Climate Change and Gardening

Category(-ies): Climate Change , Plant Conservation , Plants in the Landscape

What will be impact of climate change on gardening? A New York Times article addresses both the good and the bad. The good: different plant choices due to warmer weather & a longer growing season and raising awareness about environmental issues. The bad: increased pests and new weedy invaders, a changing native flora (and for some US states, the potential extirpation of state flowers and trees), and all of the associated cultural and biological consequences.

Feeling Warmth, Subtropical Plants Move North via the New York Times

Gardener's Guide to Global Warming (US-based) from the US National Wildlife Federation

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 9:47 AM

A Blooming Crisis

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Over-exploitation and destruction of habitat are noted as two of the primary causes for the potential extinction of 131 of the 245 species of Magnolia.

Magnolias Face ‘Perilous Future’ – BBC

Magnolias - Bloom and Doom? from Global Trees Campaign

The Red List of Magnoliaceae report (PDF) – note the acknowledgment to Peter Wharton.

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 4:14 PM

Svalbard International Seed Vault

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plants, Food and Medicine

The design for the Svalbard International Seed Vault, a “Living Fort Knox”, has recently been shared. Three million seed samples of the world's agricultural crops will be stored in the Arctic vault, due to be completed in 2008. The vault will be The seed vault will be built inside a mountain on Spitsbergen, an island one thousand kilometres north of mainland Norway.

• Doomsday Vault Design Unveiled from the BBC
• Svalbard Global Seed Vault from Wikipedia
• Arctic Seed Vault from the Global Crop Diversity Trust

Thank you to Stannous F and Aussiebob@UBC Botanical Garden Forums for suggesting the link!

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 5:06 PM

Battle for Protection of Giant Sequoias Continues

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Although a dozen groves of giant sequoias were protected through the designation of the US Giant Sequoia National Monument in 2000, pre-2000 timber sales of non-sequoias have resulted in the logging of forests surrounding the protected groves. This article tells the story of Martin Litton, a conservationist attempting to change current practices in the area.

From the article: "If we don't save them, they'll disappear from the Earth," Litton said, adamant that logging near the sequoias endangers the shallow-rooted giants by exposing them to wind as well as drying out the forest floor.

A Matter of Grove Concern by Bettina Boxall of the Los Angeles Times

Sequoia ForestKeeper, an advocacy group on the issue.

Thank you to Tom Wheeler of UBC Botanical Garden for suggesting this article.

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 4:46 PM

National Tropical Botanical Garden

Category(-ies): Invasive Plants , Other Botanical Gardens , Plant Conservation

Though the article describes a tour of the National Tropical Botanical Garden in Hawaii, its emphasis is on the conservation of native Hawaiian plants and the efforts against invasives and plant extinction.

A Tour of Hawaii's Rare Paradise from The Christian Science Monitor

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 3:03 PM

Climate Change and Plant Extinctions

Category(-ies): Climate Change , Plant Conservation

Plants in some areas of the world are at extreme risk of extinction due to climate change. Those confined to small areas, such as islands or the South African fynbos, have no hope of colonizing new areas, since environmental conditions in nearby areas (where the plants could theoretically find a refuge) are either unsuitable or are too distant.

Climate Change Seen Pushing Plants to the Brink

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 2:41 PM

Sudden Wetland Dieback

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Saltwater marshes in New England are dying back, resulting in barren landscapes. The reason? Unknown. Possible candidates to explain the dieback include rising seas, mobile chunks of ice, flocks of geese, chemical pollution, sulfuric acid produced by bacteria and purple marsh crabs (Sesarma reticulatum).

Dying salt marshes puzzle New England scientists, threatening habitats from the Associated Press via CBC

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 8:58 AM

Toxic Oceans

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

“The world's 6 billion inhabitants, he [Jeremey Jackson] says, have failed to follow a homeowner's rule of thumb: Be careful what you dump in the swimming pool, and make sure the filter is working. ‘We're pushing the oceans back to the dawn of evolution,’ Jackson said, ‘a half-billion years ago when the oceans were ruled by jellyfish and bacteria.’”

A Primeval Tide of Toxins from Kenneth Weiss of the Los Angeles Times.

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 11:42 AM

Endangered Atlantic Forest in Brazil

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Submitted by the garden's director, Dr. Quentin Cronk:

The Amazon forest is in well-known decline, but another of Brazil's biodiversity hotspots, the Atlantic forest, has been even more devastated. The Atlantic forest contains the highest tree diversity in the world but its area has been reduced to a fraction of its former extent.

Brazil's other disappearing rainforest via the Sci-Tech section of Aljazeera.net

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 11:19 AM

The Decline of the Amazon Rainforest

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Amazon rainforest 'could become a desert' – UK's The Independent

Dying Forest: One year to save the Amazon, also from The Independent

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 6:07 PM | Comments (0)

Coordinating Land Trusts

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Private, Public Land Conservation Growing, Needs Better Coordination, a media release about research at Oregon State University

The Land Conservancy of BC

The Land Trust Alliance of British Columbia

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 11:04 AM | Comments (0)

China Blocks Timber Imports from Burma

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

China Blocks Timber Imports from China, a press release from Global Witness. The mission of Global Witness: “campaigns to achieve real change by challenging established thinking on seemingly intractable global issues.”

