EuroGard V Botanic gardens in the age of climate change SUPPLEMENTARY PROCEEDINGS B O T A N I C G A R D E N 3 Ulmus 14 EuroGard V BOTANIC GARDENS IN THE AGE OF CLIMATE CHANGE SUPPLEMENTARY PROCEEDINGS Edited by Leif Schulman, Johan Kotze and Susanna Lehvävirta Layout Eija-Leena Laiho, Seppo Alanko Cover photo Eija-Leena Laiho ISBN: 978-952-10-7738-8 (Paperback) ISBN: 978-952-10-7739-5 (PDF) ISSN: 0782-3851 3 The Botanic Garden – Live Science The Botanic Garden of the University of Helsinki is part of the Finnish Museum of Natural History. Our vision is a world where humans know the life forms with which they share this planet, are informed of their evolution, and have the understanding to appreciate all the diversity of nature. We implement this vision by reinforcing our status as an internationally significant research institution of biodiversity and as a centre of species information. Together with the other botanic gardens and museums of natural history in Finland, we maintain and further compile the Finnish national collections of natural history. The Botanic Garden, founded in Turku in 1678, is the oldest institution in Finland maintaining collections of natural history. In 1829, the Garden, together with the University, moved to Helsinki and was re-established in its present location in Kaisaniemi. Nowadays, the Garden also maintains premises in Kumpula. Ulmus is an occasional series published by the Botanic Garden of the University of Helsinki. It features guide books, teaching material, and other thematic issues. The series was named after one of Finland’s tallest specimens of fluttery elm (Ulmus laevis Pallas), which grew in Kaisaniemi Botanic Garden until 1988. The Ulmus logo was designed by Marja Koistinen. 4 CONTENTS Foreword – Botanic gardens are an invaluable asset in the era of 6 climate change Bavcon: Seed exchange on the basis of Index seminum 8 Stefaniak & Bomanowska: Plant collections in the teaching and 15 experimental botanical garden of the University of Lotz (Poland) Guseva et al.: Collection of apple trees in Moscow University’s 23 Botanical Garden Strode & Roze: Inventory of grassland biotopes of the National 33 Botanic Garden of Latvia – preliminary results Zilinskaite et al.: Ex situ conservation and investigation of 39 rare and endangered plants of Lithuania Menale & Muoio: Ex situ conservation and exhibition of wild food 51 plants of the Campania region at Naples botanical garden (Italy) Volchanskaya & Firsov: Woody plants of the Red Data Book of 56 Russia in Saint-Petersburg Firsov: Peculiarities of the introduction of woody plants in North- 71 Western Russia during the age of climate change Prokhorov et al.: A comparative and statistical analysis of 80 Pinopsida in the collections of Russia’s botanic gardens, under varying climatic conditions. 5 BOTANIC GARDENS ARE AN INVALUABLE ASSET IN THE ERA OF CLIMATE CHANGE Botanic gardens have knowledge and skills and Europe. He notes that this traditional activity run activities that help in our understanding of is importnat to strenghten the more recently nature, in conserving species and in informing commenced conservation work of the collection the public on issues related to climate change. In institutions when seeds are collected in the order to review the work and expertises gained wild and data on origin are carefully recorded. by botanic gardens, the Fifth European Botanic Carefully recorded collecting can produce Gardens Congress ‘EuroGardV’ was charged to valuable seed material for ex situ conservation bring to light current important scientific, policy, and projects carrying out ecological restoration and educational topics. One of the key aims of or assisted migration trials. Stefaniak and the congress was to bring climate change to the Bomanovska (p. 15) demonstrate how even fore and further develop the activities of botanic small and relatively recently established gardens gardens to counteract risks concerning loss of can make important contributions to local public plant diversity. education and to conservation work; for instance, EuroGardV – Botanic Gardens in the as in the case of the Teaching and Experimental Age of Climate Change, was organised by the Botanical Garden of the University of Lodz, European Consortium of Botanic Gardens by participating in monitoring of endangered (ECBG), Botanic Gardens Conservation plants. Guseva and colleagues (p. 23), with their International (BGCI), and the Helsinki example of apple tree collections in Moscow University Botanic Garden in Helsinki in June State University’s Botanical Garden, elucidate 2009. In all, 127 papers, including nine keynote how building up a collection combining wild lectures, were presented at the congress and species and cultivars provides benefits for the