Ramona’s Reviews > The Story of Seeds: From Mendel's Garden to Your Plate, and How There's More of Less to Eat Around the World > Status Update

One interesting fact was the find of seeds more than 2000 years old. It was a Judean date palm, that was wiped out by the conquering Romans. An expert on desert agriculture was given the seeds, and with careful germination and planting, the palms grew! What will the Earth be like in 20 years? It boggles the mind to think of the damage being done to our planet, which continues to escalate.

There are over 1000 seed banks in the world. The Norway seed bank is the backup for duplicate seeds from many countries and institutions. It is nicknamed the Doomsday Vault. It is like a "Noah's Ark" of seeds. It can store 4.5 million seed samples. It started with rice from 104 countries and then 268,000 samples of seed from different farms or fields in the world.

My favorites are Cortland, Granny Smith, Wild Twist, and Pink Lady. The last two are new to me. I grew lemon cucumbers, but can't find the plant or seeds now. I have tasted Scallop squash and yellow pear tomatoes. The description of the seed vaults is amazing - the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, in Norway on the frozen island of Spitsbergen, has 4 locked doors with a heavy steel entrance, and cryogenic tanks.

A return to heirloom plants is big business. There are so many varieties of plants that have become extinct, or very rare, due to land mismanagement, war-torn countries, climate change, genetic modification, and the use of pesticides. Certain hidden traits in Heirlooms could ensure the survival of a species in times of stress. Of the 7,100 named apple varieties that once grew in the United States, 6,800 are lost.

It was a shock to read that over five hundred cotton farmers committed suicide in Vidarbha, India, in the first six months of 2007, because of a Bt cotton. I had no idea how complicated corrupt seed-producing, protection, and manipulation was.

There are seed banks all over the world - they are endangered by wars and greed. Biopiracy is a word I had not heard of before. I would love to eat some of the heirloom foods that are available from around the world, but they are not accessible to most people - bananas, potatoes, and corn are a few of the foods that are varied but seen and enjoyed by just a few.