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Post by Alan on Sept 2, 2011 19:36:41 GMT -5
This week I have been thinking about writing an article recommending saving the seeds from hybrids. Seems like it would be especially useful for inbreeders like tomatoes: Saves me the work of making my own hybrids. I'm constantly dehybridizing plants. Sweet corn always produces sweet corn. Tomatoes always produce tomatoes. Joseph, I wrote a ton of articles like that way back in the day at homegrowngoodness.blogspot.com, but perhaps it's time for a refresher course. I've been working on one about genepools and landraces this week. Perhaps a united front from all us homegrowers would do the public good!
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Post by Alan on Aug 30, 2011 11:57:32 GMT -5
Compromise: www.cornculture.info/I need to get ahold of this guy as I've been wanting to include genes from the Peruvian diaspora into Amanda Palmer without reinventing the wheel.
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Post by Alan on Aug 30, 2011 8:10:17 GMT -5
As Fusion said, it's a Peruvian type. A "Concha" as they are known.
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Post by Alan on Aug 26, 2011 9:18:28 GMT -5
What is the yield like on the "pyramid" corn and the phenotype? Do you have pictures of it? I can't imagine growing a field like that (with the corn laying horizontally accross the ground), it'd drive me crazy trying to navigate it, plus the raccons, squirrels, deer, and ferrel pigs would wipe me out. C. (in my case, can't speak for Joseph) there is a deeply spirtual contingent that pairs itself equally with the scientific contingent which leads us down the paths we choose. All these breeding roads lead to Mesoamerica, Me too... Speaking of mesoamerica, I received some corn seed a few years ago from Oaxaca. (I call it pyramid corn for lack of a better name.) It grew well enough to set seed in my garden during our Indian summer after the rest of the corn had been frozen solid, but I didn't have any pollen to incorporate it into a crossing project. So this spring months before it is customary to plant corn I planted tens of thousands of corn seeds including some of the Oaxacan corn... Today I was startled to find that one plant from the Oaxacan race had survived the tremendous cold.... The identification is obvious due to it's growth habit, which I call a corn-vine... It is currently tasseling. Hmmm... Wonder where I could put it's pollen and/or what I have available to pollinate it with? Hope I can get it crossed with something else....
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Post by Alan on Aug 26, 2011 9:13:53 GMT -5
This is not to say those other methods don't work and lead to real gains though I should add. They certianly do! For example, if my impetutus was work for a seed company for a pay check, I'd likely be persuing some of those methods. To me, it's all about what you hope to achieve and why the easiest methods (ear to row and mass selection) tend to win out is coupled closely with the phillosophy of farming/breeding that Joseph and I seem to share closely. For 10,000 years this worked.....very well. No reason to reinvent the wheel in that: A. We will never recoup our time effort and money B. While the rest of the world gets to share in what we have we do this for us. and a possible C. (in my case, can't speak for Joseph) there is a deeply spirtual contingent that pairs itself equally with the scientific contingent which leads us down the paths we choose. All these breeding roads lead to Mesoamerica, it's just how long and tedious it is in getting there, were really just recreating the landraces of that region in a geographically removed area for the very same reasons they did.
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Post by Alan on Aug 26, 2011 0:24:21 GMT -5
Cortona, I have greatly enjoyed following your updates on your project and definitely keep us all informed. Theres lots to learn for sure, when I started Astronomy Domine at the end of the first year I only ended up with about 20 cobs from a population of about 1,000 due to animals, but from that population (and additional genetics) I built up something that has now traveled the world and is being selected far and wide for diverse climates. Keep up the good work my friend! wel Raymondo tel that this is a sucessful season in too big, is a season that have some little success and some learning progress, but some failure and a lot of mistake, but .... learn is good, net year i can work with lots more seeds and more interessant one so i'm happy i've started this spring. thanks you write here, this remind me to go to the field tomorow to pick the matured hears!
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Post by Alan on Aug 26, 2011 0:14:34 GMT -5
Hey Cortona, did you get my PM?
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Post by Alan on Aug 26, 2011 0:11:10 GMT -5
To me, it's all about what you hope to achieve and why the easiest methods (ear to row and mass selection) tend to win out is coupled closely with the phillosophy of farming/breeding that Joseph and I seem to share closely. For 10,000 years this worked.....very well. No reason to reinvent the wheel in that:
A. We will never recoup our time effort and money B. While the rest of the world gets to share in what we have we do this for us. and a possible C. (in my case, can't speak for Joseph) there is a deeply spirtual contingent that pairs itself equally with the scientific contingent which leads us down the paths we choose.
All these breeding roads lead to Mesoamerica, it's just how long and tedious it is in getting there, were really just recreating the landraces of that region in a geographically removed area for the very same reasons they did.
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Post by Alan on Aug 22, 2011 22:26:42 GMT -5
Cortona: PM sent and definitely! 12540dumont, thanks for the offer and much appreciated and as always I'm still looking for corn diversity and Parch/Flour corn is one area I'm short on. I'll definitely give it a go my friend! Alan, I came across a parching corn in Sonoma County at a farm stand. It was parched and ground and they were selling it like hotcakes. The farmer took me back to his commercial kitchen and sold me a pound of parching seed. I sent about 1/4 of it to Joseph. Are you interested in some too? I can send it along with the next batch of sunflower seeds (the grey stripe is always a little late.)
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Post by Alan on Aug 21, 2011 22:05:34 GMT -5
Picked up a four month old male potbelly this past Friday. My farmhand showed up with him in the back of his truck (you'd have to know this guy to understand how funny the following statement is about to become, definite backwoods long hair, beard, no shirt, always drinking type of fellow) but I traded him a bottle of wine for the new piggy and he was on his way to a David Allen Coe concert; only in Pekin Indiana could such a transaction ever take place.
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Post by Alan on Aug 21, 2011 21:58:00 GMT -5
BTW Joseph, the popcorn looks awesome and I look forward to giving it a go!
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Post by Alan on Aug 21, 2011 21:57:27 GMT -5
Earlier tonight I took 7 kernals of glass gem that Gray was kind enough to provide me with and on a whim (without having seen this thread until tonight when I searched for "Glass Gem" on the forum) I put them in a bowl in the microwave. 6 poped and 1 got half way there. Looks like we have some fantastic future material to breed with once we have stock bulked up for adding to a landrace popcorn.
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Post by Alan on Aug 19, 2011 15:15:54 GMT -5
Anybody?
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Post by Alan on Aug 19, 2011 8:12:31 GMT -5
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Post by Alan on Aug 19, 2011 8:11:37 GMT -5
Yep, I'm a fan of "jowl bacon" and turnip, collard, or kale greens and will be putting it and the shoulder to use as well! I've raised heritage hogs for several years. Yes, they are short on bacon (nearly non existent) You don't necessarily need the belly to make good bacon, the jowl makes an excellent bacon, as well as the shoulder. Poor Man's Bacon..... diggingdogfarm.com/?p=51
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