Botanic gardens and urban biodiversity...02 04 08 11 15 19 23 26 28 31 32 Contents Editors: Suzanne...

Botanic gardensand urban

biodiversity

BGjournalJournal of Botanic Gardens Conservation International

Volume 5 • Number 2 • July 2008

02

04

081115192326

2831

32

Contents

Editors: Suzanne Sharrock and Sara Oldfield

Cover Photo: Hoary plantain (Plantago media)inflorescence in a meadow in Germany.(A. Jagel / Still Pictures)

Design: John Morgan, SeascapeE-mail: [email protected]

BGjournal is published by Botanic Gardens ConservationInternational (BGCI). It is published twice a year and issent to all BGCI members. Membership is open to allinterested individuals, institutions and organisations thatsupport the aims of BGCI (see inside back cover forMembership application form).

Further details available from:

• Botanic Gardens Conservation International, DescansoHouse, 199 Kew Road, Richmond, Surrey TW9 3BWUK. Tel: +44 (0)20 8332 5953, Fax: +44 (0)20 8332 5956E-mail: [email protected], www.bgci.org

• BGCI-Russia, c/o Main Botanical Gardens,Botanicheskaya st., 4, Moscow 127276, Russia.Tel: +7 (095) 219 6160 / 5377, Fax: +7 (095) 218 0525,E-mail: [email protected], www.bgci.ru

• BGCI-Netherlands, c/o Delft University of TechnologyJulianalaan 67, NL-2628 BC Delft, NetherlandsTel: +31 15 278 4714 Fax: +31 15 278 2355E-mail: [email protected]

• BGCI-Canarias, c/o Jardín Botánico Canario Viera yClavijo, Apartado de Correos 14, Tafira Alta 35017,Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Gran Canaria, Spain.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.Tel:(86)20-37252692. email: [email protected]/china

• BGCI – South East Asia, c/o Registry, Singapore BotanicGardens, 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,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 derUniversität 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 establishedin 1987. Its mission is to mobilise botanic gardens andengage partners in securing plant diversity for the well-being of people and the planet. BGCI is an independentorganisation registered in the United Kingdom as a charity(Charity Reg No 1098834) and a company limited byguarantee, No 4673175. BGCI is a tax-exempt (501(c)(3)non-profit organisation in the USA and is a registerednon-profit organisation in Russia.

Opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarilyreflect the views of the Boards or staff of BGCI or of itsmembers

Editorial – Urban botanic gardens – benefiting people andbiodiversity

National Botanical Gardens: South Africa’s urban conservationrefuges

Plant conservation in New York City

Biodiversity conservation in Singapore

Diversity in amenity planting

The importance of botanic gardens in Chinese cities

Nature walks for conservation and awareness in Mauritius

Short communicationPropagation and cultivation of Sakura (Prunus sargentii) in theMain Botanic Gardens, Russian Academy of Sciences

Resources

International Agenda for Botanic Gardens in ConservationRegistration Form

How to join Botanic Gardens Conservation International

BGjournal• Vol 5 (2) 01

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Editorial – Urban botanic gardens –benefiting people and biodiversity

BGCI • 2008 • BGjournal• Vol 5 (2) • 02-0302

destinations often visit botanic gardensas their first port of call. Leafletshighlighting the resident and migratorybirds are produced by various botanicgardens, with recent examples beingthose produced by Caracas andSingapore botanic gardens.Bird conservation, has a massive,largely urban, support base in Europeand the US. Perhaps botanic gardenscan help channel some of this interestinto support for the less popularconservation of rare and threatenedplants.

Combining urban recreational andbiodiversity conservation needs is asuccess in many parts of the world andis something that is increasinglyimportant in China with its rapidlyurbanising population as described inXiangying Wen’s paper. One approachthat has worked well for linkingrecreation and conservation isdescribed in the paper on nature walksfor conservation awareness inMauritius. This shows how developingan area of degraded forest close to thecity centre can provide an essential linkfor the urban dwellers with the remnantnatural vegetation of the country.Providing appropriate interpretationand links with schools joins up thenatural world with the everyday livesof people.

Interpreting and demonstrating theelements of nature is one of thecommon tasks of botanic gardens.The potential to build on these tasksand influence people’s lives isenormous. With general ecological

the surrounding natural environment.The natural areas provide valuablebiodiversity corridors and landscapelinkages for the movement of animalsinto and out of the gardens. ProfessorChin’s paper explains how in Singapore,as in South Africa, the Botanic Gardensplay an integral role in biodiversityconservation for the country as a wholelinking administratively to the work ofnational parks and other protectedareas. In both Singapore and SouthAfrica the targets of the GSPC helpguide plant conservation in anintegrated fashion, incorporating in situand ex situ aspects and the wideinvolvement of people.

The biodiversity found within citiesgenerally can be overlooked but is ahugely important natural asset.Singapore, a densely populated smallisland city-state with 4.4 million peopleis in one of the most biodiverse regionsof the world. Even the metropolitanregion of New York with over 20 millionpeople has a rich diversity of plantspecies as highlighted by StevenClemants’ article. Studying thisbiodiversity and involving local people inits care is clearly important. Over 70botanic gardens recorded in BGCI’sGardenSearch database are involved inresearch on biodiversity in urbanenvironments. At least 200 botanicgardens maintain areas of naturalvegetation within their grounds and thusdirectly conserve the local diversity.

The fauna associated with botanicgardens is often an attraction in its ownright. Bird watchers travelling to new

Over half the world’s people live inurban areas. Increasingly cut off fromthe countryside how will theirexperiences of nature be shaped?Urban green spaces provide anincreasingly important opportunity forpeople to connect with the naturalworld. Botanic gardens, generallylocated within cities, offer opportunitiesfor people to enjoy and learn about awide range of plant diversity - bothnative and exotic, wild and managedand to benefit from the relaxation andsense of well-being that botanicgardens - as a form of green space -provide. They form part of the spectrumfrom areas of natural vegetation throughto sports grounds that are all managedas part of city ecosystems.

Botanic gardens attract a wide range ofpeople from academic botanists, artistsand city office workers enjoying a lunchbreak, to school children enjoying anopen air classroom. It is not only plantenthusiasts that make a beeline forbotanic gardens. This issue ofBGjournal highlights the range of naturalbenefits that botanic gardens provide inan urban setting - both for people andfor biodiversity.

Botanic gardens are rarely isolatedentities but connect ecologically,culturally and socially with thesurrounding locality and people.The article by Christopher Willis andAugustine Morkel highlights how someof the National Botanic Gardens inSouth Africa, even in urban areas, lieadjacent to natural habitats providingconnectivity between urban centres and

Opposite: Inner

city children

enjoying nature

in Sao Paulo

Botanic Garden

(Brent Stirton /

Getty Images /

WWF-UK)


awareness gaining ground, growing agarden is increasingly seen as thesingle most ‘green’ thing that peoplecan do. However, collectively makingthe link between caring for gardenplants, the conservation of plants intheir natural habitats and thefundamental importance of plants at atime of rapid global change, is a majorchallenge when people’s lives aregenerally divorced from the naturalworld. Botanic gardens are well-placedto take on this challenge and this willbe a developing theme for the workof BGCI.

How can we engage more people inthe common cause of plantconservation which is still too oftenviewed as a specialist, scientific task?BGCI’s recent report Plants andClimate Change: which future sets outto act as a baseline for making theconnections and from this we plan todevelop an on-line information service,together with public awareness andeducational materials that link the bigthemes relating to plants. Where betterto deliver the messages about plantsthan in our major cities and through theglobal botanic garden network. I wouldbe delighted to learn more aboutsuccessful initiatives undertaken bybotanic gardens that engage peopledirectly in plant conservation. Pleasedo share your experiences so that wecan encourage more people toappreciate and become involved incaring for the world’s plants.

Sara OldfieldSecretary General, BGCI

Above: Many of

the animals that

occur in South

Africa’s NBGs,

such as the

South African

Hedgehog, are

nocturnal and

normally not

seen by visitors

(Sharon

Willcock)

Opposite:

Orange-

breasted

Sunbird feeding

on the flowers

of Erica

verticillata in

Kirstenbosch

NBG. While not

threatened, it is

adversely

affected by

invasion of alien

woody plants

(Mark

Anderson)

National Botanical Gardens: SouthAfrica’s urban conservation refuges

Authors: Christopher Willis and Augustine Morkel


SANBI: the biodiversitychallenge

The formation of the South AfricanNational Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) inSeptember 2004 through theproclamation of the NationalEnvironmental Management:Biodiversity Act (NEMBA) provided theideal opportunity to showcase the totalbiological diversity held within SouthAfrica’s NBGs. However, sinceKirstenbosch was established in 1913,the organisation’s main focus has beenon studying, documenting andconserving South Africa’s indigenousplants. There are therefore many gapsin our knowledge and understanding ofthe faunal diversity conserved in ourgardens. While in most cases there is afairly comprehensive understanding ofthe avian diversity in the NBGs, ourknowledge of the lesser known, andvery often less visible, groups, such asinsects, reptiles, amphibians and evenmammals is still very restricted. Clearly,there are many opportunities forindividuals to further study anddocument the faunal diversityassociated with South Africa’s NBGs.