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 11:52 AM | Comments (0)

Doomsday Seed Bank

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plants, Food and Medicine , Snippets

One hundred countries have backed a “doomsday seed vault”, deep inside a frozen arctic mountain on the Norwegian island of Svalbard. The vault, guarded by polar bears and steel airlock doors, is planned to contain seeds of all the world's crops, as an insurance against global catastrophe.

Work Begins on Arctic Seed Vault – BBC

Fort Knox For Seeds via The Little Garden weblog.

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 10:17 PM | Comments (0)

Australia's Wild Wollemi Pines Threatened by Disease

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plant Diseases and Pests

Wollemi pines were thought to be long extinct until a park ranger discovered two small groves of the trees in 1994. Fewer than a hundred trees were found. Researchers have kept the location of the wild population secret. Although the scientists have been very careful not to introduce pathogens, an infection of Phytophthora cinnamomi, believed to have been brought in by a hiker, has recently been discovered in the groves. Although propagations of the trees now grow in gardens around the world, the wild groves are important to research and prized for their extreme rarity and remarkable survival.

Link:
Disease hits Australia’s ‘dinosaur’ trees from Aljazeera

For background see this earlier weblog entry: Auction of Jurassic Trees Brings in Over a Million Dollars

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 12:44 PM | Comments (0)

Environment Canada's Ecological Gifts Program

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plant Legal News and Issues

One of the greatest threats to biodiversity is the destruction of habitat for human development projects. Environment Canada's Ecological Gifts Program, created in 1995, provides tax incentives to citizens who want to protect wild lands. Private and corporate land owners can receive a tax deduction equal to the value of their gift for donations of ecologically sensitive land or for setting up special property rights restrictions limiting development of the land - in this way property owners may remain on their land while it is protected. Groups can also receive tax benefits by purchasing land for protection. Environment Canada coordinates the needs of recipient organizations to the wishes of donors and makes sure that the agencies are committed to protecting the land in perpetuity.

Continue reading "Environment Canada's Ecological Gifts Program"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 3:13 PM | Comments (0)

Saving Seattle's Native Urban Forests

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plants in the Landscape

When people think of Seattle and the Pacific Northwest in general, images of dense forest with towering trees come to mind. But, like many other areas, the natural parklands in the city are under serious threat from invasive species. A century ago, when Seattle was a young growing city, much of the area was clearcut for development. Few of the grand conifers that populate the forests of the Northwest remained to produce new offspring. The area was largely repopulated with deciduous trees like maple and red alder. Strong competition from invasive species kept the conifers from regenerating. Now many of the bigleaf maples, the most common tree in Seattle's urban forest, are nearing the end of their lifespan and an invasion of aggressive weeds is taking their place.

Continue reading "Saving Seattle's Native Urban Forests"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 1:21 PM | Comments (0)

Increased Competition for Pollen May Lead to Plant Extinctions

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plant Discoveries

A recently completed analysis of 482 field experiments conducted on flowering plants reveals marked deficits in pollination in areas with rich biodiversity as compared to less-diverse ecosystems. Researchers theorize that the abundance of different species results in stronger competition for pollinators and sufficient pollen for maximum fruit production cannot be delivered. It is not known if this is a new pattern due to declines in pollinators or is a chronic problem for plant species in global biodiversity hotspots. The findings raise the question of how habitat destruction and fragmentation are affecting the risk of extinction to plants in such competitive environments.

Link:
Increased Competition for Pollen May Lead to Plant Extinctions from Kansas City infoZine

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 4:26 PM | Comments (0)

How Big is Your Ecological Footprint?

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plant Legal News and Issues

It has been ten years since the book, Our Ecological Footprint was published by UBC professor William Rees and Mathis Wackernagel. The book introduced the concept of ecological footprint analysis, described by Rees in an interview, "Pick a population, examine its consumption patterns for a considerable period of time, and then calculate the total area of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems needed to produce all the goods and services that the population consumes, and to assimilate the wastes that the population produces" (Aurora Online). The analysis methods have been carefully refined over the years and produce a fairly accurate estimate of the amount of land required to produce and dispose of the goods used by a region or an individual.

Continue reading "How Big is Your Ecological Footprint?"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 1:51 PM | Comments (0)

An End to Illegal Timber Exports in Myanmar?

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plant Legal News and Issues

Myanmar is a country rich in natural resources, but fifty years of internal conflict over the control of its natural riches have thwarted effective development of their economic use. Timber, the country's primary natural resource, has been unscrupulously exploited by the elite of Myanmar and neighbouring countries. In October 2005, Global Witness released a report on the devastating effect of the unsustainable timber harvest to Myanmar's northern forests. The report stated that over 95% of the wood being exported to China was illegal. In the past four months illegal logging and timber trade at the China-Myanmar border has come to a near stop.

