BG joJournal of Botuanic Gardens Cronservatinon Internationaal l Volume 6 • Number 1 • January 2009 Ecological restoration and the role of botanic gardens Contents 02 Guest editorial Editors : Suzanne Sharrock and Sara Oldfield 03 Botanic gardens in the age of restoration Cover Photo : Foreground: native highland forest remnant; background: grassland vegetation following deforestation and continued ‘slash and burn’ practice. 06 The Connect to Protect Network: Botanic gardens working to Northwest of Antananarivo, Madagascar. (BGCI). restore habitats and conserve rare species Design : John Morgan, Seascape E-mail: [email protected] 10 Botanic gardens: meeting the restoration challenge with critically endangered plants - a case history, Symonanthus BGjournal is published by Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) . It is published twice a year and is bancroftii (Solanaceae) sent to all BGCI members. Membership is open to all interested individuals, institutions and organisations that support the aims of BGCI (see inside back cover for 13 Restoring valuable spekboomveld using the international Membership application form). carbon market Further details available from: 16 Inter situ conservation: Opening a “third front” in the battle to • Botanic Gardens Conservation International, Descanso save rare Hawaiian plants House, 199 Kew Road, Richmond, Surrey TW9 3BW UK. Tel: +44 (0)20 8332 5953, Fax: +44 (0)20 8332 5956 E-mail: [email protected], www.bgci.org 20 The Silesian Botanical Garden as a natural habitat garden • BGCI-Russia, c/o Main Botanical Gardens, Botanicheskaya st., 4, Moscow 127276, Russia. Tel: +7 (095) 219 6160 / 5377, Fax: +7 (095) 218 0525, 23 Reintroduction of threatened plant species in Russia E-mail: [email protected], www.bgci.ru • BGCI-Netherlands, c/o Delft University of Technology Julianalaan 67, NL-2628 BC Delft, Netherlands 27 Short communication: Restoring threatened plants of the Amazon Tel: +31 15 278 4714 Fax: +31 15 278 2355 E-mail: [email protected] www.botanischetuin.tudelft.nl 28 Notice: The Highgrove Florilegium • BGCI-Canarias, c/o Jardín Botánico Canario Viera y Clavijo, Apartado de Correos 14, Tafira Alta 35017, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Gran Canaria, Spain. 30 Resources Tel: +34 928 21 95 80/82/83, Fax: +34 928 21 95 81, E-mail: [email protected] • BGCI- China, 723 Xingke Rd., Guangzhou 510650 China. 32 International Agenda for Botanic Gardens in Conservation Tel:(86)20-37252692. email: [email protected] Registration Form www.bgci.org/china • BGCI – South East Asia, c/o Registry, Singapore Botanic Gardens, 1 Cluny Road, Singapore 259569. E-mail: [email protected], • BGCI-Colombia, c/o Jardín Botánico de Bogotá, Jose Celestino Mutis, Av. No. 61-13 – A.A. 59887, 03 Santa Fe de Bogotá, D.C., Colombia. Tel: +57 630 0949, Fax: +57 630 5075, E-mail: [email protected], www.humboldt.org.co/jardinesdecolombia/html/la_red.htm • BGCI-Deutschland, c/o Botanische Gärten der Universität Bonn, Meckenheimer Allee 171, 53115 Bonn, Germany. Tel: +49 2 2873 9055, Fax: +49 2 28731690, E-mail: [email protected] • BGCI(US) Inc, c/o Chicago Botanic Garden, 1000 Lake Cook Road, Glencoe, Illinois 60022, USA. E-mail: [email protected], www.bgci.org/usa BGCI is a worldwide membership organisation established 06 in 1987. Its mission is to mobilise botanic gardens and engage partners in securing plant diversity for the well- being of people and the planet . BGCI is an independent 13 organisation registered in the United Kingdom as a charity (Charity Reg No 1098834) and a company limited by guarantee, No 4673175. BGCI is a tax-exempt (501(c)(3) non-profit organisation in the USA and is a registered non-profit organisation in Russia. Opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the Boards or staff of BGCI or of its members 10 16 23 20 BGjournal • Vol 6 (1) 01 Guest editorial Botanic gardens have long played a gardens also commonly employ a wide crucial role in documenting plant range of horticultural techniques, from diversity and supporting efforts to large-scale irrigation and weed control protect it. Now, in the face of to the precision art of accelerating climate change and loss micropropagation, and staff members of biodiversity, it is clear that repair and are well used to dealing with the restoration of damaged plant diverse whims of the many species in includes an impressive range and communities is needed more than ever their living collections – all experience diversity of plant-related data before. With the unique combination which could prove valuable in restoring generated through years of research of scientific and practical plant-based complex plant communities. and practice - an invaluable resource skills in botanic gardens, they are which can support