Interpretation and courses

Although our knowledge of thegardens’ faunal diversity is still at anembryonic stage, South Africa’s NBGshave, for many years, been describingthe interactions and dependenciesbetween plants, people and animalsthrough interpretive signage displayedin the gardens. This has been extended

adjacent to the Table Mountain NationalPark) and nature reserves (Harold PorterNBG adjacent to the Kogelberg NatureReserve). In 2008, when the new gardenin Nieuwoudtville was launched, SANBIestablished its first Nature or WildGarden, with the aim of conserving anetwork of sites containingrepresentative portions of indigenousvegetation unique to the BokkeveldPlateau. This Garden faces its ownunique challenges in that it is located ina predominantly agricultural area wheresheep, wheat and rooibos tea are themain farming products.

South Africa’s nine NBGs are currentlyspread across six provinces, and includeover 7,000 ha of natural vegetation,ranging from savanna bushveld,highveld grassland to subtropical forest,mountain, coastal and renosterveldfynbos to arid succulent karroidvegetation. Based on a preliminaryreview of living collections in SouthAfrica’s NBGs, it has been estimatedthat the gardens together house some8,500 indigenous plant species, 43% ofSouth Africa’s 19,581 indigenousspecies. The number of indigenous planttaxa per garden ranges between 350 inthe Free State NBG to 5,506 inKirstenbosch NBG (28% of SouthAfrica’s indigenous species). SANBI’sgardens attract over 1.25 million visitorsper year and, while the visitors to mostgardens are largely local, Kirstenbosch inparticular receives a significant portion(21%) of visitors as part of organisedtour groups, both national andinternational.

Introduction

South Africa’s National BotanicalGardens (NBGs) mean different things todifferent people. Traditionally, botanicalgardens, as their name implies, havebeen viewed primarily through abotanical filter. Indeed, Botanic GardensConservation International (BGCI) hasdefined botanical gardens as ‘institutionsholding documented collections of livingplants for the purposes of scientificresearch, conservation, display andeducation’. There is, however, muchmore to botanical gardens, particularlyin South Africa, where all NBGs areclassified as ‘conservation gardens’,each including an area of naturalindigenous vegetation (with itsassociated wealth of biodiversity andbiological interactions) as well ascultivated collections.

Up until 2007, SANBI managed eighturban-based NBGs mostly located inlarge towns or cities and bordered inpart by urban and peri-urbandevelopments that include roads,townhouse complexes and individualhouseholds as well as protected areassuch as national parks (Kirstenbosch

04

Left:

Resident

Verreaux’s

(Black) Eagles

are an

important

tourist

attraction and

play a valuable

ecological role

in the Walter

Sisulu NBG (G.

Heydenrych)

Above:

Dwarf

Mongooses

(Helogale

parvula) are

frequently seen

in the Lowveld

NBG. These

small mammals

are diurnal and

live in packs of

up to 30 in

permanent

holes, usually in

termitaria.

(Mark

Anderson)

BGjournal• Vol 5 (2)

South Africa’s NBGs house animpressive diversity of plants andanimals, and it is only through regularinventory and monitoring of biodiversityand habitats in the gardens that we canevaluate the effectiveness ofmanagement interventions. Probablythe most challenging part of managingNBGs is balancing human values andneeds with ecosystem processes.The value of collaboration andpartnerships in the management ofSouth Africa’s NBGs cannot beunderestimated, and if we are to besuccessful in our management of thebiodiversity within our gardens, therehas to be close co-operation, facilitatedby Garden Curators and theirmanagement teams, with local andprovincial conservation agencies,universities, museums, natural historysocieties and volunteers. By sharingresources between agencies throughpartnerships and collaborative projects,funds and resources can be leveragedto achieve mutual conservationobjectives.

Biannual biomonitoring of the CrocodileRiver that runs through the Walter SisuluNBG has been conducted over the pastfew years. Results from surveysconducted have shown that the qualityof the water improves as it flows thoughthe Walter Sisulu NBG, with the Gardenhaving a positive effect on the biologicalintegrity of the river reach under SANBI’smanagement. Some 21 familyrepresentatives of aquatic macro-invertebrate taxa were recorded in thesection of river that flows through theGarden. The Kitso-Ecocentre at theentrance of the Garden has aninteresting live display of some of SouthAfrica’s indigenous fish. Natural historycourses on a range of biodiversity topicshave been arranged and hosted byseveral gardens and have proven verypopular amongst members of the public.

to general visitors through guided toursand to learners through formaleducational programmes presented inthe gardens. Several gardens offerweekend talks and specialised naturalhistory courses, and visitors areencouraged to make use of theopportunities that are provided to learnmore about biological diversity presentin and outside our NBGs.

Surveys and monitoring

Most of the available information on thebiodiversity conserved in South Africa’sNBGs has come from observations andad hoc surveys completed by universitystaff and students, museums, andnatural history societies and clubs.In recent years, natural historysocieties, museums and universitieshave been encouraged to monitor andsurvey the biodiversity within SANBI’sconservation gardens. Faunal groupssurveyed have included birds,mammals, spiders, scorpions, bats aswell as a range of insect groups (fromdragonflies and damselflies tobutterflies). In the Walter Sisulu NBG,where a world-renowned resident pairof Verreaux’s (Black) Eagles nests onthe cliffs of the Witpoortjie Waterfall onthe perennial Crocodile River, thebreeding behaviour and movements ofthe eagles are regularly monitored byvolunteers attached to the Black EagleProject Roodekrans, a non-profitorganisation dedicated to ensuring theirsurvival.

05

Biodiversity havens

SANBI’s NBGs are home to a range ofthreatened and endemic fauna, fromthe endemic and Critically EndangeredTable Mountain Ghost Frog, found onlyalong forest streams on Table Mountainabove Kirstenbosch, to the MaricoBarb, a threatened indigenous fishfound as recently as November 2007 inthe Crocodile River that flows throughthe Walter Sisulu NBG in Roodepoort/Mogale City. South Africa’s NBGs ingeneral serve an important role asrefuges for many invertebrate taxa.A recent study conducted by theDepartment of Conservation Ecologyand Entomology of StellenboschUniversity has indicated that youngforests and Kirstenbosch’s cultivatedgardens show the highest ground-livingand flying invertebrate diversity onTable Mountain.

Studies in the KwaZulu-Natal NBG,where 120 butterfly species have beenrecorded, have shown that theKwaZulu-Natal NBG is important notonly for introducing butterflyconservation to the general public, butalso acts as a valuable refuge for manybutterfly species in the urbanised areaof Pietermaritzburg. Surveys completedin the Garden by staff and students ofthe University of KwaZulu-Natal

Right: Darting

Cruiser

(Phyllomacromia

picta) in the

Lowveld NBG.

Its range extends

from the

southwestern

Cape northwards

to East and

West Africa

(Christopher

Willis)

Right: Scorpion

talks in SANBI’s

NBGs are

always popular

events (Lou-

Nita le Roux)

Right: Tree

Workshop in

the Pretoria

NBG (Linette

Ferreira)


various mammals in the gardensconcerned. This policy will ultimately beextended to all NBGs as theconservation role of South Africa’sNBGs in rapidly expanding urbancentres becomes more important andvaluable. One of the advantages ofSANBI’s gardens is that not all thegardens are functionally isolated but lieadjacent to natural habitats of varyingsizes, providing connectivity betweenthe gardens and their surroundingenvironment as well as valuablebiodiversity corridors and landscapelinkages for the movement of animalsinto and out of the gardens.