Continue reading "An End to Illegal Timber Exports in Myanmar?"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 12:08 AM | Comments (0)

Native Seeds/SEARCH

Category(-ies): Botanical Resources , Plant Conservation , Plants, Food and Medicine

"Ancient seeds for modern needs," is the motto of Native Seeds/SEARCH, a non-profit organization based in Tucson, Arizona. Since 1983 the group has been collecting seeds of food plants used by the native cultures in the arid region of the southwestern US and northwestern Mexico, sometimes referred to as the Chile Pepper Nation (see NPR link). Their mission has led them not only to conserve the rare crops adapted to arid lands, but also to preserve cultural traditions by distributing crops back to Native American communities.

Continue reading "Native Seeds/SEARCH"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 4:18 PM | Comments (2)

Botanists Seek Genes of Tomato Relatives

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plants, Food and Medicine

Biologists from University of California-Davis and the University of Chile-Santiago, hoping to improve the common tomato, Lycopersicon esculentum, completed their second expedition to Chile last year. The researchers struggled through rugged terrain from the coast to the high Andes in search of seed from tomato relatives to add to the genebank of the C.M. Rick Tomato Genetics Resource Centre. Although the varieties retrieved on the Chilean trek are not appealing as food, they may harbour genes that could be used to improve the quality of the tomato, lending pest resistance or increased hardiness for example.

Links:

• Tomato Trek Yields Chilean Treasure from the Agricultural Research Service of the US Department of Agriculture


• The C.M. Rick Tomato Genetics Resource Centre at the University of California-Davis

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 4:47 PM | Comments (0)

A Man of the Trees

Category(-ies): Botanical Art , Plant Conservation

For more than thirty years, Tom Zetterstrom has photographed the natural beauty of the Berkshire Mountains near his home. Trees have been a favourite subject for the artist - whose works have been shown at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Corcoran Gallery and the Getty Museum of Art. Mr. Zetterstrom may be know as much for his environmental activism as he is for his art. Noting the pressure of development on the wild lands in the region, the artist was inspired to work for environmental protection early on in his career.

Mr. Zetterstrom laments that the environmental work has taken on such great importance that he does not have time to devote to his art, but his work on both fronts will help preserve the beauty of the Berkshires.

Link: Canaan's Man of the Trees from the Litchfield County Times

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 12:53 PM

Auction of Jurassic Trees Brings in Over a Million Dollars

Category(-ies): Other Botanical Gardens , Plant Conservation , Plant Discoveries

The Wollemi pine, a tree thought to have been extinct for millions of years, was discovered in Australia in 1994. Since then, the species has been a focus of fascination for botanists. Wollemia nobilis apparently survived in isolation in a small pocket of sheltered forest about 150 kilometres north of Sydney. Fewer than 40 adult trees in two small groves were discovered in the wild. The exact location of the groves has been kept secret.

The Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney held a special exhibition to promote and fund research and preservation of the Wollemi pine. A display grove was created from the first generation of plants grown from cuttings taken from the wild trees. 292 of the rare trees offered in an international Sotheby's auction at the close of the exhibition, raised over $ 1 million for conservation efforts.

Links:

• Dinosaur trees attract a mint from The Australian


• The Wollemi Pine Global Launch from Wollemi Pine International Pty Ltd


• Hawkesbury Valley Wollemi Pine a descriptive page about Wollemi pine from the Hawkesbury (tourist information)

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 2:08 PM | Comments (0)

Botswana to Open First Botanic Garden

Category(-ies): Other Botanical Gardens , Plant Conservation

Botswana is to open its first botanic garden in November this year. The nine acre garden in Gaborone, Botwsana will feature collections of living plants for education and research in a beautiful natural setting with historic buildings. Established indigenous trees and shrubs at the site were incorporated into the garden design and other native plants were brought in from various areas around Botswana.

An herbarium has been set up for research. One of the main goals of the garden's planners was to promote awareness of the biodiversity of the region and to conserve its rare indigenous plant species.

Link: First botanical garden opens from the Daily News

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 3:45 PM

Burning to Regenerate Aspen Woodlands

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plant Relationships

Aspen woodlands are declining in western Canada and the US. The hardwood groves provide a wildlife habitat that is much more diverse than the coniferous forests that are replacing them in many areas. Populus tremuloides reproduce primarily by vegetative means, sprouting suckers from existing root systems after fires or other disturbances. Without periodic wildfires aspen groves become dominated by conifers that tower over them, blocking needed sunlight.

Continue reading "Burning to Regenerate Aspen Woodlands"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 11:39 AM | Comments (0)

Peyote Harvest Dwindling

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Conservationists are concerned by the overharvesting of peyote, a small cactus used by Native Americans in religious ceremonies. The hallucinogenic Lophophora williamsii cactus grows wild only in portions of four southern Texas counties and in the northern Mexico desert. Use of the cactus is limited to members of tribes recognized by the government. An estimated 200,000 to 500,000 members of the Native American Church in the US and Canada consume the plant for ceremonial purposes.

The Native American Church along with conservationists and other Indian rights advocates are looking at ways to alleviate the pressure being put on wild populations of the plants in Texas. Currently legal restrictions prevent cultivation of the plant or importation from Mexico.

