Strange but True

Birstall Allotment Society

Members of the National Allotment and Leisure Gardeners Association

Vegetables = Math’s?

Have you noticed the spirals on a sunflower?

Look carefully and you will notice the seeds are arranged in spiral patterns. Count the number of seeds in each spiral and you produce numbers such as 55 in one direction and 89 in the other direction, or 34 in one direction and 55 in the other. These pairs of number are known as Fibonacci numbers. Ian Stewart Professor of Mathematics at the Mathematics Institute, University of Warwick, Coventry, England, explains that these numbers correspond very closely with growth and design in plants. "Those numbers are clues to the dynamic process, which is the way the plant grows". All of the different plants grow in a similar pattern. New parts of the plant are arranged at the tip of a shoot in a spiral pattern. If you do the maths on the spiral pattern Fibonacci numbers fall out.

In mathematics, the Fibonacci numbers are a sequence of numbers named after Leonardo of Pisa, known as Fibonacci. Fibonacci's 1202 book Liber Abaci introduced the sequence to Western European mathematics, although the sequence had been previously described in Indian mathematics.

The first number of the sequence is 0, the second number is 1, and each subsequent number is equal to the sum of the previous two numbers of the sequence itself, so the numbers follow this pattern

0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8,13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, 233, 377, 610, 987, 1597, 2584, 4181, 6765 to infinity

A Fibonacci spiral created by drawing arcs connecting the opposite corners of squares in the Fibonacci tiling; this one uses squares of sizes 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, and 34; see In geometry, a Golden spiral is a logarithmic spiral whose growth factor b is related to φ, the golden ratio.^[1] Specifically, a golden spiral gets wider (or further from its origin) by a factor of φ for every quarter turn it makes.

From this you can begin to see the familiar spirals found in flowers and plants. “So, if you thought all you were doing up the plot was lifting a few spuds or pulling a few weeds, not a bit of it. What you are actually doing is fundamental Mathematics that has it’s roots (pun intended) deep in European and Indian mathematical history. Try telling that to your better half, next time you’re a bit late from the plot.”

Gardening quote—

Man was not made to rust out in idleness. A degree of
exercise is as necessary for the preservation of health,
both of body and mind, as his daily food. And what
exercise is more fitting, or more appropriate of one who
is in the decline of life, than that of superintending a
well-ordered garden?   What more enlivens the sinking
mind?   What is more conducive to a long life?
-   Joseph Breck

Composting Toilets

A Fibonacci spiral created by drawing arcs connecting the opposite corners of squares in the Fibonacci tiling; this one uses squares of sizes 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, and 34; see Golden spiral

Remember when composting toilets were a conversational taboo, pooh-pooed by mainstream society? Getting rid of 'humanure' using a waterless toilet may not be just a fringe fad much longer as it reduces the climate impact of waste. How?

By composting it into humus. (Not to be confused for the stuff made out of chickpeas - that's hummus.)

Even more...Strange but True

Stewart's Giant Pumpkin Page: For those who link size and achievement, the pictures of Stewart's giant pumpkins should prove a motivation and inspiration

The Old Lawnmower Club: As the site says, the world's only club for people interested in vintage mowers

Gardening World Records: It’s got the biggest, heaviest, deepest, fastest growing and lots, lots more….