Food Ark
Food Ark A crisis is looming: To feed our growing population, we’ll need to double food production. Yet crop yields aren’t increasing fast enough, and climate change and new diseases threaten the limited varieties we’ve come to depend on for food. Luckily we still have the seeds and breeds to ensure our future food supply—but we must take steps to save them.Six miles outside the town of Decorah, Iowa, an 890-acre stretch of rolling fields and woods called Heritage Farm is letting its crops go to seed. It seems counterintuitive, but then everything about this farm stands in stark contrast to the surrounding acres of neatly rowed corn and soybean fields that typify modern agriculture. Heritage Farm is devoted to collecting rather than growing seeds. It is home to the Seed Savers Exchange, one of the largest nongovernment-owned seed banks in the United States.
In 1975 Diane Ott Whealy was bequeathed the seedlings of two heirloom plant varieties that her great grandfather had brought to America from Bavaria in 1870: Grandpa Ott's morning glory and his German Pink tomato. Wanting to preserve such unique varieties, Diane and her husband, Kent, decided to establish a place where people could store and trade the seeds of their own past. The exchange now has more than 13,000 members and keeps in its walk-in coolers, freezers, and root cellars the seeds of many thousands of heirloom varieties. The farm grows a glorious profusion of select vegetables, herbs, and flowers around an old red barn that is covered in Grandpa Ott's stunningly deep purple morning glory blossoms.
"Each year our members list their seeds in this," Diane Ott Whealy says, handing over a copy of the Seed Savers Exchange 2010 Yearbook. It is as thick as a big-city telephone directory, with page after page of exotic beans, garlic, potatoes, peppers, apples, pears, and plums—each with its own name, personal history, and distinct essence. There's an apple known as Beautiful Arcade, a "yellow fruit splashed with red"; one named Prairie Spy, described as "precocious"; another dubbed Sops of Wine that dates back to the Middle Ages. There's an Estonian Yellow Cherry tomato obtained from "an elderly Russian lady" in Tallinn, a bean found by archaeologists searching for pygmy elephant fossils in New Mexico, a Persian Star garlic from "a bazaar in Samarkand."
Heirloom vegetables have become fashionable in the United States and Europe over the past decade, prized by a food movement that emphasizes eating locally and preserving the flavor and uniqueness of heirloom varieties. Found mostly in farmers markets and boutique groceries, heirloom varieties have been squeezed out of supermarkets in favor of modern single-variety fruits and vegetables bred to ship well and have a uniform appearance, not to enhance flavor. But the movement to preserve heirloom varieties goes way beyond America's renewed romance with tasty, locally grown food and countless varieties of tomatoes. It's also a campaign to protect the world's future food supply.
Extinct Animals Plants Western Hemisphere - News
As for the 8000 known livestock breeds, 1600 are endangered or already extinct. Why is this a problem? Because if disease or future climate change decimates one of the handful of plants and animals we've come to depend on to feed our growing planet,
"The disappearance of the horse from the Western Hemisphere for 10000 years supports the position that today's wild horses cannot be considered 'native' in any meaningful historical sense," BLM explains. It acknowledges the horses have adapted
“The disappearance of the horse from the Western Hemisphere for 10000 years supports the position that today's wild horses cannot be considered `native' in any meaningful historical sense,” BLM explains. It acknowledges the horses have adapted
Interesting fact: The Giant Swallowtail Butterfly is the largest Swallowtail in the Western Hemisphere. Also known as the Amazon parrot, Jamaica's Yellow-billed parrot feeds on a variety of fruits, blossoms, nuts, berries, and corn -- all the while
It was a landmark occasion: He was the first Asian elephant ever born in the Western Hemisphere. My class took an end-of-the-school-year field trip to visit the tiny pachyderm. By now, the Oregon Zoo has nurtured two dozen newborn elephants.
Day at the Knoxville Zoo – Enjoy Knoxville
This week I got to go on a family friendly adventure around Knoxville. We started out our adventure by heading to the Knoxville Zoo . The Knoxville Zoo offers family fun for everyone!
I started out my Zoo adventure by visiting the black bear. At first I couldn’t find him, but then I looked up and he was climbing up a big tree to take a nap. I learned that black bears not only know how to climb, but they can swim and run up to 35mph!
After visiting the black bear, I stopped by to see the red pandas. They were also a bit sleepy because it was the middle of the day when I saw them, and red pandas are usually more active at dusk and at dawn. I was sad to find out these pandas are considered endangered, but amazed to know that the Knoxville Zoo has had more red pandas born there than any other zoo in the Western Hemisphere.
I was so excited when I got to see so many other animals while I was there. I was able to get up close and personal with over 800 of the most amazing animals. I saw rhinos, elephants, camels, an owl and zebras! I became really good friends with the prairie dog too. He even chirped at me through the glass that separated me from his home. I learned that prairie dogs don’t actually bark like most dogs I know, they actually chirp. I never knew I could see and learn so much while visiting one place.
The Knoxville Zoo also offers other options for a fun-filled family day. Kids can have their birthday parties, schools can plan field trips and the Wee Play Zoo is now open again! The Wee Play Zoo is designed for toddlers to elementary school kids to be able to dress up and play the different roles that are found around the zoo. Kids can play at the ticket booth, work the concession stands and take care of animals in need. It is an interactive way for kids to have hands-on experiences!
On Sunday April 25 About Enjoy Knoxville Enjoy Knoxville is the official blog of Knoxville’s tourism scene. From food and fun to spending time outdoors, you’ll read all about the best Knoxville experiences! If you’re looking for an excuse to come to Knoxville or have been wondering what the city has to offer, you’ve come to the perfect site! Check the blog [...
Extinct Animals Plants Western Hemisphere - Bookshelf
The Academy and literature
Part II., " On the Distribution of Extinct Animals," gives an excellent review of the ... answering respectively to the Eastern and Western Hemispheres, ...The Academy
Leidy points out that the extinct animals of these regions were generally ... mixture of salt and fresh water, but to the resulting putrefaction of plants. ...Western hemisphere, geography, history, culture
Protecting Endangered Species How can we prevent species of animals and plants from dying out? One way is through laws. In 1973, Congress passed the ...Eclectic magazine, foreign literature
The Sleep of Plants. — To explain the phenomena of the sleep of plants, some authors ... Leidy points out that the extinct animals of these regions were ...Western Hemisphere
Protecting Endangered Species How can we prevent species of animals and plants from dying out? One way is through laws. In 1973, Congress passed the ...Everyday Knowledge Directory
Living and Extinct Animals with Tusks
Tusk is a long pointed tooth found on some selected species of animals. Let's meet creatures with tusks from the past to present.
Wikipedia:WikiProject Extinction - Wikipedia, the free ...
For extinct plants see Hymenaea protera. There are three main ... Allen, Glover M. - Extinct and vanishing mammals of the western hemisphere, with the marine species of all ...
Endangered Animals of the World :: Environmental Facts ...
UK charity encouraging young people's understanding of the environment. Competitions, fact sheets and projects for teachers and kids.
_extinct_|_extinct in north america_ - ITLearning Campus ...
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HowStuffWorks "How Saber-tooth Cats Worked"
Saber-tooth cats are perhaps the most well-known extinct felines. Learn about saber-tooth cats and the behavior patterns of saber-tooth cats.