Doesn't that sound like an Earth-based version of a starship rations pack?
From Guns, Germs and Steel, which I'm finding to be brilliant, but slow-going:
Roman staples were the Fertile Crescent founder package, supplemented by quince (originating in the Caucasus); millet and cumin (domesticated in Central Asia); cucumber, sesame, and citrus fruit (from India); and chicken, rice, apricots, peaches, and foxtail millet (originally from China)...(also apples).
This appears in the chapter about how Eurasia has an east-west axis, so when looking for trade markets for your successfully domesticated foodplant, you're more likely to find other successful climates east-west, than you are north-south. Gee, that makes sense (looking out at tomatoes in the shade).
I have quince in the yard (though it suffered from transplant shock this year). I need to look around for more subtropical foodplants appropriate for 30dN with high humidity. I wonder about apricots and peaches.
(google searching)
Aha - from GardenWeb, of course...
Tropic Snow white peach, MidPride yellow peach, Flavor Delight aprium, and Joe's Italian apricot.
Great! (remembering apricot everything in Florence during June...yum!)
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