GARDENS
"Sugars caramelize in the leaves—tones of butterscotch, cinder toffee, treacle tart..."
From the Garden of Eden to Spain's Alhambra with its greenery and splashing fountains in a parched landscape, gardens have been associated with the idea of paradise. Images of gardens were painted on Egyptian and Roman walls and in succeeding centuries, gardens were portrayed in countless works of art, often associated with the residences of wealthy landowners. Modern painters have been content to paint more modest versions, some depicting family and friends enjoying the pleasures to be found in private and public gardens.
Doomsday Vaults
Doomsday vaults are seed banks built to preserve seeds in case of catastrophic events on earth. About 1,700 facilities around the world preserve not only seeds, but DNA and data as well. The largest is the Millenium Seed Bank in Sussex, England which houses nearly two-and-a-half billion seeds in its vaults. Almost 40,000 wild plant species are stored here, either frozen or cryopreserved (stored at below freezing temperatures). According to a report from Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, two in five plant species are threatened with extinction.
Two other banks are in Norway: one dedicated to the preservation of data and the other, the Global Seed Bank, stores crop seeds as well as serving as a backup for other seed banks. The first to withdraw seeds from this last facility were researchers who had fled from the civil war in Syria and wanted to restore their collections in Morocco and Lebanon.
The Frozen Ark project has cryopreserved around 48,000 samples of genetic material from endangered animals. World Wildlife Fund has reported the world's populations of wildlife have fallen by sixty-nine percent in the last fifty years.
From the November 19, 2023 "Plants" article in the Guardian newspaper.
Two other banks are in Norway: one dedicated to the preservation of data and the other, the Global Seed Bank, stores crop seeds as well as serving as a backup for other seed banks. The first to withdraw seeds from this last facility were researchers who had fled from the civil war in Syria and wanted to restore their collections in Morocco and Lebanon.
The Frozen Ark project has cryopreserved around 48,000 samples of genetic material from endangered animals. World Wildlife Fund has reported the world's populations of wildlife have fallen by sixty-nine percent in the last fifty years.
From the November 19, 2023 "Plants" article in the Guardian newspaper.
Community Seed Banks
Along with seed banks created for largescale agricultural enterprises, smaller community seed banks have been established to help local areas. One such organization is Native Seeds/SEARCH founded in Tucson, Arizona to safeguard traditional seeds of the Southwest. The group grew out of the Meals for Millions project set up to help the Tohono O'odham Nation establish gardens to provide food for the tribe.
Today Native Seeds/SEARCH has almost 2,000 varieties of crop seeds adapted to arid conditions. The seeds represent the heritage of fifty indigenous communities, missionaries, and homesteaders. Wild ancestors of domesticated crop plants are also preserved.
The crops are grown at various sites around the area each season and some seeds from the harvest are sent to cold storage while the surplus is sold or distributed for free. The priority for the organization is no longer collecting rare seeds but instead developing plants that can cope with the challenges of climate change, new diseases, and drought.
Today Native Seeds/SEARCH has almost 2,000 varieties of crop seeds adapted to arid conditions. The seeds represent the heritage of fifty indigenous communities, missionaries, and homesteaders. Wild ancestors of domesticated crop plants are also preserved.
The crops are grown at various sites around the area each season and some seeds from the harvest are sent to cold storage while the surplus is sold or distributed for free. The priority for the organization is no longer collecting rare seeds but instead developing plants that can cope with the challenges of climate change, new diseases, and drought.