Podcast Episodes

Dr. Eugene McCarthy

Season 1 Episode 16

Shane talks to Dr Eugene McCarthy about his lifetime studying the importance of hybridisation in the creation of new forms of life (usually called speciation). This is part of a three episode series …

Published on 10 months, 1 week ago

Plant Profile- Shallots (Allium fistulosum)

Season 1 Episode 15

Shane reflects on his oldest vegetable landrace crop, the humble shallot or spring onion (Allium fistulosum), an indispensable fresh leafy vegetable that deserves a place in just about every warm cli…

Published on 10 months, 2 weeks ago

Jason Howard

Season 1 Episode 14

Shane talks to Jason about his extraordinary passion for breeding diverse, aromatic and hardy basil that goes so far beyond the common leafy green type most people know.

Check out more of Jason's work…

Published on 10 months, 3 weeks ago

Direct Sowing versus Transplants

Season 1 Episode 13

Shane argues for the advantages of direct sowed seed over transplants, and outlines the key ingredients to achieve success sowing your own seed where it will grow.

You can find more of Shane’s work at…

Published on 11 months ago

Ugo Bardi

Season 1 Episode 12

Shane talks to Professor Ugo Bardi about his recent book "Exterminations: Preparing for the Unthinkable" about the limits to growth and social, cultural and political responses to civilisational coll…

Published on 11 months, 1 week ago

The Minimum Human Habitat

Season 1 Episode 11

This episode calculates the minimum area of land needed to provide water, calories, protein and vegetables to a perfectly efficient human being under industrial and preindustrial circumstances. What …

Published on 11 months, 2 weeks ago

Evalisa McIllfaterick

Season 1 Episode 10

Shane chats with Evalisa McIllfaterick about her collaborative watermelon breeding project in chilly Canada.

Evalisa's Market Farm- Root Cellar Gardens: rootcellargardens.com

Superior Seed Producers (t…

Published on 11 months, 3 weeks ago

Book Review- Agriculture of the Hidatsa

Season 1 Episode 9

This episode reviews the book "Agriculture of the Hidatsa" which can be read for free online. Rare first hand accounts of pre-industrial agriculture are a valuable resource for anyone contemplating t…

Published on 11 months, 4 weeks ago

Professor Porcupine

Season 1 Episode 8

Shane interviews Professor Porcupine about the ways that young people without access to their own land can nevertheless get involved in crop breeding and low input agriculture.

You can find more of Sh…

Published on 1 year ago

The Three Times Plants (Almost) Destroyed the Planet

Season 1 Episode 7

This is an audio version of a blog post from the Zero Input Agriculture substack.

In it, Shane explores the deep history of life on Earth and the recurring imbalances in the biosphere that led to disa…

Published on 1 year ago