Link: In Deep South Texas, peyote harvest dwindling from the Seattle Times

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 4:27 PM | Comments (0)

Kruger National Park Elephants too Successful

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

The elephant population in South Africa's Kruger National Park has grown steadily since the turn of the 20^th century, when only about 50 of them inhabited all of South Africa. Now numbering over 14,000 and increasing by around a thousand animals per year, the elephants are threatening the vegetation and water supply that supports other rare species in the park. Officials estimate that the park can sustain only around 7,000 elephants. A cull of 7,000 to 10,000 animals is being considered.

The last cull in 1994 caused such a public outcry that the government banned culls of the species. Similar reaction is expected if a new cull is announced. Officials agree that a cull will be necessary to preserve biodiversity in the park and want the public to understand the difficult decision.

Link: 10,000 Elephants Facing Slaughter to Protect Trees from the Times Online

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 11:40 AM | Comments (4)

Biodiversity Up On the Organic Farm

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plants, Food and Medicine

Surveys of organic farms, including a recently completed five-year study in Britain, are showing an increase in biodiversity. The absence of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers accounts for much of the greater level of species diversity, but other organic farming practices also benefit wildlife, such as planting hedgerows to attract beneficial insects and birds. Activities that incorporate the organic farm into the natural landscape often have benefit for both.

The link between agriculture and biodiversity is being recognized by various groups. The Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity is preserving heritage crops and promoting markets for them. The Wild Farm Alliance envisions sustainable food systems where "…ecologically managed farms and ranches are seamlessly integrated into landscapes that accommodate the full range of native species and ecological processes." And Salmon Safe has developed criteria for an eco-label that goes beyond organic certification to include practices that promote wildlife preservation.

Links:

• Organic Farms 'Best for Wildlife' from the BBC News


• Farming with the Wild from Tidepool

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 3:34 PM

Carolina Gold Rice

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plants, Food and Medicine

A century after being displaced by new rice varieties, Carolina Gold rice, sometimes called "America's first rice," is returning to modern tables. The rice strain was first brought to S. Carolina in the late 1600s and quickly became a popular staple. Over the next two centuries a new cuisine, called Carolina Gold Kitchen, developed around the grain.

Scientists using genetic markers to analyze strains of rice have been able to distinguish Carolina Gold and its derivatives. The refined cultivar from this process is now called Carolina Gold Select. Findings from this research and other projects were recently presented at a symposium organized by the Carolina Gold Rice Foundation, an agency dedicated to the preservation of the heirloom rice and other historic grains.

Continue reading "Carolina Gold Rice"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 2:08 PM

39 More Species Protected by Species at Risk Act (SARA)

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Species decline and loss occurs due to various factors. Human action is often the cause of environmental changes that put pressure on threatened species. Canada's Species at Risk Act (SARA) was proclamed in 2003 to prevent the extinction of indigenous species and sub-groups and to provide management of recovery and protection efforts for threatened plants and animals. There were 39 additions to the list of protected species in July, 2005. The butternut tree was added to the list this year, along with 16 other plants.

Link: The Growing Species at Risk List from EnviroZine, Environment Canada's online newsmagazine

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 9:42 AM

India's Valley of Flowers Named World Heritage Site

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plant Legal News and Issues , Plants in the Landscape

India's Valley of Flowers, unknown to westerners until the 1930's, has been named a World Heritage Site. The beautiful alpine valley is known for its carpet of wildflowers brought forth by the monsoons. The valley covers over 87.5 square kilometers at an altitude of between 3,250 and 6,750 metres above sea level within the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve, which was designated a World Heritage site in 1988. The area is home to several endangered animals and 521 varieties of flowering plants.

Years of work by forest service workers and local volunteers led by Indian Forest Service officer, Jyotsna Sitling helped to clean up and regenerate areas of the flower fields. Ms. Sitling submitted the request for heritage status with the Archeological Survey of India in 2004. World Heritage status was granted to the region in July 2005.

Links:

• Woman Behind Valley of Flowers from The Indian Express
• Uttaranchal's Valley of flowers becomes world heritage site from Web India 123
• India's Valley of flowers on UNESCO's list from the Central Chronicle
• UNESCO World Heritage website of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's World Heritage Program

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 5:53 PM | Comments (3)

The Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plants in the Landscape

In August leaders of three African nations will officially open the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park, joining South Africa's Kruger National Park, Mozambique's Limpopo Park and Zimbabwe's Gonarezhou National Park. The new park will cover approximately 35,000 square kilometres and is the first step in the creation of a transfrontier conservation area that will cover 100,000 sq. km.

Continue reading "The Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 4:31 PM

Looking for Healthy Butternut Trees

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plant Diseases and Pests

Butternut trees (Juglans cinerea) are not common. Many people may have never tasted the nuts, which are prized in eastern N. America, where they are native. The tree is plagued by butternut canker, which has wiped out 80% of Juglans cinerea in some US states. To promote the tree researchers are searching the tree's native range for healthy stock to use in breeding research.

Continue reading "Looking for Healthy Butternut Trees"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 2:17 PM | Comments (30)

Last Great Harvest for Louisiana Cypress?

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

One hundred years ago the cypress forests of Louisiana's swamps were cut down for timber. Now a century later the trees have matured to a size suitable for harvest. The wood of cypress is prized for its beauty and resistance to rot and pests. Landowners and loggers are anxious to harvest as many of the valuable trees as they can. Scientists and environmentalists would like to limit the harvest to insure the health of the forest.

