Plant Breeders Look to the Past for Seeds Suited to Organic Growing

[Guest guest]

Plant Breeders Look to the Past for Seeds Suited to Organic Growing

 

In the post-WWII era, as farmers leaned increasingly on monocultures

drenched in pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers, seed breeders

began developing genetic strains suited to those conditions. Funded

by industry research money, they bred seeds designed to flourish in

artificially controlled surroundings with heavy chemical inputs.

Organic farmers, however, do not grow plants in these conditions, and

today's commonly used seed strains are poorly suited to their work.

As organic farming grows, so grows the market for sturdy seeds that

are naturally disease resistant and suited to variable soil

conditions. Such seeds are developed by resuscitating specimens from

the pre-war era and breeding them for modern organic conditions. " We

need varieties that are real workhorses that can take us through

tough times, " said Steve Peters at Seeds of Change. " We're looking

for reliable yield, rather than the top yield under the best

circumstances, and we don't want to forget flavor at the expense of

other traits. "

 

straight to the source: San Francisco Chronicle, Deborah K. Rich, 28 Aug 2004

<http://www.gristmagazine.com/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=2922>

[Guest guest]

That sounds sensible.

 

Jo

 

-

fraggle

GardeningOrganically ; HomesteadCafe ; Homstead_Solarium ; lettuceheads ; TFHB ;

Tuesday, August 31, 2004 11:21 PM

Plant Breeders Look to the Past for Seeds Suited to Organic Growing

Plant Breeders Look to the Past for Seeds Suited to Organic GrowingIn the post-WWII era, as farmers leaned increasingly on monocultures drenched in pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers, seed breeders began developing genetic strains suited to those conditions. Funded by industry research money, they bred seeds designed to flourish in artificially controlled surroundings with heavy chemical inputs. Organic farmers, however, do not grow plants in these conditions, and today's commonly used seed strains are poorly suited to their work. As organic farming grows, so grows the market for sturdy seeds that are naturally disease resistant and suited to variable soil conditions. Such seeds are developed by resuscitating specimens from the pre-war era and breeding them for modern organic conditions. "We need varieties that are real workhorses that can take us through tough times," said Steve Peters at Seeds of Change. "We're looking for reliable yield, rather than the top yield under the best circumstances, and we don't want to forget flavor at the expense of other traits."straight to the source: San Francisco Chronicle, Deborah K. Rich, 28 Aug 2004<http://www.gristmagazine.com/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=2922>To send an email to -