Management challenges

NBGs are managed with the aim ofmaximising their biodiversity display,conservation, education and researchfunctions. While the natural areas of thegardens perform important roles asrefuges for many different animals andplant species, these areas, with theexception of the Hantam NBG inNieuwoudtville (which comprises 6,200ha and is mainly a natural or wildgarden), are relatively small comparedwith many other nature reserves andnational parks. There are also, in mostcases, no large natural predators (e.g.large cats, pythons, raptors) to controlpopulations of some species. Thisrequires management intervention tokeep some kind of balance. Forexample, the population of RockHyraxes in the Pretoria NBG has grownsignificantly over the past few yearsbecause of the absence of their naturalpredators, Verreaux’s Eagles, from theeastern suburbs of Pretoria. In

culminated in a dedicated Damselflyand Dragonfly Trail being developedinside the Garden in 2000. Repeatedsurveys conducted along the trail overa three-year period have indicated thatfrom a list of 36 species (21 dragonfliesand 15 damselflies) there are 24 ‘coreresident species’ that can be seen alongthe trail in the various habitats fromJanuary to May. It is possible therefore,on occasion, to account for all 24 duringa single visit during this peak period.Academics from the University ofKwaZulu-Natal have stated that‘botanical gardens are inherentlyvaluable for drawing public attention toinvertebrates, especially dragonflieswhich, like butterflies, have iconicvalue….to provide optimal conditionsfor a wide range of observable species,it is essential to maintain the naturalheterogeneity of vegetation alongreservoir and stream margins….removalof marginal vegetation for aesthetics ora sense of tidiness, can reduce localspecies diversity and abundance.’

The banning of dogs from severalNBGs has resulted in a significantincrease in the number and visibility of

06


References

�Honig, M., 2000. Making yourgarden come alive!—Environmentalinterpretation in botanical gardens.Southern African Botanical DiversityNetwork Report No. 9. SABONET,Pretoria, South Africa. 92 pp.

�Willis, C.K., 2005. National BotanicalGardens: embassies of SouthAfrica’s biodiversity and culture.BGjournal 2(2): 9-12.

�Willis, C.K., 2006. SANBI:Institutional response toimplementing the InternationalAgenda. BGjournal 3(1): 11-13.

�Willis, C.K. & Huntley, B.J., 2004.Establishing National BotanicalGardens in South Africa. SABONETNews 9(1): 5-13.

�Willis, C.K. & Morkel, A.T., 2007.National Botanical Gardens: havensof biodiversity. Supplement to: Veld& Flora 93(4). Published by BotanicalSociety of South Africa and SANBI.

Christopher Willis,Chief Director: ConservationGardens & Tourism,SANBI, Private Bag X101,Pretoria 0001, South Africa.Tel.: +27 (0)12 843 5200E-mail: [email protected]: www.sanbi.org

Augustine Morkel,Estate Manager, KirstenboschNational Botanical Garden,Private Bag X7, Claremont 7735,South Africa.Tel.: +27 (0)21 799 8761E-mail: [email protected]

Biodiversity managementsystems

With the promulgation of the NEMBA in2004, SANBI has renewed its focus onthe conservation of all forms of life in itsNBGs, with the ultimate aim thatbiodiversity and ecological processeswithin the boundaries of the Gardenswill be conserved for both present andfuture generations. The effectivemanagement of the biodiversity housedwithin South Africa’s NBGs requires thedevelopment of biodiversity informationmanagement systems that includedatabases, threatened statuscategorisation, annual indicatorsurveys, preparation of GIS maps andsignificant research projects. A needexists to consolidate and standardise adynamic biodiversity informationsystem, linked to horticulturaldatabases, for South Africa’s NBGs.There is also a need to be able todocument and evaluate theconservation effectiveness of gardenmanagement practices, using indicatorssuch as land alteration, edge effect,riparian buffers, spatial configurationand connectivity, effectiveness of landmanagement for ecologicalconservation and effectiveness ofrestoration efforts.

Conclusion

SANBI’s ultimate aim is to conserveand celebrate biodiversity and educatemembers of the public about its valueand importance, both inside andoutside the boundaries of SouthAfrica’s NBGs. The underlyingassumption is that people with moreexposure to nature are more interestedin conserving it. It has been shown thatdirect experience with the naturalworld, especially during childhood,appears to be the most importantsource of environmental sensitivity.As human populations shift to cities,people will experience nature primarilythrough contact with urban nature. If itis true that conservation willincreasingly depend on the ability ofpeople in cities to maintain aconnection with nature, then SouthAfrica’s NBGs as urban refuges forbiodiversity, and places that allowpeople to connect with natural habitatsand ecosystems, will becomeincreasingly more valuable for futuregenerations.

collaboration with Tshwane NatureConservation, a relocation programmewas initiated by which hyraxes weretrapped in cages and then released inother nature reserves in and aroundPretoria. Since the project started,82 hyraxes have been captured andrelocated to the Groenkloof andWonderboom Nature Reserves.Other challenges include theintroduction of feral animals (such ascats and dogs) or the introduction ofrabbits by some members of the publicwho may unfortunately mistakenlyperceive NBGs as places of refuge fortheir unwanted pets and associatedlitters. Domination by certainnaturalised birds, such as the Common(Indian) Myna, can also causedisturbance to the natural populationsof birds in certain gardens; they alsocompete with indigenous birds andmammals for nesting cavities. CommonMynas have now become a pest inmany urban areas in South Africa,particularly in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal. They are now considered by theWorld Conservation Union (IUCN) asone of the world’s 100 worst invasivespecies and do not warrant protection.Mynas compete aggressively with manyindigenous species and tend to replacethem in areas where Myna populationsare well established. Other alienspecies that are a potential threat toSouth Africa because of theiraggression towards indigenous speciesinclude the House Crow and theCommon (European) Starling.Maintaining a cultivated garden inassociation with wildlife can also befrustrating, particularly when certainmammals take a preference to plantsthat horticulturists are attempting tocultivate and display for visitors. Thisincludes the activities of cane rats,moles, baboons and porcupines inseveral gardens, as well as the effect ofalien invasive grey squirrels onstrelitzias cultivated for their seed inKirstenbosch.

07

Above:

Grysbok have

become more

visible in the

Kirstenbosch

NBG over the

past few years

(Alice Notten)

Left:

The Table

Mountain

Beauty or

Mountain Pride

(Aeropetes

tulbaghia) is the

only known

pollinator of the

Red Disa (Disa

uniflora), but it

also visits other

flowers as seen

here (Alice

Notten)

“Abandon hope,all ye who enter here.”

Dante’s Divine Comedy

The immortal words over the gates ofhell might also signify the thoughts ofmany who consider plant conservationin major urban areas. Why try? Surelythere is no hope? For the past twodecades Brooklyn Botanic Garden(BBG) has entered this realm and foundit hopeful and rewarding. Conservationin urban areas involves much morethan habitat or population preservation.The changes to the urban environmentare profound and far-reaching. Theyinclude changes to the climate, air,soils, and water. Withoutunderstanding these changes anddeveloping ways of overcoming oradapting to them it might indeed seemhopeless.

Brooklyn Botanic Garden is uniquelysituated to act as a centre for plant

conservation in the New York City area.Its scientists have long studied theflora of the region, and it possessesthe first native flora garden in thecountry, where plants that grow nativewithin 100 miles of the city arepresented. Furthermore, and mostimportantly, the garden is located inthe centre of the urban matrix.

The New York metropolitan region ishome to nearly 20,000,000 people, oneof the largest urban areas in the world.Yet even in this densely populated areawe have over 2,000 native plantspecies. BBG has developed amultifaceted approach to conservingthis biodiversity. The New YorkMetropolitan Flora project wasdeveloped to identify and inventory theplants of the region. We are nowdeveloping a programme together withthe City of New York Office of Parksand Recreation to carry out in situ andex situ rare plant conservation withinNew York City (NYC). Ten years ago

we developed the Center for UrbanRestoration Ecology (CURE) togetherwith Rutgers University to improve andpromote ecological restoration in theNYC region as well as other urbanareas. Through our journal, UrbanHabitats we are compiling andpublishing information on the urbanenvironment for all to use. Throughthese intersecting projects we believewe can protect and preserve thebotanical biodiversity of the region.

New York Metropolitan FloraProject

For nearly 20 years BBG has beenstudying the flora of the New Yorkmetropolitan region. The New YorkMetropolitan Flora (NYMF) projectstudies the plant life in the twenty fivecounties within 50 miles of New YorkCity. This project includes manyintegrated components includingextensive field studies, detailedliterature and herbarium studies,


Plant conservation in New York City

Author: Steven Clemants

Right: Lyonia

mariana, an

example of the

decline of an

Ericaceae.

Orange squares

indicate where

the species was

seen up until

1980 and green

are where the

species is found

today (NYMF)

Far right: The

seed bank for

the city Parks

Department

(Edward Toth)

development of a comprehensivedatabase and website, and publicationof manuals and research articles. Tofind out more please visit our web site(www.bbg.org/sci/nymf/).

One of the critical components of NYMFis to understand the changing nature ofthe regional flora. We have identifiedover 3,000 species native andnaturalized in the tri-state region.Using over 300,000 records of plantoccurrences in the metropolitan regionwe can now suggest which nativespecies have declined, which haveresisted the urban influence and whichhave flourished. This data comes froma variety of sources but particularly fromherbarium specimens housed at elevenherbaria in the Northeast United States,extensive published and unpublishedlists from literature, and nearly twentyyears of field work in the region.

