Meet Clara, Shirley, and Estelita. With thickly layered petals, varieties of texture, and colors ranging from elegant peach to cactus orange to pastel pink, these zinnias were among the new varieties that debuted at a recent field day on the UC Davis campus.
Also featured were big, fat, yellow-orange tomatoes, plus whole-grain flour of triticale, yellow wheat and naked barley that were grown and milled on campus and made available to visitors. Local growers and foodies picked zinnias, tasted tomatoes and sampled cookies baked from locally grown whole wheat flour during the event hosted by SCOPE. That's the Student Collaborative Organic Plant Breeding Education program, run largely by students and operated through the Department of Plant Sciences. It's directed by Charlie Brummer, a professor in the department and director of the UC Davis Plant Breeding Center.
Over the past few years, student breeders have been selecting plants for color, shape, texture and other qualities pleasing to the eye and the palate. But they're also looking for yield and resistance to disease and other stresses. That work is bearing beautiful fruit destined for small-scale organic farmers and local fresh markets.
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