Continue reading "Last Great Harvest for Louisiana Cypress?"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 2:25 PM | Comments (0)

Genetic Assessment of Citrus Collection Reveals Close Relations

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plant Relationships

The USDA Agricultural Research Service's National Clonal Germplasm Repository for Citrus and Dates has nearly 1,000 citrus accessions in its collection. Scientist recently assessed the genetic makeup of the collection, using molecular markers. Researchers found that most of the genetic diversity was found in a small percentage of the collection, indicating the likelihood that many of the citrus varieties are hybrids of a few wild types.

Citrus hybridizes readily and given its long history of cultivation by humans, it is likely that selective breeding produced many new strains.

Links:

• From a Few Wild Ancestors, a Citrus Cornucopia from the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) of the USDA


• A Citrus Mystery: Who’s Who in the Nation’s Largest Citrus Collection? from ARS, republished from Agricultural Research Magazine

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 4:45 PM | Comments (0)

Increased Nitrogen Endangers Rare Plants

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plant Discoveries

A broad ranging study of the effects of increased nitrogen on plant populations in natural environments suggests that it puts rare plants at a disadvantage and threatens their survival. Increased nitrogen makes some plants grow larger and faster, crowding out rare plants that do not respond as well to a higher level of the nutrient. Since the 1940s the amount of nitrogen available to plants has more than doubled due to pollution and increased use of fertilizers.

Continue reading "Increased Nitrogen Endangers Rare Plants"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 12:53 AM

Florida Man Arrested for Poaching Wild Orchids

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plant Legal News and Issues

After the initial purchase of a few orchids from a big box store four years ago, Gary Bienemann soon became hooked. He started gathering orchids from the woods near his home and travelled to South Florida, where he took rare protected orchids from the same swamp that served as a backdrop for the book The Orchid Thief. The collection at his home grew and he began selling the pilfered plants on eBay.

Continue reading "Florida Man Arrested for Poaching Wild Orchids"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 3:50 PM

Botanists to Reintroduce Club Sedge

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Carex buxbaumii, a club sedge, has not been seen in the wild in Ireland for a hundred years. It has thrived at the National Botanic Gardens in Dublin however, since it was first collected in 1835 by David Moore, then director of the garden. Now botanists want to reintroduce it to the wild.

Continue reading "Botanists to Reintroduce Club Sedge"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 3:07 PM

The Vascular Plant Red Data List for Britain Published

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plant Legal News and Issues

Botanists have recently published the most comprehensive assessment of the UK's flora to date. One in five native plants in Britain is threatened by extinction. Species that inhabit the margins of farmer's fields and grasslands are particularly at risk. New species on the Red List, corn buttercup and shepherd's needle have suffered very rapid decline in recent years. Western juniper had simply been overlooked in previous assessments although only eleven plants survive.

Continue reading "The Vascular Plant Red Data List for Britain Published"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 4:46 PM

British Charities Encourage Gardeners to Support Wildlife

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plant Relationships , Plants in the Landscape

The Royal Horticultural Society has launched a major appeal to fund efforts promoting biodiversity. It has teemed up with the Wildlife Trusts to create a project called Wild About Gardens, a program to help educate gardeners on practices that will foster wildlife. The RHS will study the distribution and ecology of wildlife found in its gardens to better understand how urban gardeners can encourage wildlife.

Continue reading "British Charities Encourage Gardeners to Support Wildlife"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 4:40 PM

Time Honoured Garden Favourites

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plants in the Landscape

In recent decades gardeners have been inundated with choices made available to them by plant breeders. The old varieties of plants, grown by our grandparents, have become difficult to find, but heirlooms are making a come back. Adding a few heirloom plants (varieties that have been in cultivation for at least fifty years) can restore childhood memories.

Continue reading "Time Honoured Garden Favourites"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 3:44 PM

China's Jiangxi Province to Expand Gene Base for Endangered Plants

Category(-ies): Other Botanical Gardens , Plant Conservation

East China's Jiangxi Province has plans to expand its botanical garden in Jiujiang to 231 hectares, over ten times its current holdings. The garden has served as a gene base for the propagation of rare plants. It has sent thousands of cuttings to research stations and botanical gardens around the country. Expansion is expected to be completed by 2020.

Link: East China province to expand gene base for rare plants from the People's Daily

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 2:58 PM

China's Demand for Wood Impacts World's Forests

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plant Legal News and Issues

According to a WWF report, released in March, China will soon be the leader in the global wood market. Increasing demand for wood products is putting pressure on forests in other countries. Much of China's timber imports come from countries where logging is poorly regulated. The report, China's Wood Market, Trade and the Environment cites China as being a major destination for illegally harvested or traded timber.

Continue reading "China's Demand for Wood Impacts World's Forests"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 4:15 PM

Brazil Launches Vast Conservation Effort in Amazon

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva announced the protection of 3.7 million hectares of forest in two new land reserves in the Brazilian state of Para. The new parks will help connect protected areas of the savannah ecosystem in the south to the rain forests of the central Amazon.

