Agriculture

Frans Snyders' Fruit Stall features a vast spread of produce from the 17th century.

Centuries-Old Paintings Help Researchers Track Food Evolution

Art inadvertently documents the domestication of carrots, wheat, watermelon and other culinary delights

Researchers unearthed this bison-bone hoe in Manitoba, Canada.

Centuries-Old Gardening Hoes Made of Bison Bone Found in Canada

The tools provide evidence that the region's Indigenous population practiced agriculture pre-European contact

A farmer distributes lime over a field in the UK. A new climate solution would use a similar technique to spread rock dust.

Rock Dust Could Be Farming's Next Climate Solution

The process, called enhanced weathering, could remove 2 billion tons of CO2 from the air while fertilizing soil

A visual representation of global methane from January 26, 2018. Red areas indicate higher concentrations of methane swirling in the atmosphere.

World Methane Emissions Hit New High

Agriculture and fossil fuels drive a surge in global emissions of the powerful greenhouse gas

For Papazian, the labor of brewing makes the result all the more enjoyable. “The best beer in the world,” he likes to say, “is the one you brewed.”

The Schoolteacher Who Sparked America's Craft Brew Revolution

Here's a toast to Charlie Papazian, the beer pioneer who blazed the way for thousands of brewers today

Smithsonian beer curator Theresa McCulla and colleagues from the Smithsonian Gardens harvest hops from the National Museum of American History’s victory garden.

This Beer Recipe Came From Hops Grown at the Smithsonian

A storied brewmaster unveils how he came to brew the “Victory Garden” Porter

Green patches of Nana Estate Winery in the arid desert.

Why Wines From Israel's Negev Desert May Represent the Future of Viticulture

Overcoming scorching heat and little rain, experimental vineyards teach winemakers to cope with climate change

Once fish were captured in watercourts, they were likely harvested with nets or speared.

In Ancient Florida, the Calusa Built an Empire Out of Shells and Fish

New research suggests the civilization used huge enclosures to trap and stockpile live fish to support its complex society

Vergenoegd Löw Wine Estate's Indian runner ducks, which patrol the vineyard for pests

An Army of Hungry Ducks Keeps This Historic South African Vineyard Pest-Free

The vineyard deploys a daily bird-based battalion to pluck snails and insects off their plants

An Asian trampsnail on a coffee leaf infected with coffee leaf rust.

Invasive Snails Might Save Coffee Crops From Fungus, but Experts Advise Caution

The snails are an invasive crop pest that are known to eat more than just coffee rust

Changing temperatures affect how quickly wine grapes ripen, how sweet they are, and how much acid they have, all of which influences the quality of the end product.

English Sparkling Wines Challenge the Supremacy of Champagne, France—Thanks to Climate Change

As average temperatures rise and extreme weather events become more common, vintners are forced to adapt year to year

Two of Antonio Gentile's original Mr. Peanut sketches from 1916.

Mr. Peanut Was the Creation of an Italian-American Schoolboy

One of the most iconic food brands was born in the imagination of a teenager, Antonio Gentile. Curator Kathleen Franz introduces the story

Engineered with genes that boost its beta-carotene content, golden rice (top) comes with a yellowish hue that makes it stand out from typical white rice (bottom)

Golden Rice Approved as Safe for Consumption in the Philippines

The genetically modified crop could help combat the country’s vitamin A deficiency

A group of revelers are seen wassailing at Redbyrd Orchard Cider in New York.

New York's Cideries Bring the Tradition of Wassailing to the Finger Lakes

Common in England, the practice of toasting to the health of the orchard has hopped the pond

These gene-edited tomatoes grow in grape-like clusters, rather than on long vines.

Gene-Edited Tomatoes Grow in Bunches Like Grapes, Making Them Ideal for Urban Farming

Growing food in urban environments could have important implications for sustainability—if we can produce crops that thrive in tight spaces

Potato harvest are down, but french fry demand is up.

Poor Potato Crops Could Lead to a North American French Fry Shortage

Say it isn't so

An image of the Camp Fire in Northern California on November 8, 2018, from the Landsat 8 satellite.

Scientists Around the World Declare 'Climate Emergency'

More than 11,000 signatories to a new research paper argue that we need new ways to measure the impacts of a changing climate on human society

Plants growing in lunar and Martian soil simulants.

Space Farmers Could Grow Crops in Lunar and Martian Soil, Study Suggests

With a little added organic matter, dusty lunar and Martian soil simulants produced tomatoes, rye, radishes and other crops in the lab

A map shows Mexico and its provinces—which included Mexican Texas—in 1822.

When Mexico's Immigration Troubles Came From Americans Crossing the Border

Before Texas fought for its independence, thousands of settlers from the east entered the country unlawfully in search of land and agricultural opportunity

"Deep Roots," a section in the Smithsonian's new "Food" exhibition, reflects on the men and women of Mexican heritage, who have long provided the labor and backbone of the production of wine and are now reshaping it as professionals in the industry.

Three Mexican-American Vintners Tell Their Stories

Alex Llamas, Gustavo Brambila and Amelia Ceja arrived as migrant workers and today thrive as entrepreneurs in the California wine industry

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