waterhemp/marestail

A conversation with a Montana farmer:

Bean Farmer:

"Having a really hard time knocking these pest of weeds down. Sprayed once and knocked them pretty good but there right back again. Anybody have that "special recipe"?


Me: 


"You could try to find a market for it. It is edible. 

I found the following in a quick search of edible plant databases for all amaranthus species like waterhemp/marestail: 

Young leaves - raw or cooked as a spinach. A mild flavour, it is often mixed with stronger flavoured leaves. Very rich in iron, it is also a good source of vitamins A and C.

Seed - raw or cooked. Ground into a powder and used as a cereal substitute, it can also be sprouted and added to salads. The seed is very small, about 1mm in diameter, but easy to harvest and very nutritious. The flavour is greatly improved by roasting the seed before grinding it. It is often added to cornmeal. 

That is my recipe. 

What do you say? "

of course you might need to reconsider some of your pest management strategies if you want to access the wild foods market.

Might be worth it though. 

Can also be used as a dye.

Ex-situ and In-situ Conservation

In-situ conservation is the preferred mechanism for maintaining biodiversity (Tuxtil & Nabhan 2003) because through in-situ conservation target species are preserved, along with all associated species. In-situ conservation can be a bi-product of wild collection when a proper evaluation of the ecosystem (Kacalek et al. 2009) and cultural functions (Melloni et al. 2008; Mitchell et al. 2007) is considered.

Ex-situ conservation as an approach for the conservation of habitats is questionable. Taking a species out of its natural habitat and away from the commensurate species who depend on it may preserve that species but will take attention and resources away from preservation of the diversity of life which depend on that species. Native species of plants, algae and fungi have evolved to create habitat and symbiosis with a host of associated species. Introduced and non-native farmed species are disassociated from native ranges and do not offer the same level of environmental benefits. As lands are converted from wild to human oriented use the loss of biodiversity is high, even in agricultural systems with higher biodiversity, e.g. agroforestry and organic (Steffan-Dewenter et al. 2007). 

Use of Zostera marina for conservation

Seagrass has a number of important eco system functions including habitat for fish spawning, nutrient cycling, erosion protection and buffering of pollutants (Han et al. 2008). The eelgrass, Zostera marina L., has traditionally been used for a myriad of purposes in these North Atlantic coastal communities (Alm 2003). Unfortunately, During the 1930s, a widespread infection of the slime mold, Labryinthula spp., stopped the harvest of this plant species (Cottam 1934; Muhlstein 1989). The plant community rebounded shortly thereafter and was briefly used for the collection of a product called sea-felt. Fiberglass soon filled that cultural and economic niche and ended the wild harvest once again (Wyllie-Echeverria et al. 2000). Thereafter, the areas where the species had previously been protected for the harvest began to be developed and mismanaged.

The hopeful news is that there may be more uses, which will lead to conservation, for the troubled seagrass habitat areas the circumpolar North Atlantic. Ethnobotany plays a role in these cultural conservation mechanisms (Norton & Hannan 1997). Ethnobotany and paleo-ethnobotany of the species was explored through the archives and structured interviews throughout the North Atlantic. Based on these interviews, awareness raising about the cultural and ecological diversity of Z. marina and its habitat have already lead to preservation of historical work sites and habitat conservation in Nova Scotia (Wyllie-Echeverria et al. 2000).

Alm T. 2003. On the Uses of Zostera marina, Mainly in Norway Economic Botany. 57(4):640-45

Cottam, C., 1934. Eelgrass disappearance has serious effects on waterfowl and industry. pp 191-93 in US Department of Agriculture Yearbook of Agriculture ed by M.S. Eisenhower.

Han, Qiu-Ying; Shi, Ping. 2008. Progress in the study of seagrass ecology, Yantai Institute of Coastal Zone Research for Sustainable Development, Chinese Academy of Sciences. 28(11):5561-5570.

Muhlstein, L. K., 1989. Perspectives on the wasting disease of eelgrass, Zostera marina. Diseases of Aquat. Organ. 7: 211-21

Norton B.G., Hannon B. 1997, Environmental Values: A place-based theory. Environ. Ethics 19: 227-45.

