Week 3 Western Expansion &

the Homestead Act

ALL food crops come from domesticated varieties10,000 years ago – man first chose plants based

on desirable characteristicsDomestication = process of bringing wild species

under human management (artificial selection)Creates a dependence on enhanced environments

for continued existence Primitive plant breeding - Selection leads to

“better” plants than wild onesUnknowingly and knowinglyHuman migration brought new cultivated plant

species

Beginning of Plant Selection

Wild Bananas

Examples of Artificial Selection:

Domesticated Bananas

Peppered with large, hard seeds

Small and ovalThick, tough skinNeed a knife to peel it

Sweet Easy to chewEasy to hold

(length)Easy to peel

Wild Mustard

Examples of Artificial Selection:

The Brassicas Family

Grow as weedsContains chemical

phenylthiocarbamide -either tasteless or bitter

Cauliflower – flower sterilityCabbage – terminal leaf budKale – enlarged leavesKohlrabi – stemBroccoli – flower buds

WILD VS DOMESTIC:

Humans chose annuals for domesticationAnnuals – sprout from seed, produce new seed,

and die every yearNature is mostly perennials Reliance on high yields and shallow roots!Leave ground bare – soil erosion and weeds!Why did humans cultivate annuals and not

perennials?Perennial Advantages:

Deep, dense root system fuel’s plants rebirth each spring

Resilient and resource efficientGround cover and soil stabilization

Disadvantages of Selective Breeding:

TODAY - closely related wild plants (crop-wild relatives) are still used to improve modern cultivars = reliance on nature

Selective Breeding – deliberately changing the genetics of plants in order to produce desired traitssimple selectioncomplex molecular

Gardeners, farmers, professionals, gov’t institutions, universities, research centers…

Deliberate Plant Selection

HybridizationCross pollination

Grafting

Types of Selective Breeding

In US –7,000 kinds of apples; 2,500 kinds of pears grown in the last century (we had diversity)

GE Crops & Monocultures threaten diversityHybridization & Selective Breeding – increase

diversity?What so special about seed variety?

Storehouse of important genetic info History of coevolution with

local ecologyEnhances characteristics of pest and

disease resistance, adaptability,and nutrition

The Diversity Paradigm

Belief breeding new crops is essentialfor ensuring food security = new varieties, higher yields

Is this diversity? What method – monoculture or polyculture?

Breed Traits: Increased crop yieldsIncreased tolerance to environmental

pressures (drought, salinity, temp…)Resistance to pests, viruses, fungi,

bacteria, diseases…Increased tolerance to herbicides

The rise to GMOs (The Green Revolution)

Genetic Diversity or Loss?

Traditional Ag with Diversity MonocultureHybrid seeds in WWII – reliance on fertilizers,

pesticides, and herbicidesTODAY - All processed food made from – corn,

wheat, rice, and potatoesOver 97% of varieties available in 1900 are

now extinctAmerican Consumer’s =

Illusion of choiceWide variety of brand

names & logosComplete loss of biological

variety

Genetic Diversity or Loss?

BEFORE & AFTER

StarlinkVarieties lost from 1903 to 1983:

Field corn 90.8%Sweet corn 96.1%

Maize was historically selected for varying leaves, heights, colors, & kernels

Now corn is grown for animal feed, ethanol, or sweeteners

GE – withstand herbicides & own bio-pesticide

Open air pollination = contamination

CORN

Golden Delicious & Red DeliciousVarieties lost from 1903 to 1983:

86.2%At turn of last century, there were

7,000 different apply varieties grown in the US

21st Century – over 85% or 6,000 varieties have become extinct

Big AG is interested in varieties that are:high yielduniform in appearanceAble to survive cross-country &

international transport

APPLES

Iceberg Varieties lost from 1903 to 1983: 92.8%Most lettuce produces in US is head

lettuce because:Easily harvestedEasily transportedCan remain on the shelf for weeksLook “presentable”

Thousands of varieties used to exist with:Flavors -sweet, bitter, nutty, piquant, anise,

grassy, citrus…Leaves –long, lacy, ribbed, sleek, frilly, fan-

shaped…

LETTUCE

Potato varieties world wide – 5,000Major commercial varieties grown - 4Devolution of the potato – Burbank

potato in 18721953 – J.R. Simplot the Burbank’s length,

high solids, and low sugar into the perfectfrozen French fry

1965 – Ray Kroc, genius behind McDonald’s mass marketed the fry to the rest of the world