Recently we analyzed nearly 100,000non-duplicated records of woody plants(trees, shrubs and vines) collected overthe past century. As one might expect,over this period we see a generaldecline of the native species andreplacement of these species withintroduced, often invasive, species.But more interesting and valuable arethe changes happening to specificspecies or groups, because we cananalyze characteristics of these speciesto determine what aspects of the urbanenvironment are influencing them.

For instance Celastrus scandens(American bittersweet) a native specieshas declined dramatically over the pastcentury, while at the same time asCelastrus orbiculata (Asian bittersweet)has spread just as dramatically. Thissuggests that the later species is outcompeting and replacing the formerspecies.

Furthermore we are seeing a decline ofnearly all members of the heath family(Ericaceae). This change is probablydue to changes in the soils of theregion. Species of the Ericaceae arehighly mychorrizal and acid-loving buturban soils are generally inhospitable tomany soil organisms and more alkaline.

Yet other species appear to bedeclining because of the dramaticincrease of white-tailed deer as theregion has become suburbanized.

Clearly the impacts of urbanizationare as varied as the biodiversity.Conservation will need to use a varietyof measures in order to succeed.We cannot assume a “forever wild” orhands-off approach where we preservethe land and let nature take its course.The environmental changes in theregion are too profound and farreaching for that.

New York City Parks Rare PlantInitiative

New York City, The Big Apple, evenwith a botanical moniker most peopledo not think of plants when they thinkof the city. Yet the city was once hometo 1,370 native plant species of which818 still exist in the 50,000 acres ofopen space. Recently BBG and theCity of New York Office of Parks andRecreation have begun work toconserve this botanical resource.

Most of the native plants in the NYCregion are not rare elsewhere.But NYC is a prime habitat for a fewextremely rare species that grow withinthe city limits. On New York Citybeaches can be found some of thelargest populations of the federallythreatened seabeach amaranth(Amaranthus pumilus) found anywherein the world. Continued efforts of thecity will probably keep thesepopulations stable. Similarly, thefederally threatened swamp pink(Helonias bullata) once grew wild onStaten Island and this has recently hasbeen reintroduced into suitablehabitats in the city.

However, we want to preserve all theplant species we can in the city. Eventhough they grow in the surroundingareas, the populations in the city mayhave unique characteristics, and theyare a part of our legacy. Although two-thirds of the native flora still exist in thecity, in many cases they arerepresented by fewer than fivepopulations. Therefore BBG is enteringinto a partnership with the New YorkCity Office of Parks & Recreation(including the Greenbelt Native PlantCenter and the Natural ResourcesGroup). Included in this project will be:an assessment of the status of allnative plants in the city; a programmeto seed bank native plants of the cityand the immediately surrounding area;

a programme to manage, reintroduceand restore species into the city’sparks; and a research programmeusing molecular techniques to analysethe genetic consequences offragmenting plant populations.

Last summer we launched this initiativewith a three-way partnership todevelop an urban seed bank. BBGand the Green Belt Native Plant Centerjoined with RBG Kew’s MillenniumSeed Bank project as part of theAtlantic Flora programme of theMillennium Seed Bank. This summerwe are continuing with pilot projects toexamine the genetics of some plantpopulations in the city.

Center for Urban RestorationEcology

Ten years ago BBG and RutgersUniversity founded the Center forUrban Restoration Ecology (CURE).CURE has four major goals:

(1) to understand patterns of urbanbiodiversity,

(2) to provide protocols for successfulrestoration projects,

(3) to encourage urban restoration, and

(4) to train students and professionalsin urban restoration.

Through our New York MetropolitanFlora project we are beginning tounderstand the patterns of urban plantdiversity.


Above: Gerry

Moore, Director

of Science at

BBG, collecting

in Northern

New Jersey

(Tracy Delius)

One of our most important researchobjectives is to understand theconstraints to successful restoration.These may be biotic (mutualists,pollinators, soil biota, dispersers,invasives, competition, genetics),abiotic (soil physical and chemicaleffects, heat, light, edge effects, airquality) or social (lack of long termmanagement, human traffic, attitudes).

One of the more pervasive constraintsto urban ecological restoration is theabundant non-native speciessurrounding many projects. BBG hasworked for many years to stem the tideof invasive plants in the region.Through our publications we havehighlighted the threat of invasiveplants, and for example using datafrom our New York Metropolitan Flora,we can actually quantify that threat.We are now working with local andstate groups to identify the mostinvasive species and determine whatwe can do to eradicate, manage ormitigate the harm caused by thesespecies.

Some of our research is very practical.For instance, we have started analyzingwhat is the optimal source of plantmaterial for use in urban restoration.Is it better to get the material fromother sites within the urban matrixwhere the plants have weathered thenumerous urban challenges? Or canwe use material from outside, where itis easier to get plants and grow them?So far our studies have indicated thatgetting seed from outside the urbanmatrix, but nearby, works as well asmaterial from within.

Through our better understanding ofthe urban environment, its biodiversity,the constraints to urban restorationand practical knowledge we havesuccessfully restored habitats invarious urban regions of the world.

Urban Habitats

We are not alone in wanting toconserve plants in the urban area.People throughout the world are seeingthe challenge and trying to change it.However, there are few resourcesdevoted to understanding the urbanenvironment. So five years agoCURE co-founded the open-accessjournal Urban Habitats (www.urbanhabitats.org). We have publishednumerous articles on plants and animalsin urban areas, various habitats, andhow people relate to nature in urbanareas. We can all learn from each other.

Conclusions

Plant conservation in urban areas isnot for the weak at heart. There areimmense obstacles and setbacks butwe need not abandon the biodiversityof our cities. With concerted efforts,new understanding and new tools wecan achieve.

References

�Galbraith-Kent, S. & Handel, S.,2007. Lessons from an urbanlakeshore restoration project in NewYork City. Ecological Restoration,25(2) 123-128.

Steven Clemants,Senior Scientist,Brooklyn Botanic Garden,1000 Washington Ave.Brooklyn, NY 11225, USA.Email: [email protected]: www.bbg.org

Urban habitats

An electronic journal on the biologyof urban areas around the worldhttp://www.urbanhabitats.org

Urban Habitats is a peer-reviewed,open-access electronic journal thatfocuses on current research on thebiology of urban areas. Paperscover a range of related subjectareas, including urban botany,conservation biology, wildlife andvegetation management in urbanareas, urban ecology, restoration ofurban habitats, landscape ecologyand urban design, urban soils,bioplanning in metropolitan regions,and the natural history of citiesaround the world. The broad reader-contributor base of Urban Habitatsincludes city planners, urbanhistorians, and naturalists as well asscientific researchers and practicingecologists.

The theme of the latest issue,(Volume 5, May 2008) is ‘What islocal’ and it includes papers on:Genetics and plant selection in theurban context; Practical seedsource selection for restorationprojects in an urban setting; and acall for the establishment of aNational System of Regional SeedBanks and Seed Networks.Previous issues have coveredtopics such as ‘Green roofs andbiodiversity’, ‘Birds in the urbanenvironment’ and ‘Urban floras’.

Urban Habitats is published by theCenter for Urban RestorationEcology (CURE), a collaborationbetween Brooklyn Botanic Gardenand Rutgers University.


Above and right:

Flushing

Meadow, shots

of planting

(right) in 1995

and the grown

out condition

(above) in 1998,

of a wetland

restoration in

Queens (Steven

Handel)

10

Introduction

Singapore is a small island city-state inone of the most biodiverse regions ofthe world. The land area of Singaporeis about 697 sq km with about 10% ofthis, a result of land reclamation. Witha population of 4.4 million, it is alsoone of the most densely populatedcities in the world. The gross domesticproduct of over S$243 billion in 2007(www.singstat.gov.sg) indicates robusteconomic activities. The combinationof limited land, high population andsignificant industrial activities meansthat major planning efforts areconstantly required to manage

competing land use. Singapore hasexecuted this adroitly. While materialimprovements and economic benefitshave driven planning and decisionmaking, biodiversity conservation hasbeen given due importance.

The founding of modern Singapore in1819 by the British, led to rapidcolonization and population growthwith extensive agricultural activities.The primeval rainforest that coveredvirtually all of the island was felled forcash crops that included gambir(Uncaria gambir) for the production ofcutch (or catechu) used in tanningleather, pepper (Piper nigrum) and

nutmeg (Myristica fragrans). Gambirwas ecologically the most damaging,as a great deal of firewood, obtainedby cutting more forest, was required toboil down the leaves. Land underrainforest cleared of vegetation losesits fertility very quickly. After a fewyears of cropping when both fertilityand firewood were depleted, thefarmers moved to new forest sites.By the 1880s only 7% of the originalforest remained (Cantley, 1884).Current estimates indicate that 2,053species of vascular plants were nativeto Singapore and some 1,454 speciesare still surviving (Tan et al, 2008).

