tolerance.
Pre-hispanic veggies.
Pre-hispanic carbs.
Pre-hispanic livestock.
Sustainable agriculture deconstructed.
GBIF scores Chinese specimens.

June 29, 2014June 30, 2014

Nibbles: Global Nutrition Report, Neanderthal veggies, Azolla genome, Evergreen Garrity, Breadfruit tease, Apios & other perennials, Guelph U genebank, Camel trouble, ICRISAT transitions, American beer

Crowdsourcing the Global Nutrition Report.
Which will not cover the Neanderthals.
Azolla genome project meets crowdfunding target, gets love from BGI.
Would that contribute to Evergreen Agriculture?
I bet breadfruit would, but New Scientist has put an article about that interesting tree behind a paywall. But, see this teaser…
Some people think the potato bean will.
Another genebank in Canada. Not crops, though, I suspect.
Saving the camel in Rajasthan.
ICRISAT gets a new DG.
Podcast on the history of American beer. Perfect note on which to wish you all a good rest of the weekend.

June 25, 2014June 26, 2014

Good times for Seeds of Time

We somehow missed the news that Seeds of Time, Sandy McCloud‘s documentary about pioneering seed saver Cary Fowler, had won the Audience Award at the San Francisco Green Film Festival. Congratulations to all concerned. Here’s the trailer. Hope it comes your way.

Coincidentally, Prof. Brian Cox has been filming for the BBC up at the Svalbard Global Seed Vault this week.

Fascinating day filming at the Global Seed Vault in Svalbard – the world's seeds, stored for thousands of years! http://t.co/fIoPNWujVf

— Brian Cox (@ProfBrianCox) June 25, 2014