Today – typical American eats 30 pounds a yearMonsanto GE Burbank with pesticide gene – not

labeled

POTATOES

BeefsteakVarieties lost from 1903 to 1983: 80.6%Listed among international seed orgs. as

among the most genetically threatenedof all earth’s crops

Wild varieties have provided resistance for 19 disorders including leaf mold, tobacco mosaic virus & nematodes

Extinction of the wild varieties could ultimately mean disappearance of the entire plant species

TOMATOES

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

What is the DIFFERENCE between selective breeding techniques that farmers have been doing for centuries and genetic modification (i.e. GE and GMO)?

the Homestead act

Homestead Act was a law developed in 1862 to promote settlement of the Great Plains.

Allowed 160 acres of land if family “improved” it in five years

Facilitated the migration of 500,000 settlers to the west to start new lives.

Agriculture was largely expanded and revolutionized by Homestead Act

Many homesteaders forced to give up - land was extremely difficult to farm

Population Changes in the West, 1850 to 1900

Development of the Great American Desert

Black sod of the prairies (Kansas) developed with special plows – land extremely fruitful

Railroads allowed for profitable marketing of crops

Improved irrigation techniques – “deserts bloomed”

Imported tough, cold-tolerant wheat from RussiaFlour-milling – increased

demand for grainBarbed-wire invented (1874)-

Protection against cattle & wildlife

A Pioneer’s Sod House, SD A Pioneer’s Sod House, SD

Negotiate treaties to sell land to USAmericanization or assimilation Adopt Christianity White education Individual land ownership Adopt agricultureTake away food source to force to Reservations = tracks of land

US Native Indian Policy

Americanization - Mainstreamed and absorbed into US society

Abandon tribe, culture and become farmers

Male claimed 160 acres of land Children would be sent to Indian

schools Farm land for 25 years. 1924 gain citizenship and right

to vote Failed policy - Indian resistance

and corruption

Dawes Act of 1887

A 1911 ad offering "allotted Indian land" for sale.

Lakota and the Ghost Dance

Act in 1889 split Great Sioux Reservation into 5 smaller reservations

Reservations –family units on 320 acre plotsForced to farm, raise livestock, and send children

to boarding school (traditional culture forbidden)Supplemented Lakota with foodEuro American farmers hired to teach Lakota

farmingUnable to farm– cut food rations to LakotaGhost Dance – new religion/movement

Extinguish Euro AmericansReturn the buffaloReturn to former way of life

Lakota at Pine Ridge 1891

1871 to 1875, the US supported extermination of 11 million buffalo.

Take away the food source from the Native American and they will be forced to submit and go to the reservations.

Bonanza FarmsLarge-scale farm operations growing and

harvesting wheatMade possible by:

New farming machinery of the 1870sCheap abundant land from the Homestead ActGrowth of eastern markets in the USTransportation – completion of most major railroads

Many owned by companies and run like factoriesRed River valley – Dakota and Minnesota mid

1870’sPioneered development of farm technology &

economicsSteam engines, plows, combine harvesters

1877 – Fall Plowing

1874 - Cass-Cheney farm became the first Bonanza Farm

1880 - Before wheat can be planted, the ground has to be tilled…

Downfall of Bonanza Farms

Migrant labor was necessary for bonanza farmingPlanting and harvesting – between 500 and 1000

extra workers needed on farmWeather and market conditions good – large profitsDrought and low wheat prices – profits fellMexican migrant labor distinguished farms from

local family farmersFamily farms – fewer workers and less equipment

costs survived the “boom-and-bust cycles”By 1890’s – bonanza farms broken up into smaller

farms

Large landowners / larger farmsCrop rotation techniquesNew crops such as turnips  and  potatoesNew drainage techniques – swamp and marshland

useNew breeding techniques – meatier animals,

harvested earlierManure from livestock used for soil fertilizationHorses replace oxen for powering plows and farm

equipmentChemical fertilizers -widespread use was

immediateMechanical seed drills usedWooden plows replaced with iron, then steelSteam powered threshing machines – the tractor

Agricultural “Improvements” between 1800-1900:

Farm Machines & Technology:

Farm Machines & Technology:

How come large-scale agriculture of the 1900’s were able to overcome the demise of the bonanza farms in the late 1800’s?

Discussion…