I came across the Silphium plant that went extinct around 64 AD. It is believe that emperor Nero was to have eaten the last known stalk!
It surprised me that such a valuable plant was not cultivated through agriculture.
Are there other plants that we know to have literally eaten out of existence?
It’s suspected to be the Roman abortion drug as well.
Another theory is that when Roman provincial governors took over power from Greek colonists, they over-farmed silphium and rendered the soil unable to yield the type that was said to be of such medicinal value. Theophrastus wrote in Enquiry into Plants that the type of Ferula specifically referred to as “silphium” was odd in that it could not be cultivated. He reports inconsistencies in the information he received about this, however. This could suggest the plant is similarly sensitive to soil chemistry as huckleberries which, when grown from seed, are devoid of fruit.
Literally in the Wikipedia page.
I’m quite surprised that they don’t have the birth control properties of the plant at the very top of the page.
Oh I did read that, I just felt it was too speculative and took that with a grain of salt. The roman empire was vast and found it odd that in across the vast geographies, they were simply unable to grow the crop.
There doesn’t seem to many, but some cultivars of crops went missing after we stop eating them.
That’s a good lead. Could you point me to some source or information? I can look it up / read more.
You could start by reading New Lives for Ancient and Extinct Crops. I recommend the other books by Paul E. Minnis, like Famine Foods. These books are academic, though - so don’t expect a fun and accessible science journalism read.
