Farmers' Bounty:Locating Crop Diversity in the Contemporary World (Yale Agrarian Studies)

348 Pages·2004·1.38 MB·English

by  Stephen B. Brush

Yale Agrarian Studies Series
James C. Scott, series editor

S T E P H E N B . B R U S H
Farmers’ Bounty
LOCATING CROP DIVERSITY IN
THE CONTEMPORARY WORLD
Yale University Press
New Haven &
London
Published with assistance from the foundation established in memory of
Philip Hamilton McMillan of the Class of 1894, Yale College.
Copyright ∫ 2004 by Stephen B. Brush.
All rights reserved.
This book may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, including illustrations, in
any form (beyond that copying permitted by Sections 107 and 108 of the U.S.
Copyright Law and except by reviewers for the public press), without written
permission from the publishers.
Set in Sabon type by Keystone Typesetting, Inc.
Printed in the United States of America by Sheridan Books, Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Brush, Stephen B., 1943–
Farmers’ bounty : locating crop diversity in the contemporary world /
Stephen B. Brush.
p. cm. — (Yale agrarian studies)
Includes bibliographical references (p. ).
isbn 0-300-10049-3 (hardcover : alk. paper)
1. Crops—Germplasm resources. 2. Germplasm resources, Plant. I. Title.
II. Series.
sb123.3.b78 2004
631.5%23—dc22
2003020235
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
The paper in this book meets the guidelines for permanence and durability of the
Committee on Production Guidelines for Book Longevity of the Council on
Library Resources.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
To my children, Jason and Amanda,
who have patiently watched the long gestation of this book;
and
to my students, from whom I have learned so much

Contents
List of Tables and Figures ix
Preface xiii
Acknowledgments xvii
1. Encountering Crop Diversity 1
2. A Naturalist’s View of Crop Diversity 19
3. The Measure of Crop Diversity 46
4. Crop and Society in Centers of Diversity 70
5. The Ethnoecology of Crop Diversity in
Andean Potato Agriculture 98
6. The Farmer’s Place in Crop Evolution:
Selection and Management 127
7. Genetic Erosion of Crop Populations in Centers of Diversity:
A Revision 153
8. The Ecology of Crop Diversity 175
viii Contents
9. Maintaining Crop Diversity On-Farm and Off 194
10. Rights over Genetic Resources and the Demise of
the Biological Commons 219
11. Locating Crop Diversity in the Contemporary World 256
Bibliography 287
Index 319
List of Tables and Figures
Tables
Table 2.1. Partial relation between maize diversity and specialized uses 29
Table 2.2. Farmers’ concerns and ranking of three main maize varieties,
Vicente Guerrero, Chiapas, Mexico 42
Table 3.1. Classification of cultivated potatoes by chromosome number
(ploidy groups) 51
Table 3.2. Tuber descriptors for cultivated potatoes 57
Table 3.3. Sample of diversity indices for crop population research 62
Table 4.1. Selected Andean domesticates 76
Table 5.1. Characteristics of folk species of Andean potatoes 104
Table 5.2. Intermediate folk categories at variety level in Andean potato
classification 106
Table 5.3. Potato distribution in the Tulumayo and Paucartambo valleys 117
Table 5.4. Area and use of different potatoes in Tulumayo and
Paucartambo valleys 117
Table 5.5. Use by potato type in Tulumayo and Paucartambo valleys 118
Table 5.6. Technology adoption and potato diversity 119
Table 5.7. Selection criteria for native and improved potato varieties 121
Table 6.1. Crossover in yields of improved and local barley varieties in
Syria under stressed and nonstressed conditions 133
ix