Farmers’ Bounty : Locating Crop Diversity in the Contemporary World

Biological diversity is as crucial in agriculture as it is in nature, and it is equally important to the economic health of both industrial and nonindustrial societies. This book offers a sweeping assessment of crop diversity and the potential for its preservation. Stephen B. Brush develops a framework for investigating biological diversity in agriculture that focuses on the knowledge and practice of farmers, and he shows how this human ecology perspective can be applied to three global issues that affect crop resources. Brush defines the dimensions of crop diversity and outlines the essential questions surrounding it. He describes the techniques used to maintain diversity in major crops of three cradles of agriculture in which he has worked: potatoes in the Peruvian Andes, maize in Mexico, and wheat in Turkey. Finally, he explores the policy issues surrounding genetic erosion of crop varieties, conservation of crop diversity, and ownership of genetic resources. Contents 7 List of Tables and Figures 9 Preface 13 Acknowledgments 17 1. Encountering Crop Diversity 21 2. A Naturalist’s View of Crop Diversity 39 3. The Measure of Crop Diversity 66 4. Crop and Society in Centers of Diversity 90 5. The Ethnoecology of Crop Diversity in Andean Potato Agriculture 118 6. The Farmer’s Place in Crop Evolution: Selection and Management 147 7. Genetic Erosion of Crop Populations in Centers of Diversity: A Revision 173 8. The Ecology of Crop Diversity 195 9. Maintaining Crop Diversity On-Farm and Off 214 10. Rights over Genetic Resources and the Demise of the Biological Commons 239 11. Locating Crop Diversity in the Contemporary World 276 Bibliography 307 Index 339

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