Enduring Seeds

Download or read book Enduring Seeds written by Gary Paul Nabhan and published by University of Arizona Press. This book was released on 2016-10-01 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As biological diversity continues to shrink at an alarming rate, the loss of plant species poses a threat seemingly less visible than the loss of animals but in many ways more critical. In this book, one of America's leading ethnobotanists warns about our loss of natural vegetation and plant diversity while providing insights into traditional Native agricultural practices in the Americas. Gary Paul Nabhan here reveals the rich diversity of plants found in tropical forests and their contribution to modern crops, then tells how this diversity is being lost to agriculture and lumbering. He then relates "local parables" of Native American agriculture—from wild rice in the Great Lakes region to wild gourds in Florida—that convey the urgency of this situation and demonstrate the need for saving the seeds of endangered plants. Nabhan stresses the need for maintaining a wide gene pool, not only for the survival of these species but also for the preservation of genetic strains that can help scientists breed more resilient varieties of other plants. Enduring Seeds is a book that no one concerned with our environment can afford to ignore. It clearly shows us that, as agribusiness increasingly limits the food on our table, a richer harvest can be had by preserving ancient ways. This edition features a new foreword by Miguel Altieri, one of today's leading spokesmen for sustainable agriculture and the preservation of indigenous farming methods.

Download or read book Keepers of Life written by Michael J. Caduto and published by Fulcrum Publishing. This book was released on 1998 with total page 292 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This interdisciplinary curriculum in botany and plant ecology focuses on environmental and stewardship issues using the framework of Native American stories as an introduction to the topics.

Download or read book The Triumph of Seeds written by Thor Hanson and published by Civitas Books. This book was released on 2015-03-24 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We live in a world of seeds. From our morning toast to the cotton in our clothes, they are quite literally the stuff and staff of life, supporting diets, economies, and civilizations around the globe. Just as the search for nutmeg and the humble peppercorn drove the Age of Discovery, so did coffee beans help fuel the Enlightenment, and cottonseed help spark the Industrial Revolution. And from the Fall of Rome to the Arab Spring, the fate of nations continues to hinge on the seeds of a Middle Eastern grass known as wheat. In nature and in culture, seeds are fundamental—objects of beauty, evolutionary wonder, and simple fascination. How many times has a child dropped the winged pip of a maple, marveling as it spirals its way down to the ground, or relished the way a gust of wind(or a stout breath) can send a dandelion’s feathery flotilla skyward? Yet despite their importance, seeds are often seen as a commonplace, their extraordinary natural and human histories overlooked. Thanks to Thor Hanson and this stunning new book, they can be overlooked no more. What makes The Triumph of Seeds remarkable is not just that it is informative, humane, hilarious, and even moving, just as what makes seeds remarkable is not simply their fundamental importance to life. In both cases, it is their sheer vitality and the delight that we can take in their existence—the opportunity to experience, as Hanson puts it, “the simple joy of seeing something beautiful, doing what it is meant to do.” Spanning the globe from the Raccoon Shack—Hanson’s backyard writing hideout-cum-laboratory—to the coffee shops of Seattle, from gardens and flower patches to the spice routes of Kerala, this is a book of knowledge, adventure, and wonder, spun by an award-winning writer with both the charm of a fireside story-teller and the hard-won expertise of a field biologist. A worthy heir to the grand tradition of Aldo Leopold and Bernd Heinrich, The Triumph of Seeds takes us on a fascinating scientific adventure through the wild and beautiful world of seeds. It is essential reading for anyone who loves to see a plant grow.

Download or read book Seeds: Proceedings of the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery 2018 written by Mark McWilliams and published by Oxford Food Symposium. This book was released on 2019-07-01 with total page 349 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This edited collection contains papers presented on the theme of Seeds at the 2018 Oxford Food Symposium. Thirty-six articles by forty-one authors are included.

Download or read book Heirloom Seeds and Their Keepers written by Virginia D. Nazarea and published by University of Arizona Press. This book was released on 2014-11-21 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Through characters and stories that offer a wealth of insights about human nature and society, Heirloom Seeds and Their Keepers helps readers more fully understand why biodiversity persists when there are so many pressures for it not to. The key, Nazarea explains, is in the sovereign spaces seedsavers inhabit and create, where memories counter a culture of forgetting and abandonment engendered by modernity. A book about theory as much as practice, it profiles these individuals who march to their own beat in a world where diversity is increasingly devalued as the predictability of mass production becomes the norm.

Download or read book Seeds of Resistance, Seeds of Hope written by Virginia D. Nazarea and published by University of Arizona Press. This book was released on 2013-12-05 with total page 313 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Without denying the gravity of the problems of feeding the earth's population while conserving its natural resources, Seeds of Resistance, Seeds of Hope reminds us that there are many positive movements and developments, especially at the grass-roots level, that demonstrate the power of opposition and optimism.

Download or read book Seed Libraries written by Cindy Conner and published by New Society Publishers. This book was released on 2015-02-01 with total page 202 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Community-based initiatives to preserve and protect our food supply Historically, seed companies were generally small, often family-run businesses. Because they were regionally based, they could focus on varieties well-suited to the local environment. A Pacific Northwest company, for example, would specialize in different cultivars than a company based in the Southeast. However the absorption of these small, independent seed businesses into large multinationals, combined with the advancement of biotechnology resulting in hybrids and GMO seeds, has led to a serious loss of genetic diversity. The public is now at the mercy of the corporations that control the seeds. In the past few years, gardeners have realized the inherent danger in this situation. A growing movement is striving to preserve and expand our stock of heritage and heirloom varieties through seed saving and sharing opportunities. Seed Libraries is a practical guide to saving seeds through community programs, including: Step-by-step instructions for setting up a seed library A wealth of ideas to help attract patrons and keep the momentum going Profiles of existing libraries and other types of seed saving partnerships Whoever controls the seeds controls the food supply. By empowering communities to preserve and protect the genetic diversity of their harvest, Seed Libraries is the first step towards reclaiming our self-reliance while enhancing food security and ensuring that the future of food is healthy, vibrant, tasty, and nutritious. Cindy Conner is a permaculture educator, founder of Homeplace Earth and producer of two popular instructional gardening DVDs. She is also the author of Grow a Sustainable Diet .