I set the time and date on my calendar. And it was a great show.
I read the book “Botany of Desire” by Michael Pollan, a while ago. A very good read. And the show on PBS was very good also. Lots of exciting information and footage - for a gardening fanatic anyway.
I wrote down a few things that struck me:
“What are the chances that we’d have the same sense of beauty as a bee? Smell, color, symmetry…” Definitely true. Also taste. Not much that’s better than honey!
On tulips: “Flowers are exquisitely useless.” Now there’s a non-bee speaking. And someone who don’t need the pleasure of beauty.
I did like to hear potatoes described as “exciting”.
The Irish potato famine of 1740, caused by Late Blight spreading rapidly in Irish fields planted almost exclusively with a single variety, lasted 3 years. I hope our Late Blight episode in New England is more short-lived. And hopefully it won’t spread outside of New England. I didn’t know that the most popular variety in the US is the Russet Burbank, the variety McDonald’s prefers. Its planted almost exclusively in Idaho’s fields. The big tubers with very high sugar content make long perfect fries. Next year, I’m looking forward to trying some blue varieties. Its exciting to hear about the biodiversity of potato fields in Peru.
No comments:
Post a Comment