Students recently revived an ancient species of squash thought to be extinct. Using well-preserved 800-year-old seeds, students have successfully grown one squash in their school garden in Winnipeg, Canada. This will ensure that the species never goes extinct again. "This squash is representative of a tribe of a large community and everybody in that community having a place and food being a right on citizenship," Brian Etkin, coordinator of the Garden of Learning in Winnipeg, said according to Mother Nature Network. The seeds were originally discovered during an archaeological dig on First Nations land in Wisconsin seven years ago. They were preserved in a small clay vessel, about the size of a tennis ball. This discovery suggests that saving seeds is the best way to ensure future plant diversity. |