Nibbles: USDA Pullman genebank, Another Indonesian genebank, Somali community seedbank, Garlic moves genebanks, Enset conservation, Opportunity crop genebanks

  1. A primer on the USDA genebank in Pullman.
  2. Possible genebank in Indonesia. I could have sworn there was one already.
  3. Community genebank in Somalia. Surely not the only one.
  4. Garlic moves between genebanks. I’m sure there’s a reason.
  5. New enset products and processing methods are great, but is there a comprehensive genebank? I wish I could be sure.
  6. That goes for other “opportunity crops” and “forgotten foods” too.

Brainfood: Defining domestication, Pig domestication, Archaeological orphan crops, Levant Neolithic causes, Altiplano agricultural origins, Irish cattle, Islamic Green Revolution, Ancient fish DNA, Ancient Chinese rice

Brainfood: Agroforestry, Afro-descendant conservation, Opportunity crops, Off-farm income, Phureja conservation, European taro, Argania products, Honeybee intensification, Mycorrhizal hotspots

Nibbles: COUSIN project, Breeding chat, Aardaker, Alternative beans, Grain amaranth, Iraqi seeds, Genebanks in peril

  1. The COUSIN project aims to conserve (trans situ, no less) and use crop wild relatives in Europe.
  2. That “use” part can be tough.
  3. But that doesn’t stop the fine people at Aardaia. At least where aardaker (Lathyrus tuberosus) is concerned.
  4. From alternative potatoes in the Netherlands to alternative beans in Indonesia. All in the cause of diversification.
  5. No need to find an alternative to amaranth in the American SW. Not with devoted chefs on the job.
  6. The Iraqi Seed Collective is taking seeds from American genebanks to that country’s diaspora in the US, and eventually back to Iraq itself. Maybe chefs will help.
  7. Good thing there are genebank backups, eh?

Brainfood: EcoregionsTreeFinder, Microbe niches, Herbarium phenology, Green Status Index of Species Recovery, Feral pigs, Trade & biodiversity, African cereal self-sufficiency, Plant protection, Ugandan seed systems, Grasspea breeding, Indigenous knowledge