This Nearly Lost Ancient Grain Tradition Could Be the Future of Farming
BY GEMMA TARLACH
OCTOBER 13, 2022
WHEN ZEMEDE ASFAW WAS GROWING up on a farm in eastern Ethiopia, he
soaked up plant lore and other traditional knowledge the way a tree takes in
sunlight and converts it to energy. “I knew the crops, and the wild plants, and
the fruits and other things,” says Zemede, who goes by his given name. The
practical methods he learned covered every aspect of farming: Instead of stone
walls or wire fences, plant field edges with darker crops, so the bold colors
of red sorghum, for example, create a clear border between the family’s plot
and that of a neighbor. Leave a few wild olive or acacia trees in the fields to
harvest sustainably, over time, for firewood, animal fodder, or building
materials. And instead of sowing the seeds of a single grain in orderly rows,
spread a mix of grains all over the field, “mimicking nature so crops have
random distribution patterns, as in natural forests,” he says. Once harvested,
these grain mixtures could be turned into many things: nutritious bread, a kind
of roasted-grain trail mix called kolo, beer, and the potent clear spirit known
as areki.
Now an ethnobotanist at Addis Ababa University, Zemede conducts field
research in northern Ethiopia. The dominant grains grown there are different
than in the region of his youth—his family grew sorghum and maize, while the
northerners prefer barley and wheat, better suited to their mountainous
highlands—but the principle is the same: “We’ll plant the things that go together
and are compatible with each other,” Zemede says. “Our farmers are good at
mirroring nature.”
Ethiopia is one of the few places in the world where farmers still grow
maslins, the general term for different varieties and species of grain that are
sown in the same field, or intercropped. Maslins sustained humans for
millennia, possibly predating the rise of agriculture more than 10,000 years
ago. These grain mixtures tend to be more resilient to pests and drought, and
to lend more complex flavors to breads, beer, and booze.
Worldwide, maslins fell out of favor long ago, replaced nearly
everywhere by sprawling, single-grain monoculture—but a small and passionate
group of scientists, including Zemede, is hoping to change that. A paper
published today in Agronomy for Sustainable Development makes the case for
maslins to be revived by farmers around the world, for tastier bread, healthier
crops, and more sustainable agriculture. The question is, why is it taking so
long?
(…)
“In biology we say diversity must survive,” says Zemede. “If diversity
is lost, then we will be lost.”
Link:
https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/ancient-crop-future-farming-ethiopia
Cereal species mixtures: an ancient practice with
potential for climate resilience. A review
Link:
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13593-022-00832-1
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