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The perils of diversification

Alex Tiller forecasts a price spike in the cost of salads and melons in the US this summer as a result of a drought in California’s Central Valley. Farmers are abandoning those crops to save water for even more valuable crops, like almonds. Tiller suggests that

The coming cost spikes in lettuce and melon may provide incentives for growers outside the “melon belt” to invest in the production of these popular fruit and vegetable crops.

Right. But unless those farmers can fashion some kind of new deal with their buyers they’ll be able to kiss goodbye to their investment and their income just as soon as California gets another normally wet season, which it will, soon enough. Prices will plummet, and the buyers will abandon (more) local suppliers to save a couple of cents. You mark my words.

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New Scientist bottles it

I have a lot of respect for the New Scientist. I really do. I kind of grew up with it. But I don’t think it handled the Great Seed Bank Confusion very well. Let me remind you. Last week a blog post went up at Short Sharp Science confusing the Millennium Seed Bank at Kew with the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, which is demonstrably not at Kew. Here’s a screen grab of that original post (click to enlarge):
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That was bad enough, as both places have been in the news a lot lately, and it elicited the predictable flood of comments 1 — some unpardonably rude, it must be admitted 2 — setting the blogger right. But it was nearly a week before the post was corrected, thusly:
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And, rather than being up-front, the apology for the mistake, and the notice that a correction has been made, is buried in the 18th comment.

Journalists often bitch and moan about bloggers not being sufficiently professional about checking sources etc etc. I think New Scientist was unprofessional in making the original mistake — but hey, that happens — but also, and unforgivably, in not owning up to it quickly and visibly enough. Anyway, at least now everyone knows the difference between Kew and Svalbard.

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Recreational farming

An interesting triptych today on farming as recreation. Kind of, anyway. From Vietnam, an unfortunately rather brief article on how foreign tourists can become farmers for a day at Tra Que village. The piece doesn’t say whether that’s the same Tra Que which is being protected by trademark, but I would guess so. 3

There was also today an article about the Konso of Ethiopia, who are apparently sometimes referred to as “the toughest farmers in Africa.” A so-called eco-lodge has been set up, “whose mission is to tie tourism and community development activism through permaculture together, delivering tangible community benefits.” Again, as in Vietnam, the idea is community immersion, though for longer than just a day, and in rather more difficult circumstance, I expect.

And finally, to the Isabella Freedman Jewish Retreat Center in Falls Village, Connecticut. Actually it’s a bit of a cheek including this with the previous two stories. The people attending the Centre, and others like it, are in earnest about learning to farm in a way that follows the Law: “One-sixth of the Talmud deals with agriculture.” Some, indeed, will take farming up as a profession. But not all: “We don’t all need to be farmers. To have farming be a little part of every Jewish person’s life, that’s our goal.”

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Featured comment: Alnus

Michael Bell on Frankia and Alnus:

I have started a truly wild project – developing alder as a grain crop! <snip> I would be very grateful for living material, cuttings or seeds. If the place where trees which meet my needs can be described, I can go and get it myself. The plan is to copy the “Open Source” ideas of Linux and similar computer systems. All those who contribute material will be offered the results of my work.

Send us updates!

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Catch of the week

There has been an overwhelming response to my call to stop over-fishing. UNEP made a map. Rupert Murray contributed a film, The End of the Line, destined to become the next eco-blockbuster; if it can beat Flipper-flick The Cove.

Google Earth volunteered spectacular improvements of their sea maps. Meanwhile, in India, M.S. Swaminathan 4 called for integrated coastal management and legislation. Thanks to Greenpeace for ratcheting up its campaign against pirate fishing. And to you for all the donations; keep them coming.

On the downside, Japanese “researchers” use military grade weapons to shake off activists that won’t let them kill whales; and Brazil’s fish exports may double this year.