Continue reading "Brazil Launches Vast Conservation Effort in Amazon"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 5:23 PM

Garry Oak Bibliography

Category(-ies): Botanical Resources , Plant Conservation

Interest in Quercus garryana has grown as Garry oak forest habitats decline. To accommodate this recent increase in interest, the USDA Forest Service has compiled a bibliography for publications on Quercus garryana and other geographically associated and botanically related oaks.

Continue reading "Garry Oak Bibliography"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 1:53 PM

Amorphophallus titanum Becoming Rare in the Wild

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Titan arum, Amorphophallus titanum, is threatened by development in its native Sumatran rain forest habitat. The plant bears the largest cluster of flowers found in nature. Often billed as the world's largest flower, its rare bloom is a popular attraction at botanical gardens. Around 600 gardens now grow the plant outside of Sumatra.

Continue reading "Amorphophallus titanum Becoming Rare in the Wild"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 3:37 PM

The Provenance of Plants

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Growing native plants to promote conservation is very popular, but botanists are concerned about the origin of the plants. The habitat range of any native plant varies. If specimens from one region of the habitat are promoted, the genes of that particular population may supplant those of the local population. Subtle genetic differences that aid the plant's survival in other areas of the range may be lost.

Continue reading "The Provenance of Plants"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 12:23 PM

World's Highest Botanical Garden Opens

Category(-ies): Other Botanical Gardens , Plant Conservation

What is believed to be the highest-altitude botanic garden in the world recently opened in Yunnan Province in southern China. The Lijiang Alpine Botanical Garden was built jointly by the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh and the Kunming Plant Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Elevations in the garden range from 2,680 metres to 4,300 metres.

Continue reading "World's Highest Botanical Garden Opens"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 4:14 PM

The Value of Wild Relatives for Domestic Crops

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plants, Food and Medicine

Beloved by gardeners for their big dazzling yellow blooms, sunflowers are also an important oilseed and food crop. Agricultural Research Scientists have been collecting wild Helianthus species since 1976. The specimens are evaluated by the ARS Sunflower Research Unit staff for potential economically important traits before being stored at the ARS National Plant Germplasm System.

Continue reading "The Value of Wild Relatives for Domestic Crops"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 4:30 PM

America’s Pistachio Collection

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plants, Food and Medicine

More than 750 pistachio trees from ten different species and various hybrids are maintained by the Agricultural Research Service at America's official pistachio collection in Davis, California. Although less than a century old, California’s industry is the second largest producer of pistachios in the world.

Continue reading "America’s Pistachio Collection"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 4:03 PM

Respecting the Knowledge of Healers

Category(-ies): Botanical Resources , Plant Conservation , Plant Legal News and Issues , Plants, Food and Medicine

The elders of the Haida Nation, like other indigenous peoples, have a wealth of knowledge about the plants in their environment. This knowledge has been passed down through generations, usually in oral form to specialists within the group. The benefit to the community is their incentive for preserving and administering the knowledge of healing plants.

Continue reading "Respecting the Knowledge of Healers"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 11:12 AM

Botanic Gardens Conservation International in Canada

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) is an organization that promotes the function of botanic gardens in the conservation of plants. In an increasingly urban world, botanic gardens and arboreta are an important resource for educating the public about natural heritage as they can engage the public with their repositories of threatened and endangered plant species.

Continue reading "Botanic Gardens Conservation International in Canada"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 2:08 PM

Is Species Loss Unraveling the Web of Life?

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Life on Earth has been marked by extinction throughout its history, however scientific assessment of current levels of species loss seems to indicate extinction rates much higher than average. Is the Earth experiencing the sixth great wave of extinction? The World Conservation Union, which has assessed species conservation status for 40 years, estimates the current rate of extinction to be at least 100 times the normal rate.

Continue reading "Is Species Loss Unraveling the Web of Life?"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 11:46 AM

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.

Continue reading "The Chain of Extinction"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 7:30 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.

Continue reading "The Highly Coveted Cycad"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 5:34 PM

Conserving the Gene Pool of Flowers

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

The three-year-old Ornamental Plant Germplasm Center (OPGC), in Columbus, Ohio, is one of the few genebanks in the world to focus on preserving flower genes. Floral genetic diversity is being lost as breeders focus on particular traits and natural populations are threatened by development.

Continue reading "Conserving the Gene Pool of Flowers"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 3:14 PM

Celebrate Biodiversity

Category(-ies): Botanical Art , Plant Conservation

Celebrate Biodiversity is a group of biologists seeking to promote conservation of underappreciated species through awareness. The group develops attractive posters showcasing the diversity of organisms that deserve more attention.

Continue reading "Celebrate Biodiversity"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 4:45 PM

Biologists Question Decision to Thin Forest

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plant Legal News and Issues

Biologists are questioning the US Forest Service's decision to thin forests in the Sierra Nevada. The decision is rationalized by the Forest Service asserting that preventing wildfires will save spotted owl habitat. However, the Forest Service's claims of habitat loss due to wildfires appear to be exaggerated.