The green spaces

Today the public green areas ofSingapore are mostly under themanagement of the National ParksBoard (NParks). These exceed 9,500ha or about 13.6% of the total landarea of Singapore (www.nparks.gov.sg).Of this, about 3,326 ha (almost 5%) areclassified under Nature Reserves.These are the Bukit Timah NatureReserve, a lowland dipterocarp forest,Central Catchement Nature Reserve, a


Left:

Mandai Road,

a Heritage

Road with

overarching

Rain trees

(Samanea

saman)

(Singapore

National Parks

Board)

Left:

Sungai Buloh

Wetland

Reserve is a

popular place to

learn about

mangrove

ecology (BGCI)

Biodiversity conservation inSingapore

Author: See-Chung Chin

11

lowland dipterocarp and freshwaterswamp forest, Sungei Buloh WetlandReserve, a mangrove habitat andLabrador Nature Reserve, a coastal hillforest. The last two were only gazettedin 2002, a significant achievement forconservation, in land-scarce Singapore.Other green areas forming a part of the9,500 ha include parks, parkconnectors, playgrounds, and roadsidegardens and vacant state lands.

Biodiversity and conservation

Singapore’s geographical location andits equable tropical climate supportlush natural vegetation. Despite havinglost more than 90% of its originalforest cover, it is still home to a hugediversity of plants and animals. Apartfrom the over 1,400 species of nativevascular plants still extant, 376 speciesof birds, 282 species of butterflies, 102species of reptiles, 58 species ofmammals and 27 species ofamphibians, have been recorded.

In the marine environment there are200 species of hard corals, 111species of reef fish and 11 speciesof sea grasses.

A far-reaching decision was made in1963 that a green Singapore was acompetitive factor in attracting foreigninvestment and would be a moreattractive and comfortable home forits people. The first tree plantingcampaign the same year, symbolizedthis. In the years that followed anumber of specific initiatives were putin place to ensure that adequateprovisions would be made for urbangreenery. Concept Plan Reviews areheld periodically to better implementa Master Plan that guides thedevelopment of Singapore. A guidingprinciple of 0.8 ha of park space per1,000 population was adopted,meaning that additional parkland wouldneed to be provided as the populationgrows. Road codes were developedso that planting verges along majorand minor roads were provided. Carparks must be designed with plantingareas and structures like traffic flyoversand pedestrian overpasses clothedwith climbers or creepers or screenedby shrubs and trees.

Singapore is committed to conservingand ensuring the sustainability of itsnatural heritage. It is a signatory to theinternational Convention on BiologicalDiversity (CBD) resulting from the RioEarth Summit in 1992. In the sameyear, the Singapore Green Plan waslaunched to provide a framework onbiodiversity conservation. Nineteennature areas (terrestrial and marine)were recommended. In 2003, theSingapore Green Plan 2012 waslaunched to better addressconservation issues. In 2006, theNational Biodiversity Reference Centre,under NParks, was established as afocal point for biodiversity conservation.

NParks has an active programme ofbiodiversity surveys and monitoring ofits nature areas. In the last several

years, 35 species of plants and animalsnew to Singapore have been discoveredand seven species thought to be extincthave been rediscovered. These andother updates are highlighted in thesecond edition of the Singapore RedData Book (Tan et al, 2008).

In the built up environment, NParks iscommitted to creating rich plantdiversity in its parks, gardens andstreetscapes. Trees and shrubs areplanted intensively and extensively andNParks now manages about 1.3 milliontrees and many more million shrubs. Itis estimated that the urban landscapenow has been planted with over 3,000taxa. Of the total, 70-75% areintroduced species. It is likely thatSingapore has the most biodiverseurban landscape, by far, of any city inthe world. Satellite imagery showedthat the estimated green cover ofSingapore has increased significantlyfrom 35.7% in June 1986 to 46.5% inAugust 2007 (See Table 1). To a largeextent this increase is likely to be dueto urban planting and the growth of theplanted vegetation providing increasingground cover.

Introduced species have so far notmanaged to invade and alter thecomposition and ecology ofSingapore’s matured naturalvegetation. This perhaps is anindication of the resilience anddynamism of the mature tropical rainforest. The most aggressive introducedspecies include: Acacia auriculiformisfrom the Australian region,Paraserianthes falcataria from eastMalesia to the Solomons, Cecropiapeltata from tropical America andSpathodea campanulata from Africa.These are able, though not verysuccessfully, to invade open secondaryforest areas as pioneers. The tropicalAmerican shrub, Clidemia hirta,penetrates old growth forest but onlyalong more exposed trails. However,in time, primary lowland rain forestspecies introduced from the region,can be expected to invade maturednative habitats.

In Singapore, a bold proposal is for apark connector network designed asgreen corridors that will connect parks,nature areas and open spaces topopulation centers. It is proposed thatthe network will cover the entire island,

BGjournal• Vol 5 (2)12

Table 1: Green cover of Singapore

June 1986 June 1997 August 200735.7% 43.1% 46.5%

(information from CUGE Research, NParks, 2008)

Above:

One of

Singapore’s two

remaining

patches of

coastal forest

vegetation on

sandstone cliffs,

Sentosa Island

(BGCI)

providing a matrix of vegetated linksaccessible only to pedestrians andcyclists. It is anticipated that thecorridors will also facilitate bird life andbird movements and encourage otheranimal life. When completed in 2015,there would be a network of 300 km;currently, 100 km are opened for use.

Another two schemes initiated byNParks in 1991 are highlighted here.These are the Heritage Tree andHeritage Road Schemes. The formerwas designed to identify, recognize andconserve individual trees of historical,aesthetic, cultural, social oreducational value. The public canparticipate in this scheme bynominating individual trees forconsideration as a heritage tree.Currently 171 trees have been giventhis status. A plaque identifies each ofthem. The Heritage Road scheme, onthe other hand, identifies andconserves specific roads withoutstanding treescapes. Currently 5roads totaling about 10 km have beengazetted as Heritage Roads

Public sentiments and life-style choicesin Singapore are evolving to favourenvironment and conservation.A classic example is the way ChekJawa; a tidal flat at the eastern tip ofPulau Ubin, an island to the northeastof Singapore was saved. This shallowshelf was identified for land

reclamation in 1991, with work to beginin December 2001. However, over timenature enthusiasts discovered that thistidal habitat was exceptionally rich inmarine life. In addition, the beach hadboth rocky and sandy componentswith a mangrove in the vicinity and apatch of coastal hill forest on thelandward side. From mid 2001,lobbying to save the tidal flatsintensified. The Government respondedswiftly by calling for a study on thebiodiversity and reclamation options.By January 2002, the Government

decided that the proposed reclamationbe deferred indefinitely. It has sincefunded the development of visitorfacilities and conservation initiatives atChek Jawa. This unique habitat hasnow become a popular visitordestination and an important outdooreducational resource.

The role of Singapore BotanicGardens

In its early decades, the SingaporeBotanic Gardens played important rolesin recreation, research and forestconservation. From its founding in 1859,the Gardens staff began collecting anddocumenting plants. A journal, now TheGardens’ Bulletin Singapore, wasstarted in 1881 to record the results ofresearch in the Gardens. In 1883 whenthe first forest reserves were establishedin the Straits Settlements (the territoriesof Malacca, Penang and Singapore),they were placed under Director of theGardens who was also the Conservatorof Forests.

The Forest Department was to remainunder the Gardens’ administration until1895 when forest matters wereofficially transferred to the Land Office.By this time 35,776 ha had beendesignated as Forest Reserves in theStraits Settlements, a significantachievement in forest conservation.In 1939 the forest reserves inSingapore reverted back to the controlof the Director of the Gardens.


Left:

The Treetop

Walkway at the

Central

Catchment

Nature Reserve

provides a

unique

opportunity for

nature watching

at the canopy

level (Singapore

National Parks

Board)

Left:

Schools find the

Singapore

Botanic Gardens

a very

accessible place

to teach

children about

plants and the

environment

(BGCI)

The other major and continuing role ofthe Gardens was botanical explorationand documentation of the flora of theregion, providing the baselineinformation for conservation decisions.Until the 1960s, nearly all significantpublications on the flora of the MalayPeninsula resulted from the efforts ofthe Gardens’ staff.

It is interesting to note that in the1880s, staff of the Gardens supervisedtree planting in the city of Singapore.This was a role that the Gardens wasto revisit in a major way almost ahundred years later when the Gardensfocussed on the greening of Singaporein the 1970s and 1980s.

