Nibbles

Nibbles: Book, Sorghum, Plant breeding, Quinoa, Herbal medicines, Compensation, New varieties, Beers

Here’s a bunch of better-late-than-never links, some of which will be good this time next year.

A new book on Plant Genetic Resources and Climate Change.
I expect it covers sorghum, which NPR calls the “camel of crops”.
Wonder whether they’ll cover sorghum at the Tucson Plant Breeding Institute course in January 2014. h/t Crops for the Future.
Last week’s International Congress on Quinoa. Pretty sure our invitation got lost in the mail.
As was our invitation to Kew’s one-day symposium on herbal medicines and food supplements.
Annals of Botany explains how compensation may underly the benefits of genetic diversity – in Arabidopsis. (And thanks for the shout-out.)
ICRISAT struts its stuff in Nigeria with new varieties of groundnut and millet. As ever, we ask: who’s looking after the old varieties?
Diverse beers for Halloween – one to cut out and keep.

The Silk Road Gourmet talks about Reconstructing Cuisines And Recipes From The Ancient World.
Colin Tudge splutters about The Founding Fables of Industrialised Agriculture.
India’s ongoing onion crisis still a vale of tears.
But India’s jowar (sorghum) still offers superficial health benefits.
You know how all the US soybeans are being exported to China? Think again.
How the nasturtium got its spur; not a just-so-story.
California discovers the productive miracle of fish in rice paddies.

There are still people who think oca is a kind of potato. After all we’ve done for them.
And speaking of New Zealand Yams, here’s an old article about Tasmanian boutique potatoes.
Pasture diversity for animal welfare and profit
Young scientist in sub-Saharan Africa? Get trained on aspects of neglected and underutilized species.
So you thought kale was an ancient veggie? Think again. NYT features kale innovators.

Object Analysis of the Giant Pumpkin. Just in time for Halloween, obviously.
The Need to Save Seeds is a Bad Sign. Because it means you’re not using great seed that’s worth paying for. Listen, we just link to this stuff, OK?