Wyllie-Echeverria, S., Arzel, P., Cox, P. A. 2000. Pacific Conservation Biology. 5:329-35

Maine Woods

I just got a response from Senator Olympia Snowe about this issue. I wrote to her with concern about the changes that are planned for the maine Woods.. 

Looks like it could be bad. Big changes are planned for the Maine woods. 

Maine Governor LePage, among others, is planning to open up the woods to development. 

Snowe assured me that funding is being channeled to help establish better forest management. 

I don't feel that investment of capitol means anything about the effectiveness of programs for conservation.. I worked for the USNPS and I know that more money means more meetings, it means more fat veterans in office chairs waiting for retirement.. It means more starts and less finishes.. more paperwork.. More fancy equipment.. more plaques and statues... 

also.. i am dubious of recreation as a mechanism for conservation.. The farmers where I live have been watching the trails turn to streams and paved walkways.. the roadside stands along the trail turn to restaurants.. the farms in the valley turn to condos.. 

More on this issues from 'Environment Maine' http://www.environmentmaine.org/

Rethinking Property

Above is a cartoon by Edward Linley about the imperialist and colonialist Cecil Rhodes. His vision for a world under British colonial rule has had serious and lasting implications on politics everywhere. His life offers a good example of how morality is missing from both education and visions for 'development' around the world. He was an extremely brilliant Oxford graduate who managed to cause a lot of suffering in his short life.

Today land grabbing, changes in uses of land and general misuse of land is begging attention to some basic fundamental questions about land ownership. To get deeper into this topic I am planning to join the "Re-thinking property. Towards a Well-being Society?" exchange platform from the 25th to the 27th of August in Bangkok.  

Talks are planned from many amazing people including:
Sulak Sivaraksa, Peace Activist
Dasho Karma Ura, Bhutan ("100% organic country"-movement)
Silke Helfrich, Commons Strategy Group, Germany
Takayoshi Kusago, Social Systems Design, Japan
Nicanor Perlas, Centre for Alternative Development Initiatives...

Learn more at the School for Wellbeing Studies and Research
schoolforwellbeing.org  

Here is 'Just Enough' by Nanao Sakaki, a short poem to drive home the notion of enough:


Soil for legs
Axe for hands
Flower for eyes
Bird for ears
Mushroom for nose
Smile for mouth
Songs for lungs
Sweat for skin
Wind for mind

Ethnobiology and Conservation

Conservation through utilization. 

Work needs to be done that looks at ways to improve the relationship of people to nature through efficient and sustainable use of a diversity of species from native habitats. - I think of it as 'use it or lose it'. I also know that 'we will not fight for what we do not love' and that the cultural importance of native species has lead to much of the activism for environmental conservation. 

Work still needs to be done to find out how ethnobiology can best help with the maintenance of indigenous knowledge of native species, and what the challenges and benefits of this cooperation are. 

Here is a poem about work from Mary Oliver:

My work is loving the world.

Here the sunflowers, there the hummingbird —
equal seekers of sweetness.
Here the quickening yeast; there the blue plums.
Here the clam deep in the speckled sand.

Are my boots old? Is my coat torn?
Am I no longer young, and still not half-perfect? Let me
keep my mind on what matters,
which is my work,

which is mostly standing still and learning to be
astonished.
The phoebe, the delphinium.
The sheep in the pasture, and the pasture.
Which is mostly rejoicing, since all ingredients are here,

which is gratitude, to be given a mind and a heart
and these body-clothes,
a mouth with which to give shouts of joy
to the moth and the wren, to the sleepy dug-up clam,
telling them all, over and over, how it is
that we live forever.

Buffalo Urban Outdoor Education, Inc.

The Buffalo Urban Outdoor Education, Inc. (BUOE) is a small organization that makes a huge impact on the lives of low-income youth in Western New York.  It has recently been chosen as a semi-finalist in a local video contest hosted by the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo.

The winner of the video contest will win a $10,000 unrestricted grant and the runner-up will win a $5,000 grant.  This funding could make a huge difference in BUOE's ability to serve WNY youth with extraordinary, on-water programming on Lake Erie.

PLEASE VOTE FOR OUR VIDEO, TITLED "SCIENCE AFLOAT"!

To vote for the video, please click on the link below:

http://www.facebook.com/GrowWNY?sk=app_95936962634

You may vote every day between June 13 - June 26.  VOTE TODAY!