1. Where does our food come from? Georgia Davis MUPGRET Workshop June 15, 2004

2. Centers of Origin Map from modified from WorldAtlas.com Mexico/C. America Andes/Brazil/Paraguay Mediterranean Turkey/Iran Ethopia India China SE Asia

3. Mexico/Central America Maize Tomato Common bean Sweet potato

4. Andes/Brazil/Paraguay Peppers Potato Rubber Pumpkin Cassava

5. Mediterranean Almonds Cabbage Olives Beet Lettuce Asparagus

6. Turkey/Iran Wheat Barley Oat Figs Lentil

7. India Cucumbers Eggplant Pigeonpea Pea Onion Garlic Carrot

8. China Soybean Chinese cabbages

9. Southeast Asia Coconut Rice Sugarcane

10. Ethopian Cowpea Okra

11. GRIN Germplasm resource information network USDA, ARS http://www.ars-grin.gov/npgs/

12. Indigenous Crops There are very few crop plants that are indigenous to the US. Most are not things we’d commonly think of….

13. Indigenous crops Blueberry Cranberry Jerusalem artichoke Pecan Black walnut Sunflower Ginseng Strawberry Beech Hickory Chestnut Wild rice

14. Indigenous Crops

15. Ginseng

16. Plants are used for: Food Animal feed Fiber Pharmaceuticals Recreation Oxygen production Building materials Fuel Aesthetics Spice/seasoning Erosion control

17. Black walnut Wood used for cabinet making and in gunstock Sap can be boiled into syrup and sugar Bark used for tanning Nut husk is a dye Oxygen Shade

18. A day without plants Our clothes would be synthetics like polyester or spandex. We would breathe from an oxygen tank. We would live in a mud hut or a metal building. We would not have cars or bicycles.

19. A day without plants What would we eat? Most animals eat plants or other animals that eat plants. Many insects require plants to survive.

20. Some interesting ideas for students Write an essay or a journal describing a person’s daily activity in a world without plants. Assign each student a plant and ask them to write a paper describing all of the things we use each day that come from that plant.

21. More ideas for students Assign a plant to the class or to individual students. Ask them to describe how their life would change if that plant no longer existed. For example what would happen if, perish the thought, there was no corn?

22. More student ideas Ask the students to say which states would be economically affected by the absence of a major crop. The Agriculture in the Classroom webcite could be helpful here. Have the students each make a log of the food they eat for one day. Then ask them to list all of the plants that contributed to their meals.