the emerging ideally placed to support a new surge Restoration may be a slow process science of restoration ecology. in restoration science and and research in this area calls for a However, there is an urgent need to management. commitment to research-based collate and share this information monitoring associated with adaptive throughout the global network – a clear An international workshop was held at management over considerable role for BGCI - which links botanic the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew in periods. Many botanic gardens can gardens worldwide and maintains June 2008 to identify the ways in which offer the level of stability and long term global databases covering the work of botanic gardens could do more to commitment required to undertake botanic gardens and their plant support the science of ecological such a task, as well as having the collections. restoration. The following important necessary botanical skills. areas were among those identified. If they are to assume an important role Unlike most other research institutions, in restoration, the worldwide coverage A thorough understanding of the plant botanic gardens have their own of botanic gardens should be a communities proposed for restoration estates, which will sometimes cover a strength. At a practical level, The is an essential starting point – their range of habitats. This gives them the Millennium Seed Bank Project provides species and genetic composition, how potential to carry out, experiment with a strong model of a cohesive network, they function ecologically and how they or demonstrate various restoration involving partners in many countries are likely to adapt to future climate techniques. The potential to show around the world. We now need to change. The historical specimens and restoration in action is particularly build on this and to enhance the bonds records safeguarded by most botanic exciting, offering the chance to inspire of commitment and cooperation gardens, along with leading expertise visitors to adopt methods they have throughout BGCI’s global botanic in botany, conservation genetics and seen. garden network. We need to agree on computer modelling, can help to strategic priorities where the science of generate this vital information. On the Botanic gardens are globally dispersed, restoration ecology would be most practical side, increasing numbers of representing a broad spectrum of usefully applied to achieve maximum botanic gardens are now augmenting regions and floras. They have proven benefit for all. their living collections with seed banks, skills in the long term storage of while developing storage, handling and diverse data, with specimen and Kate A. Hardwick and germination protocols to enable the collection records accumulated over Stephen D. Hopper seeds to be put to use. Botanic centuries. Their information base also Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, UK. 02 BGCI • 2009 • BGjournal • Vol 6 (1) • 02 Authors: Kingsley Dixon and Suzanne Sharrock Botanic gardens in the age of restoration Introduction the Parties to the CBD in April 2002, strengthening botanic gardens’ Storm Cunningham’s latest book, connections globally. The GSPC provocatively entitled reWealth includes 16 outcome-oriented targets (McGrawHill), presents global to be met by 2010 and Target 8 restoration as a $2 trillion global focuses on ex situ conservation and industry. His mantra is that we can no restoration. This target provided longer exploit the planet in the belief botanic gardens for the first time with a that there is an inexhaustible supply of united vision – avert plant extinction natural resources and that restoration through ex situ conservation. of our natural capital assets (as well as Seedbanks, tissue culture, cryogenics the built and social capital of human and DNA fingerprinting emerged as societies) is critical if the planet is to be charismatic technologies employed to sustained. The question remains as to save species. just how well botanic gardens are seizing the opportunity to be an effective and integral part of the global GSPC Target 8: 60 per cent of restoration challenge? threatened plant species in accessible ex situ collections, preferably in the Building a common vision country of origin, and 10 per cent of on plants in cultivation in botanic Above: them included in recovery and gardens, and links this information to For many For the past three decades or so, restoration programmes. threatened plant databases. At least species such botanic gardens have been on a 12,000 globally threatened species are as Grevillea journey of discovery. The journey was maintained in botanic garden pythara now a response to a world call-to-arms Today, the world’s 2,500 botanic collections and some