In the same place as a month ago, but now grown to a clump:
Probably Sarracenia minor, the Continue reading
Tag Archives: Plants
The bog garden and the Brown Dog, August 2017
Start with floating bottom in a pond…
Gretchen picking some bog from the floating bottom
The bog she picked
Continue readingHolisticNutrition: Eat food, not too much, mostly plants –Ashley Dowdy @ SOGALO17 2017-01-21
Ashley Dowdy will talk about HolisticNutrition, “Eat food, not too much, mostly plants,”
at
South Georgia Growing Local 2017, January 21, 2017 in Valdosta, Georgia:
We will be discussing a variety of topics covering basic nutrition including macro vs micro nutrients, optimal diets for longevity, how to make lasting changes to your eating habits, how to plan meals and feed your family.
Who should attend:
Anyone interested in learning the nutrition basics to live a healthier life. Learn how to design and maintain a healthy diet and why you should strive for nutrient-dense natural foods.
Bio: Continue reading
Dr. Elsie Quarterman, Plant Ecologist, at Cheekwood
A bench inscribed simply “Dr. Elsie Quarterman, Plant Ecologist” sits
under cedar trees in the herb garden at Cheekwood Botanical Garden;
appropriately for a scientist whose specialty was cedar glades.
She was involved with Cheekwood for many years, and was its Acting Director from 1967 to 1968. She helped establish the herb garden in which the bench sits. Continue reading
UGA Vegetable Growers Workshop 2015-01-30
How to grow your own vegetables for food and/or profit,
according to UGA Griffin, at the end of this month.
You can register by printing and mailing the
PDF form, or through the event
website. -jsq
University of Georgia Horticulture Presents:
Vegetable Growers WorkshopThis program will cover many aspects of how to grow your own Continue reading
Elsie was more than a biology professor and ecologist –Jonathan Ertelt, Community
Saying what many students think: “Students of all ages are thankful
that her appreciation of the plant kingdom and the world around her
touched them and made their lives.”
Jonathan Ertelt, Vanderbilt Magazine, Summer 2014 issue, Quarterman Was More Than a Biology Professor and Ecologist, Continue reading
The whole ecosystem –Elsie Quarterman on Wild Side TV
Here’s
a video about Elsie,
A Crusader for Conservation,
19 September 2014,
by Tennessee’s Wild Side, “The Emmy Award winning show produced through the generosity of the Jackson
Foundation, Tennessee State Parks, and the Tennessee Wildlife Federation.”
Lots of good pictures, some video snippets of Elsie, and some narration by her nephew Patrick and by Biologist Tom Hemmerly, who reminds us of Elsie’s work at Radner Lake, in addition to her cedar glades work.
Ranger Buddy Ingram explains her biggest contribution may have been
in getting numerous different segments of society to cooperate
in saving whole ecologies.
Botanist Kim Sadler and others explain how inspiring all that is to generations
of students.
As Elsie said in 2006:
Continue readingThe general public needs to know what’s around them. They need to be learning that there’s a world that is not paved. There are lots of things that have life and function in the whole scheme, people as well as plants and animals. Not just dogs you’ve got on a leash, but animals that live out there, are part of the whole ecosystem.
SEB: Professor Elsie Quarterman: In Memorium, 1910-2014
Her students Carol and Jerry Baskin wrote for the
July 2014 Southeastern Biology newsletter of
The Association of Southeastern Biologists,
OBITUARY: Professor Elsie Quarterman: In Memorium, 1910-2014
Dr. Elsie Quarterman known fondly to her students as EQ passed away on 9 June 2014 at her home in Nashville, Tennessee, at the age of 103 years. She was born on 28 November 1910 in Valdosta, Georgia. Dr. Quarterman obtained her B. A. degree from Georgia State Women’s College (now Valdosta State University) in 1932, Continue reading
Diversity, extinction, and climate change
In what category does Georgia rank highest
- for species diversity: plants, mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, or fishes?
- and in which of these four categories: diversity, risk, endemism (distinctiveness of species), and extincions?
Guess first, then look (no peeking)…. Continue reading
Cancer-fighting okra?
Well, this is unexpected.
Recent research shows a compound in okra
“promotes selective antitumor effects in human breast cancer cells and may represent a potential therapeutic to combat human breast cancer.”
Here’s the abstract, Biotechnol Lett. 2014 Mar;36(3):461-9. doi: 10.1007/s10529-013-1382-4. Epub 2013 Oct 16. Lectin of Abelmoschus esculentus (okra) promotes selective antitumor effects in human breast cancer cells.
The anti-tumor effects of a newly-discovered lectin, isolated from okra, Abelmoschus esculentus (AEL), were investigated in human breast cancer (MCF7) and skin fibroblast (CCD-1059 sk) cells. AEL induced significant cell growth inhibition (63 %) in MCF7 cells. The expression of pro-apoptotic caspase-3, caspase-9, and p21 genes was increased in MCF7 cells treated with AEL, compared to those treated with controls. In addition, AEL treatment increased the Bax/Bcl-2 ratio in MCF7 cells. Flow cytometry also indicated that cell death (72 %) predominantly occurred through apoptosis. Thus, AEL in its native form promotes selective antitumor effects in human breast cancer cells and may represent a potential therapeutic to combat human breast cancer.
Don’t get your hopes up about that 72% figure: that seems to be that when cancer cell death occurred, 72% of it was related, not that 72% of cancer cells were killed. The 63% cancer cell growth inhibition does seem promising, though.
There are even hints in another paper that okra may be related to lower rates of prostate cancer: Continue reading