I just started reading an interesting book, “A Darwinian Survival Guide.” Anyone read it yet?
The authors are field biologists who take a pessimistic view that humans can’t, ore more correctly won’t, do anything about climate change. The book discusses their theories on things things that individual communities could do to increase their odds of survival post anthropocene to ensure that some humans survive and can rebuild. Instead of focusing on sustainability they think we should focus on survival by leaning into evolution.
Not sure I agree with all of their points, but so far it’s a fascinating book that’s challenging some of my own ideas.
2 Likes
Awesome post. It got me looking at temperate dwelling Myrteae. And there are many interesting plants that would do fine in zone 8b. I will be studying all of those now. Thanks.
1 Like
Zone 9 is where things get really, really interesting, but you generally lose out on real seasons at that point, at least in the South, so for me zone 8 is the happy median. Lots of really cool plants, if not quite as many as zone 9, and still not oppressively hot for too long.
In the myrtle family, there are quite a few eucs that are hardy into zone 8, as well as a handful of callistemons. Then there’s pineapple guava and, maybe, myrcianthis pungens. Some of the really hardy psidiums might survive in upper zone 8. Leptospermum grandiflorum is apparently hardy. Luma apiculata is hardy, but temperamental, as is Ugni molinae. There’s another species of Luma, but I’m less familiar with it. And of course there’s true myrtle as well, though it’s not a Gondwanan plant.
Beyond myrtles, there are so many things from down south that might be doable. Araucaria angustifolia, nothofagus, podocarps, southern hemisphere members of the redwood family, pittosporums, Quillaja, wine palms, fuchias, psudopanax, mandevilla laxa, perhaps some of the Acacias, the mesquites, and other southern fabaceae, etc…
Most of these aren’t fruits, of course, but they are really cool plants and are mostly pretty distinct taxonomically.
1 Like
Myrcianthis pungens sounds like a promising plant. I have a travelling nurseryman who comes up from Florida and his plants are always good looking specimens. He has some Scarlet and Honey Drop Jaboticaba’s he transplanted into pots and he is finishing out for me. His father runs the nursery and they never throw something in a pot and just sends it out. I appreciate the fact and am willing to wait.
But Myrcianthis pungens sounds like a good complement to Jaboticaba.
But we enjoy the ornamentals too. Just got a Hardy Banana and a Maximillian Pine. The Pine is known for nut kernels; but at this altitude I’m not counting on pine cones from it anyway.
I will try to get you to the info: Descriptor Detail GRIN-Global
Hmmm…not sure that will work but try it. The site won’t put the actual link here. Let’s try some more, this is dry matter content. :
| Range |
Number of Accessions |
| 12.2 - 15.33 |
4 |
| 15.33 - 18.46 |
15 |
| 18.46 - 21.58 |
35 |
| 21.58 - 24.71 |
88 |
| 24.71 - 27.84 |
107 |
| 27.84 - 30.97 |
98 |
| 30.97 - 34.1 |
82 |
| 34.1 - 37.22 |
46 |
| 37.22 - 40.35 |
20 |
| 40.35 - 43.48 |
14 |
And let’s try one of the studies, in which they aggravatingly don’t list varieties in terms of DM, but rather by accession number. Accessions GRIN-Global
2 Likes
Ok, in the big 381 variety study, page 19 they start getting into some American varieties. Well, look at that, ‘Georgia Red’ has twice the dry matter of ‘Georgia Jet’. Glenn Drowns of Sandhill Preservation, says that Georgia Jet is fast, but mushy, and that there are better tasting varieties. SHP is where most of my varieties came from. He ships them awfully late, but once I have them I can start my own sets in subsequent years. I’ve tried a lot of kinds. We keep and grow mostly Papota, Tainung 65, Purple, Southern Queen, Carolina Nugget.
5 Likes
@Donna_inTN It looks like Glen lost Southern Queen in a storm and he asked if anyone has it to contact him. Maybe you could help him restore that variety. I’ve gotten most of my varieties from him as well. He’s good people.
3 Likes
Actually, I’m sure he has at least one more version of the variety he lost. The USDA in Beltsville put out a report in 1922 about their study of all the sweet potato varieties they could get their hands on starting 1900. They grew them out for 20 years and studied and grouped them. There were, I believe, 11 groups, 8 common groups. Southern Queen came as the big blocky version, but there were some longer sleeker selections that had names. They’d have been bud mutations. One very odd thing about the discovery of how to make sweet potatoes bloom and the explosion of sweet potato breeding, is that I never once saw Southern Queen listed as a parent. I think the thing just won’t bloom.
2 Likes