In 1990, the Gardens, under theNational Parks Board, redefined itsroles and goals and forged a newvision as a botanical institution with afocus on research, conservation,education and recreation. Togetherwith other partners, it initiated a 6-yearproject in 1991 to survey thebiodiversity of the nature reserves ofSingapore. Today, the targets of theGlobal Strategy for Plant Conservationguide its efforts in conservation. TheBotanic Gardens’ activities are focused

on taxonomy and floristics of theregion, capacity building andpromoting education and awarenessabout plant diversity and conservation.

Conclusion

Since independence in the 1960s, thepolicy to green Singapore wasimplemented with dedicated effort andpolitical will. It has resulted in an islandalmost 50% vegetated with its existingbiodiversity managed and conservedand increasingly made accessible andinterpreted. Its key botanical institution,the Singapore Botanic Gardens, hasplayed leading roles in plant diversityconservation since its establishmentalmost 150 years ago.

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank my manycolleagues in the National Parks Boardwho responded with information.

References

�Cantley, N., 1884. Report on theforests of the Straits Settlement.Singapore Printing Office.Singapore

�CUGE Research, NParks, 2008.Manuscript.

�Tan, H. et al., 2008. Checklists ofThreatened species: Plants. In,Davison, G., Ng, P. & Ho, H. 2008.The Singapore Red Data Book:Threatened Plants and Animals ofSingapore. 2nd edition, NatureSociety, Singapore. Singapore.

Websites

www.nparks.gov.sgwww.singstat.gov.sg

See-Chung Chin,Director,Singapore Botanic Gardens,1 Cluny Road,Singapore 259569.Email:[email protected]


Right:

Sungai Buloh

Wetland Reserve

(BGCI)

Introduction

Botanic gardens form part of thecontinuum of open spaces available tothe public in urban areas. As well astheir more specialised roles in researchand biodiversity conservation theyprovide recreational areas for exerciseand relaxation. The planting andpathways are important as in any urbangreen area. But how important isdiversity in planting when the plants areseen as one part of the amenitiesavailable to the general public in our cityspaces? And what is meant by amenityplanting? In its broadest sense, amenityplanting is a wide-ranging subject. Itcovers planting in parks and gardens,roadside flower beds, roundabouts andcemeteries, and extending tosupermarket car parks, motorwayverges and public visitor attractions.It is in fact any planting in a public

space. Those responsible for amenityplanting include local authorities,trustees of private gardens andmuseums and tenants organisations.

Amenity planting –the traditional view

Amenity planting in any contextincluding within botanic gardens,encompasses trees; both as specimens

and in woodlands; shrubs, perennialplanting in herbaceous borders andseasonal bedding. All of these types ofplanting embellish mown grass whichhas itself always been the dominantvegetation type in the amenity setting.The preferred landscape choice ofmany involved in the amenity sector ismown grass, along with seasonalbedding (annual flower planting). This ismonoplanting and has been described

BGCI • 2008 • BGjournal• Vol 5 (1) • 03-08 15

Diversity in amenity planting

Author: Mima Taylor

Left:

Bedding plants

are planted in

their thousands

in amenity

landscapes

every year

Left:

A single species

or very limited

number

constitutes

monoplanting


second half of the nineteenth centuryglobal influences and the greateravailability of many types of flowersmade it possible for parks to aspire tohave the features of the great botanicgardens and private estates of the day.Many public parks had indeed beenprivate gardens themselves beforebeing taken over for the enjoyment ofthe public. Herbaceous borders,‘parkland’, annual displays of beddingplants, Japanese gardens, Alpinegardens, Rhododendron borders…the list of features that constitutegardenesque is considerable. In theirtime, parks were very successful atmaintaining and introducing theseelements for the enjoyment of thepublic. Today however most parksdepartments are no longer therepositories of horticultural skill theyonce were, and they no longer havethe resources to implement andmaintain the highly formulaic gardenfeatures they formerly aspired to.

Stripped down and simplified ideasfrom the gardenesque seeped out intoamenity planting, hence the expansesof monoplanting that adorn our streetsand roundabouts; monoplanting ofshrubs, annual flowers and bulbs.This type of gardenesque ‘lite’ stillforms the majority of our amenityplanting outside our parks and, tosome extent, within them.

Introducing diversity intoamenity planting

Let’s consider this matter of diversity inamenity planting. What is it and why isit better than the traditional alternative?Diversity means a large number ofplant species creating a variety ofhabitats thereby allowing numbers ofspecies to thrive in balanced,permanent ecosystems. And why is itgood? From an ecological point of viewa range of co-existing species isconsidered able to exploit moreresources than can a single species onits own thereby producing a greaterbiomass and the environmentalbenefits that ensue. A range of speciesis also said to be better able to copewith change, as an ecosystem, then asingle species.. There are two theoriesas to why this might be so: firstly, at acommunity level, the greater thenumber of species, the greater thenumber of responses to different

of Kensington and Chelsea in London,for example plants at least 300,000bedding plants every year for 100 or sosites around the borough. The resourceintensity of this is considerable asthese plants need a ready supply ofwater and nutrients in order tocomplete their swift, intense lifecycle.Mobile watering vehicles regularlyirrigate the flowers that are plantedduring a hectic month in late springand again in late autumn.

The managers in the parksdepartments would also see thatplanting 300,000 exotic flowercultivars….from Dahlia ‘Roxy’ toFuschia ‘Maybe Baby’, tightly togetherin rows and shapes and creating a riotof colour that lasts just three months,to be replaced in autumn with pansiesand bulbs, as very diverse. They areright from an artistic point of view, butthis kind of landscape management isa far from sustainable from anecological perspective and isexpensive. Local authorities wouldargue that this kind of planting bolsters‘civic pride’ despite the fact that it iseconomically and environmentallycostly. Does civic pride have to comeat this cost?

The influence of the‘gardenesque’

Historically the influence of the‘gardenesque’ underpins all of ourthinking about planting. During the

by sceptics as ‘green concrete’ and isthe antithesis of diversity in amenityplanting. The reason it is so widespreadis the minimal maintenance required tokeep it neat (predictable, repetitive andmechanised) and its more physicalqualities such as robustness and longseason of ‘interest’. In the UK at least,much is made by local authorities ofthe cheapness per hectare of gangmown grass: in economy of scale it isunparalleled.

Annual plants used to complementmown grass are planted in theirthousands in every country that hasthe resources to do so - from Egypt toMexico. These provide ‘colour anddrama’ now understood to be anessential requirement of the averagetax payer who provides budgetarysupport for amenity planting.Thousands of bedding plants areplanted every summer to decorate thestreets and parks. The Royal Borough

Right:

Beds at the

Sheffield Botanic

Garden

Above:

Naturalistic

herbaceous

vegetation -

Primula meadow

(James

Hitchmough,

Sheffield

University)

Another very successful way ofintroducing diversity is simply not tomow the grass; differential mowing is acommon practice in most amenitygrassland management. Over time newspecies self seed and the unmowngrass becomes a habitat in its ownright with other species slowlyestablishing in the grassland.On the planting side, local authoritiessuch as the new Potters Hill Park byTower Bridge in London, UK haveemployed forward thinking landscapearchitects who are specifying swathesof tall perennial plants and grassessuch as those pioneered by the Dutcharchitect Piet Oudolf. These arewildlife-friendly and easy to maintain.Oudolf uses a limited palette of tallperennial plants and grasses planted inswathes…. his is the herbaceousborder re-examined with grassesplaying a major role.

Using perennial plants again theUniversity of Sheffield has done muchresearch over the last twenty years todevelop the use of naturalisticherbaceous vegetation in an amenitysetting. This presents a middle groundbetween meadow-like planting andherbaceous planting and as well asbeing a resource-efficient way ofintroducing diversity into amenity

Left: Palms are

used to

punctuate and

alleviate the

flatness in

amenity

planting

Far left:

Single species

amenity

planting

Below:

Naturalistic

herbaceous

vegetation sown

from seed

(James

Hitchmough,

Sheffield

University)


Environmental concerns, which nowunderpin every area of public life, havestarted to have an influence on amenityplanting. Parks departments and othersin the landscape planting sector havebeen and continue to think about howto make planting both diverse as well asresource-efficient. They haveapproached this in various ways. Manyof the more forward-thinking managersof public spaces have experimentedwith sowing flower mixes redolent ofannual meadows. Organisations such asLandlife International based in the UKreceive a lot of public funding to involvethe community in sowing wildflowermeadows in an urban setting. Thesemixes can, however, be very vulnerableto annual weeds and a short (but oftenspectacular) burst of poppies,cornflowers and ox eye daisies cedes tothree months of weeds that self seedand so the cycle continues. It can takemany years (and much commitment) torestore the balance in favour of a naturalsuccession of annual flowers in grasses.The reason for this is two fold….the soilin the amenity setting is more often thannot much richer in nutrients than manyof our soils that occur naturally. A smallgroup of exotic plants exploit thesenutrients and self seed very successfullymaking it difficult for introduced annualflower seeds to get a toehold.

environmental stresses, whichsmoothes out variation at thecommunity level; the second theorybeing that a large number of species ina community means that there areenough species to functionally replacethose that are adversely affected byexternal pressures. (Dunnett 2004).It is true that a range of speciesplanted in an ornamental setting iscertainly less vulnerable to pathogensand environmental extremes than onesole taxon. Pansies planted en masseall with mildew are not an uncommonsite on London’s Streets, as are rosebeds blighted by black spot.

