Norman Borlaug created the wheats that created the Green Revolution. They had short stems that could carry heavy ears of wheat, engorged by loads of fertiliser. They were resistant to devastating rust diseases. And they were insensitive to daylength, meaning they could be grown almost anywhere.
A...
A good quarter for trains and bicycles, and taking the train to ride the bicycle.
Q2 — 18 rides totalling 467 km; 25.9 km per ride. More than once a week, on average, which is nice. Included the glorious 95 km of Treviso–Venice and the perverse 55 km lunacy of Rome-Bracciano.
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For more than 40 years, one wheat variety dominated the Canadian prairies. Red Fife — the red-seeded wheat grown by David Fife, a Scottish immigrant — gave the highest yields of the best quality. It almost didn’t happen, if you believe the stories. And then, having set the standard, Red Fife was e...
This short episode fails to do justice to the man who, more than anyone, first grasped the importance of knowing where and how wheat arose. It does, however, explain why Vavilov wanted to collect the building material of future food security, for wheat and many other crops. In more than 60 countri...
Very late, which is entirely understandable as I have very little of substance to report. We were away for almost the entire month having fun and relaxing, as it should be.
