Botany of Desire
Apple:
Each apple seed carries a variety of traits. An apple's appearance and taste are rarely passed from seeds. If an apple is planted by seed, the apples grown are often bitter tasting and used to make hard cider. Graphing is a form of planting apples that creates an exact copy of the apple. These apples will be sweeter and appeal to mammals leading to the spread of the apple's genes.
Humans have the ability to express certain traits through the way an apple tree is planted. There are infinite types of apples and each tree has many different types. No two apples are the same and genetic modification can be used to make precise improvements to apples. Crossbreeding is used to purposefully make a specific kind of apple. Apples have the ability to manipulate humans through their sweetness. Different sweetnesses of apples determine how humans use the apples and if a similar apple tree is planted.
Curious Questions:
How many varieties of apples are grown in the US?
Over 2,500 varieties of apples are grown in the US. The top varieties are Red Delicious, Gala, Granny Smith, and Fuji.
What season do apples grow the most?
Most apples ripen between late summer and late fall. Apples grow best in mild climates where the temperature does not increase above 90 degrees. Apples can grow in warmer and colder climates, but if the temperature is too extreme the fruit can be damaged. This would lead to a smaller crop.
Tulip:
Bees and humans both regard flowers as beautiful. There is a preference for tulips and individuals like certain patterns and scents. Tulips originated in Southeast Asia and made their way to Turkey and then spread throughout the rest of the world. The tulip has become a big part of the dutch culture because, in the 17th century, the tulip was a major trading product in Holland. 77% of all flower buds come out of the Netherlands. A tulip bulb once sold for $10 to $15 million.
Humans can manipulate tulips through the way they are planted. Planting a bulb is the only way a matching tulip will go. Humans can make tulips disease resistant and plant different colors of tulips. The tulip's beauty captivates humans and has swept many cultures into a frenzy. There are performances to celebrate tulips and the tulip has grown to represent success. Visitors travel to see tulips such as Keukenhof in Holland, which is the largest tulip garden in the world.
Curious Questions:
Can one replant tulips that have already bloomed?
Do not transplant bulbs that have bloomed, because the bulb could die or fail to produce flowers the next year.
What is the rarest tulip?
The rarest tulip is the black tulip. These tulips are very expensive and are often given to congratulate someone on an achievement.
Cannabis:
Many cultures tolerate cannabis and many think poorly of the plant. Cannabis has the ability to alter one's consciousness. THC is the molecule in the drug that makes people high. THC activates an unknown receptor in the brain which communicates with body chemicals. A connection has been found between THC and memory loss and there are hopes that this research will lead to treatments for trauma. The question of whether cannabis is a demon or savior is an ongoing debate.
Humans have the technology to transform cannabis into many forms. Marijuana can be made into food form or smoked. Most cannabis comes from Mexico and is transported all over the world through human manipulation. Cannabis has the power to manipulate humans through the plant's ability to alter the human mind. The drug manipulates a human's mind and allows an individual to experience an altered consciousness. Pain relief is a common reason many use cannabis. The plant has had such an impact on many groups including the jazz world which is soaked in cannabis.
Curious Questions:
Is Marijuana an addictive drug?
Marijuana use can lead to Marijuana use disorder which means one is unable to stop the use of the drug even if the continuation affects a user's life and relationships. Marijuana is also considered a gateway drug meaning the use of marijuana can lead a person to use more dangerous drugs.
What percent of cannabis users are medical?
17% of individuals who used cannabis in the past year used cannabis medically.
Potatoes:
The potato has made a major impact and the potato changed the course of European history. The Irish planted one kind of potato which was a staple diet. The potato did well in the North and the poor soils of Ireland. This singular crop caused a famine forcing millions to leave their homeland as refugees.
Insects and fungi have the power to kill potatoes in large quantities. Humans manipulate potatoes by spraying chemical pesticides on potatoes which protects the potatoes. Many crops including the potato are genetically modified. The BT gene is added to potatoes which creates a protein that kills the harmful potato beetles. Potatoes have contributed to the human diet for thousands of years. The potato has been processed into many forms for humans, including french fries. Fast food restaurants often make delicious french fries which manipulate a human's diet.
Curious Questions:
What stopped the potato famine in Ireland?
The potato famine ended in 1849 when the British troops stopped removing the food. The famine disappeared with time and when the farmers stopped planting the infected potato.
What percent of potatoes are contaminated with pesticides?
83% of potatoes sampled by the U.S. Department of Agriculture were contaminated with pesticides.
Quick Links:
How GMO Crops Impact Our World
Works Cited:
Apple Tree. Kinnucan, kinnucan.com/apple-tree-care/. Accessed 31 May 2022.
Potato Benefits. Healthline, 12 May 2018, www.healthline.com/nutrition/
how-to-store-potatoes. Accessed 31 May 2022.
The Botany of Desire. Written by Michael Pollan, a PBS documentary.
Vlasova, Evgeniya. The Spruce. The Spruce, www.thespruce.com/
tulips-planting-and-growing-tulips-1402137. Accessed 31 May 2022.
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