From an aesthetic point of view,despite evidence suggesting thatpeople like things to be tended,peoples’ perception of landscape isfavourable if there is a degree of‘complexity’ to a setting (as well ascoherence). Managed complexity, ordiversity, is therefore what people wantto see. Wildness is acceptable if theedges are neat…mixed plantings areaccepted if they look planned ratherthan random. This requires skill at themanagement level to make wild andmanaged meet seamlessly.Spontaneous vegetation (also knownas weeds) in an urban setting, left tocolonise abandoned land does notnecessarily constitute diversity as toooften it is one or two highly competitive(normally exotic) species thatdominate.

planting. Using a large number ofspecies of perennial flowers, or forbsas they are known, ‘prairie’ typeplanting is established; a site issprayed with a graminicide weed killerand seeds are sown into a thick mulchof sand or compost which acts as aweed suppressant. Germination andestablishment is generally verysuccessful. Mixes can be tailored todamp or dry soil, they require very littlemaintenance and the resulting growthis very attractive to birds andinvertebrates.

Management is the key to increasingdiversity in amenity planting. For localauthorities that do not have theresources to achieve nature-friendlymanagement, wildlife trusts sometimesstep in and take over the management.Such is the case of Brandon Hill Park inBristol. Half of this park has been givenover to the Avon Wildlife Trust, who arerestoring it to a mesotrophic grassland,introducing native trees and shrubs andallowing nature to take its course.Botanic gardens and other parks, oftenhave ‘conservation areas’ that areencouraged to be wildlife friendlyhabitats. Management is kept to aminimum - just enough to keep speciesdiversity fairly balanced. These areasare accepted by the park users as long

as all of their other needs are cateredfor, such as sport, dog walking, flowerdisplays, benches, cafes and toilets.

Conclusions

Encouraging diversity in amenityplanting is often constrained by thereluctance of those in charge of amenitylandscapes to experiment. This is anarea in which botanic gardens, most ofwhich are in cities, could play a majorrole. Botanic gardens have always takenthe lead in encouraging theconservation of plant diversity, and thereis a growing focus on local habitats andvegetation types in their displays. Theyhave in the main however, been slowerto adopt some of the managementpractices discussed above - differentialmowing of grass, sowing ornamentalseed mixes or even using perennialplants experimentally.

Botanic gardens are repositories ofincreasingly rare horticultural skills andaccumulated knowledge. They alsohave a history of plant-basedexperimentation - whether it be triallingtropical crops for agriculture or growingplants for medical research. Thisexperimental approach could beextended to include to the wider amenityenvironment, notably the area ofornamental planting. There is no reasonwhy botanic gardens could not aim tomove away from the immaculateseasonal bedding laid on for the visitorand experiment to make seasonalornamental planting less resource-intensive, with a greater focus on seedsowing - educating visitors and thewider greenspace community thereafter.Taxonomic order beds are oftenmaintained by re-sowing every year, withseed being collected and phenologicalinformation noted; there is no reasonwhy these practices cannot be appliedto some of the seasonal ornamentalplantings, to create diverse and suitableseed mixes with a long season of colour.

References

�Dunnett, N. & Hitchmough, J., 2004.The Dynamic Landscape, SponPress, London, UK.

Mima Taylor,9b Pemberton Gardens,London, N19 5RR, UK.Email: [email protected];[email protected]


Right:

Perennial plants

used with

grasses are

wildlife friendly

and provide a

very long

season of

interest, as well

as being

drought

resistant and

minimal in

maintenance

requirements

Right:

Bedding plants

are resource

intensive and

often not

particularly

wildlife friendly.

They do

however,

provide colour

Right:

Mesotrophic

meadow in

Brandon Hill

Park, Bristol.

This was

formerly mown

grass

Introduction

China has around 234 botanic gardensand arboreta generally designated by theGovernment as research anddevelopment centres for plant diversityconservation and sustainable utilisation.Most botanic gardens are located incentral city locations or in the suburbsforming an integral part of the cityenvironment. The number of Chinesebotanic gardens is increasing with majornew gardens being developed orplanned (e.g. Chen Shan BotanicalGarden in Shanghai, Nan Shan BotanicalGarden in Chongqing and Dong GuanBotanical Garden). It is estimated thatthere are 1-5 new botanic gardens builteach year in China. The rapiddevelopment of botanic gardens and theresurgence of interest in their potentialwithin China is mainly due to the rapidrecent development of the country’seconomy and the growth of external andinternal tourism. Botanic gardens areseen as prestigious urban developmentprojects and, at the same time, they

continue to play an important functiondelivering Chinese development policy,particularly an Ordinance issued by theMinistry of Construction covering thebuilding of Ecological Gardening Cities,which emphasizes that all cities shouldbuild botanic gardens to conserve theirlocal biodiversity.

China has 31,000 species of vascularplants accounting for 10% of the worldtotal, making it one of the richestcountries in terms of plant diversity.However, China’s rapid economicdevelopment in the last thirty years andcontinuous population growth seriouslythreatens this abundant biodiversity.


Left: Children

enjoy the

Wuhan Botanic

Garden

(BGCI)

Left: Signage in

the medicinal

plant garden at

Wuhan Botanic

Garden (BGCI)

The importance of botanic gardens inChinese cities

Author: Xiangying Wen

Nearly 4,000 to 5,000 higher plants areconsidered at risk of extinction,accounting for 15-20 % of the totalnumber of plants in China. Biodiversityconservation is fundamental to supportecologically sustainable developmentin both urban and rural areas.The biodiversity conservation role ofbotanic gardens is therefore essential,and the responsibilities of botanicgardens include plant conservationadvocacy, species protection andresearch. In addition, botanic gardenshave important experience andexpertise in the control, research,management and utilisation of alieninvasive plants, which are a majorecological problem in China and onethat cities will face increasingly in thefuture (He Shanan, 2007).

Furthermore, as the standard of livingimproves, more and more peoplerecognise the broader importance ofbotanic gardens for horticulture,environmental improvement and leisureand increasing foreign exchange inChina is encouraging a growinginterest in botanical gardens (ZhangZuoshuang, 2007).

Differing roles of botanicgardens in China

Botanic gardens in China - aselsewhere in the world - aremultifunctional. However in China,gardens have different emphasesaccording to the branch ofGovernment that oversees them.For example, the botanic gardensunder the leadership of the ChineseAcademy of Sciences (CAS) focus onbotanical research and the collectionand cultivation of Chinese wild plants.The arboreta of the ForestryDepartment focus on forestry research,mainly collecting and cultivating treespecies. The botanic gardens of theUrban Construction Department focus

on horticultural research, collectingextensively ornamental plants bothfrom home and abroad. These havea particularly key role in promotingdiversity in urban planting. The botanicgardens of the Educational Departmentfocus on research, and the collectionand cultivation of plants for thepurpose of teaching (Xu Zaifu, 1996).

The fourteen CAS botanic gardens,especially the three core gardens(Xishuangbanna Tropical BotanicalGarden (XTBG), South China BotanicalGarden (SCBG) and Wuhan Botanic

Garden (WBG)), have collected andconserve ex situ about 20,000 vascularplant species, accounting forapproximately 90% of all plant speciesmaintained by all Chinese botanicalgardens. This indicates that CAS hasachieved the target of conserving atleast 60% of Chinese native plants andproviding an important reserve of plantresources for sustainable economicdevelopment in China.

China has a long history of usingtraditional Chinese medicine (ca.11,000 medicinal plant species) and


Right:

Exploring

bryophytes at

Fairy Lake

Botanical Garden

(BGCI)

Far right:

Interpretation

panels in Wuhan

Botanic Garden

(BGCI)

Right:

Chinese pavilion

in the Wuhan

Botanic Garden

(Zhang Li)

Above:

Gateway to the

Xishuangbanna

Tropical

Botanical Garden

(BGCI)

ecosystem. In China, botanic gardenscan contribute significantly toimproving city planting schemes byproviding both new plant resourcesappropriate for local conditions andecological expertise.

