Agriculture Changes Deserts From The Ground Up

No doubt New Mexico gardeners will relate better to desert agriculture than to Canadian horticulture (a word that always makes me think of of Dorothy Parker for reasons that have nothing to do with gardening).  Egypt and Hungary may seem too distant to be of interest but the conclusions should not be. For all its challenges, notably water, desert agriculture also presents unique potential for resistant, diverse soil bacteria and carbon capture

Agriculture Changes Deserts From The Ground Up, a Science 2.0  article by Caitlin Knight,  September 9, 2011 (short URL http://tinyurl.com/3ljhvlr)

As human population numbers worldwide continue to increase, we are having to be increasingly clever about finding ways to produce enough food for all consumers. One potential technique is converting deserts into agricultural landscapes. Anyone who knows their history will be aware that this practice is by no means new, but modern technology allows desert farming on much larger scales--not only creating larger agricultural areas, but also producing greater quantities of food.

RBEG Applications Now Being Accepted

Applications are currently being accepted for the Rural Business Enterprise Grant (RBEG) Program, which is available to public bodies, nonprofits, and Indian tribes to facilitate and finance the development of small and emerging private business enterprises in rural areas. "Rural" is applicable to those communities up to 50,000 in population. The RBEG Program is aimed towards developing businesses which will employ 50 or less people, with less than $1 million in projected revenues. Projects focusing on the following areas are encouraged: