Home / Resources and Writings / Weblog / November 2004
Classical Chinese Garden Planned for Washington, DC
Category(-ies): Other Botanical Gardens
Construction of a classical Chinese garden is planned for the US National Arboretum in Washington, DC. The garden will be a gift from the Chinese people to the American people and will symbolize friendship between the two nations. Design and construction of the garden will be a cooperative effort of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the State Forestry Administration of the People's Republic of China.
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Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 3:41 PM
Imported Insect Controls Water Weed
Category(-ies): Invasive Plants
Giant salvinia, Salvinia molesta, is an invasive water plant from South America that clogs waterways and chokes out native aquatic life in Texas and Louisiana. The aggressive plant quickly forms thick mats that spoil fresh waterways. To combat this invasive, scientists have released another South American native, Cyrtobagous salviniae, a weevil that feeds exclusively on South American species of salvinia.
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Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 3:21 PM
Invasive Species Weblog
Category(-ies): Invasive Plants
Jennifer Forman Orth wanted to keep up with current news on invasive species, so she created an invasive species weblog. The weblog highlights and archives news stories on plant and animal invasives. Readers can link to the stories and post their comments. Over 600 entries have been accumulated since April 2002. Excellent sources of information can also be found in the links database.
Link: Invasive Species Weblog
Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 1:55 PM
New Name for Strybing Arboretum
Category(-ies): Other Botanical Gardens
The Strybing Arboretum has changed its name to the San Francisco Botanical Garden at Strybing Arboretum. The garden was originally named after Helene Strybing, who donated the funds to start the garden. Administrators felt the name was not well recognized by the public and hope that the new name will help generate public support for the garden. The name change coincides with several large improvement projects in Golden Gate Park, where the botanical garden is located.
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Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 1:27 PM
Plant Pulls Cadmium from Soil
Category(-ies): Novel Uses of Plants
Alpine pennycress (Thlaspi caerulescens) has a remarkable ability to pull cadmium from the soil and concentrate it in its shoots. Researchers hope to develop this plant as a tool to help clean contaminated soils. Cadmium contamination is a worldwide problem with crops in some areas surpassing recommended safety levels.
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Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 4:46 PM
Traits from GMO Grass Found Miles Away
Category(-ies): Plant Legal News and Issues
Environmental Protection Agency researchers reported that traits from a genetically modified grass could be spread to plants miles away via wind-blown pollen. The GMO grass, developed by Scotts for use on golf courses, is resistant to Monsanto Roundup. The herbicide resistance was found in seedlings from plants as far as thirteen miles from the experimental plot.
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Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 4:15 PM
The Chain of Extinction
Category(-ies): Plant Conservation
A joint study by researchers in Singapore, the US and Canada estimates that an additional 6000 species will go extinct if their endangered host organism dies out. The scientists started with a list of species considered to be threatened or endangered, then estimated the additional loss of species that are dependent on the endangered organisms.
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Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 7:30 PM
Landscaping with Native Plants Conference
Category(-ies): Plants in the Landscape
A two day scientific conference, Landscaping with Native Plants: Exploring the Environmental, Social, and Economic Benefits, will be held in Chicago, December 6-7, 2004. “This conference will help define what is known about the benefits of native landscaping, will identify key gaps in our current knowledge and will define future research priorities.”
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Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 6:58 PM
Lifelike Botanical Reproductions
Category(-ies): Botanical Art
The Field Museum displays one of the largest collections of plant models in the world. Plant models are crafted to exacting detail using a process developed at the museum.
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Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 12:34 PM
The Highly Coveted Cycad
Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plant Legal News and Issues
Cycads are rare endangered plants native to tropical and subtropical regions. Often called living fossils, due to the ancient origin of the genus, cycads are increasingly under threat in the wild from poachers. Cultivated specimens in Botanical Gardens are also targeted. While Hurricane Frances blew across Florida, thieves broke into Fairchild Tropical Botanic Gardens in Coral Gables and made off with 33 of the prized plants.
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Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 5:34 PM
New Method of Pollination Discovered
Category(-ies): Plant Discoveries
Botanists have discovered a new method of self-pollination. Pollen of the horizontal flowers of Caulokaempferia coenobialis, a Chinese herb, is carried from the male anthers on an oily emulsion. This emulsion slides along the flower's style to the female stigma. Scientists studying the plant could find no evidence of another mechanism to move the pollen other than the flow of the oily secretion.
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Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 5:25 PM
