Research, including studies presented at the conference in Istanbul, is showing that organic agriculture can deliver reliably high yields ”and that organic fields thrive in the face of disaster and duress, where chemical-reliant crops falter. Organic fields, for example, fare significantly better than chemically managed ones in the face of extreme weather, such as droughts or floods.
Anna Lappe, for takepart, 4 November 2014, Yes, Organic Farming Can Feed the World, Continue reading
Chayote squash, feijoas,
bananas, Jerusalem artichokes, roselle, chestnuts and black walnuts,
kiwano melons, star fruit, grapefruit, Seminole pumpkins, papayas,
Japanese persimmons, and rice: all these can be grown in south Georgia,
says Bret Wagenhorst of Brighton Farms.
He will talk about those crops at
South Georgia Growing Local 2015, January 24, 2015, at Pine Grove Middle
School in Lowndes County north of Valdosta.
You can
register now.
There are many food crops that aren’t typically grown commercially in south Georgia/north Florida that can do well on a small scale. This talk will Continue reading
This sums up both
Bill Gates’ sudden surge of
agricultural land purchases
and
the fossil fuel industry’s sudden surge of fracked methane pipelines:
“on a global scale, that the global problem, from the
perspective of European colonialists and European entrepreneurs, is
really how to transform the countryside.”
In both cases, we here in the southeast are just peasants
or backwards natives from the perspectives of the
the new colonialists as they try to transform our countryside.
So what if such transformation results in
dust storms
or
leaks, explosions, or
higher domestic natural gas prices?
The new colonialists would profit!
Jonathan Shaw wrote for Harvard Magazine November-December 2014, The New Histories: Scholars pursue sweeping new interpretations of the human past. Continue reading
Thanks to Kim Sadler for sending this.
Brian Bowen, for Tennessee Conservationist Magazine, Sep-Oct 2014, Remembering Dr. Elsie Quarterman, Champion of the Cedar Glades and Natural Areas,
Dr. Quarterman was a longtime member of the Natural Areas Association, the professional organization representing the interests of natural area professionals in the US. She received the NAA George Fell Lifetime Achievement Award in 2008 at the 35th Annual Natural Areas Conference in Nashville. In receiving the award, she humbly said that there “is no greater honor than to be recognized by my peers.” Her most significant legacy will be the thousands of acres of natural areas she helped to protect in Tennessee including the cedar glades and the once endangered Tennessee Coneflower.
(Tennessee Natural Areas Program Administrator Brian Bowen works in the Department of Environment and Conservation in Nashville.)
There’s much more in the article.
-jsq
Saying what many students think: “Students of all ages are thankful
that her appreciation of the plant kingdom and the world around her
touched them and made their lives.”
Jonathan Ertelt, Vanderbilt Magazine, Summer 2014 issue, Quarterman Was More Than a Biology Professor and Ecologist, Continue reading
Here’s
a video about Elsie,
A Crusader for Conservation,
19 September 2014,
by Tennessee’s Wild Side, “The Emmy Award winning show produced through the generosity of the Jackson
Foundation, Tennessee State Parks, and the Tennessee Wildlife Federation.”
Lots of good pictures, some video snippets of Elsie, and some narration by her nephew Patrick and by Biologist Tom Hemmerly, who reminds us of Elsie’s work at Radner Lake, in addition to her cedar glades work.
Ranger Buddy Ingram explains her biggest contribution may have been
in getting numerous different segments of society to cooperate
in saving whole ecologies.
Botanist Kim Sadler and others explain how inspiring all that is to generations
of students.
As Elsie said in 2006:
Continue readingThe general public needs to know what’s around them. They need to be learning that there’s a world that is not paved. There are lots of things that have life and function in the whole scheme, people as well as plants and animals. Not just dogs you’ve got on a leash, but animals that live out there, are part of the whole ecosystem.
Apparently electric fence wire isn’t good to sling into a tractor tire.
The puncture was barely visible, but leaked completely down after a while.
Fortunately, Charles from Adel Tire came and fixed it.
After he set it on fire.
He explains why in the video. Continue reading
Her students Carol and Jerry Baskin wrote for the
July 2014 Southeastern Biology newsletter of
The Association of Southeastern Biologists,
OBITUARY: Professor Elsie Quarterman: In Memorium, 1910-2014
Dr. Elsie Quarterman known fondly to her students as EQ passed away on 9 June 2014 at her home in Nashville, Tennessee, at the age of 103 years. She was born on 28 November 1910 in Valdosta, Georgia. Dr. Quarterman obtained her B. A. degree from Georgia State Women’s College (now Valdosta State University) in 1932, Continue reading
In what category does Georgia rank highest
Guess first, then look (no peeking)…. Continue reading
We’ve got about 7 pounds of okra left over today after somebody couldn’t take it.
So if you want it, let us know, information@okraparadisefarms.com,
or comment on the blog or web page.
We also have okra chips.
Okra can be hard to find. Here’s an okra plant that I had just picked: Continue reading