Continue reading "Biologists Question Decision to Thin Forest"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 10:17 PM

Preserving Agricultural Biodiversity

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plants, Food and Medicine

“Thirty thousand vegetable varieties have become extinct in the last century, and one more is lost every six hours”, according to the Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity.

Continue reading "Preserving Agricultural Biodiversity"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 11:05 AM

Scientists Kidnapped in Colombia

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Two biologists and their guide were kidnapped by The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), in late April. The scientists were conducting a biological survey in an area of northern Columbia to evaluate its potential as a national park when they were captured by the FARC.

Continue reading "Scientists Kidnapped in Colombia"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 10:32 AM

Lost Fuchsia Found

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Paul Marsenac, a plant hunter from Bordeaux, recently rediscovered a fuchsia in Peru thought to have gone extinct. The specimen of Fuchsia summa was brought to the Citrus House, a large Victorian greenhouse at Margam Park in Wales, where scientists from Fuchsia Research International have propagated the rare fuchsia for distribution to botanical gardens around the world.

Continue reading "Lost Fuchsia Found"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 11:15 AM

Pollution Killing Rare Stoneworts

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Stoneworts are considered to be important for understanding the evolutionary origin of land plants. Plantlife International claims nitrate and phospate runoff is threatening to exterminate many of the species found in Britain.

Continue reading "Pollution Killing Rare Stoneworts"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 3:16 PM

New Research on Invasives and Ecological Restoration

Category(-ies): Invasive Plants , Plant Conservation

Ecological and habitat restoration are becoming increasingly significant areas of research as species dwindle due to habitat loss or displacement via invasive species. Researchers will be gathering in Victoria in August to present findings and solutions to the problems of damaged ecosystems and plant invasions at SER2004, the Society for Ecological Restoration International's 16th annual World Conference.

Continue reading "New Research on Invasives and Ecological Restoration"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 2:35 PM

Biological Reserve in Ecuador Threatened by Development

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plant Legal News and Issues

One of the world's most biologically diverse areas, the Maquipucuna Reserve in Ecuador, is threatened by seemingly illegal development. The reserve, referred to as the “inland Galapagos” because of its impressive biodiversity, is home to 4% of bird species on the planet and at least 36 IUCN red-listed orchid species.

Continue reading "Biological Reserve in Ecuador Threatened by Development"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 6:21 PM

The Global Extinction Crisis

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

The latest issue of Science features a study from Thomas et al. entitled “Comparative Losses of British Butterflies, Birds, and Plants and the Global Extinction Crisis”. The results of their research suggest that rates of insect decline parallel or exceed rates of decline in plants and vertebrates. This finding is contrary to popular thought on the subject, which asserted that rates of decline would be higher in groups traditionally known as “higher organisms” (plants and vertebrates).

Continue reading "The Global Extinction Crisis"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 2:45 PM

Fungus causing sudden oak death distributed across US?

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plant Diseases and Pests

The San Francisco Chronicle has reported that spores of Phytophthora ramorum, the fungus that causes sudden oak death, have been discovered at Monrovia Nursery, the largest nursery in California. Monrovia was investigated after being traced as the source of infected camellias distributed to a small Washington state nursery.

Continue reading "Fungus causing sudden oak death distributed across US?"

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 3:13 PM

Anecdotal Evidence of Climate Change

Category(-ies): Climate Change , Other Botanical Gardens , Plant Conservation

The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh has been operating a phenology project in some form for one hundred and fifty years. Trends from the study suggest that plants are flowering earlier than average in recent years.

Continue reading "Anecdotal Evidence of Climate Change"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 12:49 AM

An Appetite for Destruction

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plants, Food and Medicine

The harvesting of fungi, mosses and plants for gourmet food dishes and natural-material crafts is a cause for concern in Britain; unsustainable picking and wasteful practices threaten species and habitats. Some areas in British Columbia have a similar problem, for example with the picking of salal (Gaultheria shallon) for floral greens.

Continue reading "An Appetite for Destruction"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 11:42 PM

Forests of Borneo on the brink

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Three more years. If trends continue, that's the estimate of when all of the lowland forests of Borneo will be stripped bare, including forests within the borders of national parklands. A team of American and Indonesian scientists have analyzed the loss of forests using satellite, GIS and field data from 1987 to 2001 and concluded that forest area declined by more than 56% (over 29000 square kilometers).

Continue reading "Forests of Borneo on the brink"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 9:30 PM

Botanical Electronic News

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Sources of Botanical News

“BEN (Botanical Electronic News) is an electronic newsletter that deals with botany and plant ecology of predominantly British Columbia, Canada and the Pacific Northwest (from California to Alaska) with broader references to planet Earth.”

Continue reading "Botanical Electronic News"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 10:31 PM

Araucariaceae of New Caledonia

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Frequent readers of the questions posed on the UBC Botanical Garden Forums will note that there is a lot of interest in monkey puzzle trees - in fact, “monkey puzzle trees” or some variation on that theme is always in the top ten searches people do to arrive at the garden site using search engines. Monkey puzzle trees, Araucaria araucana, are indeed deserving of people's curiousity - they look exotic, the seeds are edible and they succeed very well in the Vancouver climate.