seven workshops were arranged (Lehvävirta et al. conservation of the widest possible intra-generic 2009). genetic diversity and, very importantly, for the The first part of the proceedings of sustainable utilisation of biodiversity. EuroGardV was published as a Special Issue of For botanic gardens that are custodians Biodiversity and Conservation (Vol. 20, no. 2, of large tracts of land it is also possible to make 2011). A selection of 16 papers appeared together contributions to in situ conservation within with a summarising introduction by Schulman their own boundaries. Cultural biotopes may be and Lehvävirta (2011). This peer-reviewed especially relevant in this context, as in the case volume of Ulmus represents a supplementary of the National Botanic Garden of Latvia taking proceedings of the congress. Here we have part in grassland conservation, as reported by the privilege of complementing the previous Strode and Roze (p. 33). selection with nine additional papers by 24 Ex situ conservation of plants is not authors. This collection further emphasises the just a matter of straightforward collecting but diversity of activities run by botanic gardens research on germination methods is also needed. throughout Europe and beyond. Furthermore, Zilinskaite and colleagues (p. 39) describe this it is clear that all the core functions of botanic kind of work done at the Botanical Garden of gardens – curation of scientific plant collections, Vilnius University. They also show how the research, conservation, education and display garden can make a direct link between research, – may, by enhancing our knowledge and conservation, and the utilisation of plants, in disseminating information to society, have a their case e.g. for amenity horticulture. But this direct bearing on climate change adaptation. link can in botanic gardens also be made for Bavcon (p. 8) reviews the history of edible wild plants, as Menale and Muoio (p. seed exchange between the University Botanic 51) demonstarte in their report from Naples Gardens Ljubljana and other botanic gardens in Botanical Garden in Italy. They also show how 6 traditional knowledge on plant use has been gardens around the world will be better heard gathered and utilised for building educative and their expertise efficiently used to mitigate displays. Such combined efforts to study and climate change impacts. save both biological and cultural diversity are invaluable and should be further encouraged. Helsinki, January 2012 Volchanskaya and Firsov (p. 56) describe how large and continuously replenished Leif Schulman, Johan Kotze and Susanna collections of botanic gardens, when carefully Lehvävirta documented and regularly monitored, can be particularly valuable for identifying plant Contact details: Finnish Museum of Natural responses to climate change. Firsov (p. 70) History, P.O.Box 17, FI-00014 University of continues by explaining how such monitoring Helsinki, Finland. in the St. Petersburg region tells us not only that previously tender plants now survive winters but Email: [email protected] also that previously hardy species have started to show frost damage due to early spring growth. Acknowledgments Very similar trends have been observed in the two botanic gardens of the Finnish Museum of We thank all authors for their valuable Natural History in Helsinki (L. Schulman, pers. contributions, the numerous reviewers for obs.). generously providing their time and expertise for The volume is concluded by Prokhorov further strengthening the papers, and Ms. and colleagues (p. 80) who demonstrate the Eija-Leena Laiho for an excellent layout design value of comprehensive collection databases and page settings. We are grateful to all the and integrated information systems. In addition sponsors of the EuroGardV congress (listed at to various analyses on collection diversity in www.luomus.fi/eurogardv), without which this relation to climatic parameters, such systems volume would not have been possible. provide opportunities to develop nation-wide collection policies so as to create the most References representative national collections. For climate change adaptation and the rescue of plant Lehvävirta S, Aplin D, Schulman L (eds) (2009) biodiversity, however, such approaches should EuroGard V, botanic gardens in the age of not be limited by national borders but should climate change – programme, abstracts, and preferably be applied to whole bioclimatic delegates. Ulmus 13:1-178 regions, both old and predicted new ones. Schulman L, Lehvävirta S (2011) Botanic gardens We hope that the proceedings of the in the age of climate change. Biod Cons 20: EuroGardV congress help to make it clear to 217-220 a wide audience that botanic gardens have a considerable value as assets in our work