Continue reading "Araucariaceae of New Caledonia"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 4:39 AM

Global warming and species loss

Category(-ies): Climate Change , Plant Conservation

Published in Nature on January 8, 2004:

Feeling the heat - climate change and biodiversity loss

Continue reading "Global warming and species loss"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 1:54 AM

Medicinal plants threatened

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plants, Food and Medicine

From the BBC: Increasing interest in herbal medicines has led to pressures on natural populations of the plants harvested for the medicines. Unsustainable harvesting techniques, such as uprooting an entire plant instead of taking a few leaves, are increasing the probability that some species may become extinct.

Continue reading "Medicinal plants threatened"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 12:58 AM

Rhododendron uvariifolium

Category(-ies): Other Botanical Gardens , Plant Conservation

From the Glasgow Herald:

The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh is helping to restore natural populations of Rhododendron uvariifolium on Yulong Xue Shan (Jade Dragon Snow Mountain) in Yunnan, China. The wild population of Rhododendron uvariifolium on the mountain has declined in recent years due partially to a cultural practice of women using the flowers as hair adornments, preventing seed set.

Continue reading "Rhododendron uvariifolium"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 1:23 PM

Canadian Heritage Plants

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation , Plants, Food and Medicine

Seeds of Diversity has released its list of "Seedy Saturdays" for 2004. Who is Seeds of Diversity?

From their website:

“Seeds of Diversity is a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to the conservation, documentation and use of public-domain non-hybrid plants of Canadian significance. Our 1700 members from coast to coast are gardeners, farmers, teachers, scientists, agricultural historians, researchers and seed vendors. Together we grow, propagate and distribute over 1500 varieties of vegetables, fruit, grains, flowers and herbs. We are a living gene bank.”

Continue reading "Canadian Heritage Plants"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 2:37 AM

Burns Bog - Finally Preserved?

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

The Federal Government of Canada, the Province of British Columbia, the Greater Vancouver Regional District and the Corporation of Delta are each contributing to an offer of $78.7 million CDN to acquire 5426 acres (2196 hectares) of land to protect and preserve Burns Bog.

Continue reading "Burns Bog - Finally Preserved?"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 1:21 PM

Largest Tree in Australia Killed By Mistake

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

The eucalyptus, known as “El Grande”, was damaged earlier this year when a controlled burn went awry. Located in Tasmania, this individual tree was not the highest, but rather the largest by volume. Forestry Tasmania hoped that it would recover, but now that the Australian spring has passed, it has officially been declared dead.

Continue reading "Largest Tree in Australia Killed By Mistake"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 1:17 AM

The Café Marron Tree

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

From the Kew press release:

“Experts at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew have made a historic breakthrough by producing the first ever recorded fruits of the café marron tree, giving new hope for the survival of this critically endangered plant species.”

Continue reading "The Café Marron Tree"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 4:13 PM

2000 new species added to IUCN Red List of Endangered Species

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

The World Conservation Union has posted its annual Red List of Threatened Species. The number of known threatened species now tops 12 000.

Continue reading "2000 new species added to IUCN Red List of Endangered Species"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 1:43 AM

Tropical fruit conservation receives a boost

Category(-ies): Other Botanical Gardens , Plant Conservation

Fairchild Tropical Garden in Florida has received a 5 million USD donation from Mr. and Mrs. William F. Whitman to endow its Tropical Fruit Garden.

Dr. Mike Maunder, Acting Director of Fairchild, had this to say:

Continue reading "Tropical fruit conservation receives a boost"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 12:21 AM

The Thin Green Line: Plants and the Future of Humanity

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Conservative estimates suggest a loss of one species of life every half-hour. Dr. Quentin Cronk, director of UBC Botanical Garden and Centre for Plant Research addresses the impact of the loss of plant life on humanity in a lecture hosted by the Vancouver Institute.

Continue reading "The Thin Green Line: Plants and the Future of Humanity"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 10:19 PM

Phragmipedium kovachii

Category(-ies): Other Botanical Gardens , Plant Conservation , Plant Legal News and Issues

Named and described in 2002 by researchers at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, this “Holy Grail of the orchid world” is at the centre of controversy and legal issues.

Continue reading "Phragmipedium kovachii"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 3:57 PM | Comments (1)

Burmese Forests Vanishing

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

The pressure on forests in southeast Asia is increasing as a Western lifestyle is adopted and the demand for consumer goods and wood-frame houses increases. Particularly devastating is the condition of forests in Burma (Myanmar). As the current military government is shunned by most international trading partners, Burma only attracts foreign dollars by selling off its natural resources to its neighbours.

Continue reading "Burmese Forests Vanishing"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 9:17 PM

Vanishing Seagrasses

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

Atlas Catalogues Vanishing Seagrasses via Nature

From the article:

"The first global survey of the world's seagrasses reveals the little-known habitats to be widespread but under threat.

Continue reading "Vanishing Seagrasses"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 10:18 PM

Conserving Mosses

Category(-ies): Plant Conservation

UK researchers at RBG Kew have developed a "moss bank" to help save endangered and rare mosses. Small moss samples are sterilized and then frozen in liquid nitrogen. They can then be thawed and used in restoration or reintroduction work.

Continue reading "Conserving Mosses"

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 9:27 PM