Public education for enhancingenvironmental awareness

Botanic gardens are ideal places tocapture the attention of the public andinspire a love of nature, particularly at atime when people have less contactwith natural environments. In totalChinese botanic gardens attract up to18 million visitors every year (ZhangZuoshuang, 2007). Botanic gardenscan also enrich and enhance people’scultural lives, for example by displayinghistorical civilizations, various art formsand popularising science. SCBG is thelargest Southern subtropical botanicalgarden in China, located in an area richin natural resources for tourism andtherefore a desirable holiday location.SCBG is called ‘the forest of the city’and ‘the lung of Guangzhou’. Thegarden includes a modern greenhouseof 10,000 sq m., the first Guangzhouvillage (where people from Guangzhoufirst originated), as well as a multi-functional Popular Science InformationCentre, all of which provide goodplatforms for the development anddissemination of cultural and scientific

many Chinese botanic gardens play anactive role in medicinal plant research,cultivation and conservation. Thegardens provide extensive plantresources to meet the growinghealthcare demands of the increasinglyurbanised Chinese population. Forexample, the Herbal Medicinal Gardenof SCBG in Guangdong, has acollection of more that 2,000 medicinalplant species with Lingnancharacteristics (i.e. species common inthe Lingnan region of China andfrequently used by Cantonese peoplein Guangdong, including GuangdongChinese herbal tea ‘Wang Lao Ji’ andother types of Chinese herbal teas).

With the rapid development of scienceand technology, living standards haveimproved and energy consumptionincreased. Enhancing the research anddevelopment of bio-energy sources inChina is one of the effective means ofresolving the impending energy crisis.SCBG has established an industrialbio-energy plant garden that conservesgermplasm of potentially useful plantsand provides effective support forresearch into energy from biomass andrelated areas. China has around 15,000economic plant species of which ca.4,000 species have value for bio-energy development. Approximately100 species, including oil plants, fuelplants and crops are conserved ex situin SCBG’s energy plant garden. Thisalso provides a potentially importanteducation resource.

Plant diversity in urbanecosystems in China

Rapid economic development hasresulted in the pace of urbanizationaccelerating dramatically in China.Currently about 50% of China’spopulation reside in urban areas.

By 2030, this is expected to rise to75%. With the process of urbanizationand increasingly dense construction,urban biodiversity is drasticallydecreased, which seriously affects thestability of the ecological environmentof cities and directly impacts on theloss of plant species. In today’s cities,the original vegetation has all butdisappeared and the existing greenvegetation is almost all secondary.Wild native plants are losing out tointroduced plants and coupled withnatural disasters and humandestruction, the available habitat fornative species in urban area is gettingsmaller and smaller, while the threatsare increasing.

Plants are a vital component of urbanecology and the city landscape. Plantdiversity underpins the sustainable andstable development of city economiesand helps to regulate the local climate,reduce noise, and beautify the urbanenvironment - all of which impact onhuman well being. Urban landscapeecosystems built up with few speciesare highly dependent on artificialmaintenance. Increasing green spacesand improving the productivity ofcommunities and eco-efficiency cannotbe realized without the diversity ofplants (Lu Dongmei, 2005). Botanicgardens are well placed to helpmaintain the stability of the urban


Above: Kunming

Botanic Garden

(BGCI)

Left: Artemisia

annua in the

Kunming

Botanic Garden

(BGCI)

knowledge to a wide city audience.Botanic gardens usually educatepeople through plant-basedexhibitions. For example, during 2008,the Fairy Lake Botanical Garden(FLBG) is organizing an exhibition onbryophytes with the theme ‘Dwarves ofthe plant kingdom - Introduction tobryophytes’, which vividlydemonstrates basic information onbryophytes through a large number oflive plant materials and pictures. Theexhibition explains what bryophytes areand displays their characteristics,habitats and diversity. The exhibitionalso explains the economic, academicand aesthetic values of bryophytes,and the important roles they play inmaintaining the water balance, carbonmetabolism, pollution monitoring, andother ecological aspects. At a time of arapidly changing global environment,this exhibition provides a powerful newperspective for people in

understanding the relationship betweenman and nature. The exhibition alsoleads people into the micro-world ofthe colourful and beautiful mosses.FLBG is seen as a “shining pearl onthe green crown”. It is known as one ofthe world’s most beautiful gardens, andis seen as an ecological business cardin the process of building theecological city of Shenzhen.

Conclusions

Botanic gardens contribute significantlyto Chinese cities by conserving plantdiversity to ensure the health of peopleand the planet. They provide publiceducation for enhancing environmentalawareness, undertake scientificresearch to promote socialdevelopment, provide attractive, greenand clean areas for leisure and forenhancing citizenship. Through putting

education into recreation, botanicgardens become models for theharmonious development of thecommunity, human and nature. Chinaneeds not only world class botanicgardens, but gardens of all scales,types and functions to support itsincreasingly urbanized population.

References

�He Shanan, 2007. Responses ofthe botanical garden to thedevelopment of Chinese cities.Blue-sky Landscape. 5: 7-8.

�Lu Dongmei, 2005. Significance andmeans of conserving citybiodiversity. Fujian Science andTechnology of Tropical Crops. 2005.30 (3): 35-41.

�Xu Zaifu, 1996. The status andstrategy for ex situ conservation ofplant diversity in Chinese botanicgardens — Discussion of principlesand methodologies of ex situconservation for plant diversity. in:Conserving China’s Biodiversity.MacKinnon, J., Wang, S. et al (eds.).China Environmental Science Press.Beijing. 79-95p.

�Zhang Zuoshuang, 2007. Themission and responsibility of China’sbotanical gardens. Blue-skylandscape. 5: 5-6.

Xiangying Wen,BGCI China Programme,723 Xingke Rd.,Guangzhou 510650,Guangdong,China.Email: [email protected]


Above:

The seed bank

and laboratories

at Kunming

Botanic Garden

(BGCI)

Right:

Reading

interpretation

panels in Wuhan

Botanic Garden

(BGCI)

Right:

Bamboo in the

Kunming

Botanic Garden

(BGCI)

The Forestry Service of the Ministry ofAgro-Industry and Fisheries is theoldest institution on the island ofMauritius. Established in 1777 by theDutch, the aim of the Forestry Servicewas the logging of timber species suchas ebony (Diospyros spp.) and othernative species like tatamaka(Calophyllum inophyllum), and bois denatte (Labourdonnaisia glauca).Forests were also cleared to makeroom for the early settlers and theirinfrastructural as well as agriculturaldevelopments. During this process ofcolonization, the introduction of exoticspecies of fauna and flora caused amisbalance in the natural ecosystem ofthe island. As a result, the very survivalof native species was called intoquestion and many are now threatenedwith extinction. Conservation andsensitisation campaigning forconservation awareness have alwaysbeen a major part of the work of theForestry Service. Being a small island,land space is a limiting factor fordevelopment and the conservation offorest areas is a challenge. Efforts forconservation have been multi-pronged,

including in situ and ex situconservation activities, awarenessprogrammes and re-afforestationprogrammes. The article belowshowcases two concrete examples ofconservation activities undertaken inurban areas that contribute to ourefforts to preserve our biodiversity.

The Monvert Nature Walk

Monvert Nature Walk, located about 3km from the city centre of Curepipe,was a highly degraded native forest,heavily infested by invasive alienspecies like Psidium cattlelianum,Ardisia crenata, Ravenalamadagascariensis and Rubusalceifolius with two industrialinstallations and a cattle farm in itsneighbourhood. Without intervention,Monvert forest would have ended upas either an industrial site or a grazingarea. However with a view to provide arecreational facility for the city dwellersand extend conservation efforts, theMonvert Nature Walk was conceivedby the Forestry Service.

Efforts to rehabilitate the forest wereinitiated in 2003, with the removal ofthe invasive alien species in smallparcels of the forest area. On-sitetraining was provided to the labourersto help them properly identify nativeplant species and with the supervisionof Forest Officers, care was taken toensure no damage was caused tonative species. In parallel, the ForestryService started a propagationprogramme for plants that would be

used for enrichment planting. Over aperiod of three years, the invasivespecies were removed and appropriatenative species were re-introduced intothe open spaces. The species thatwere used for enrichment planting inthe nature walk were from apredetermined list of plants that usedto occur naturally within that area,including trees, shrubs and groundcover. Some tree species that wereintroduced are listed in Table 1.The rehabilitation of the forest wasfollowed by the creation of trailsleading to various points of interest,such as ponds, rare plants and viewpoints of the forest and marshes.The tracing out of the trails was one ofthe most challenging tasks, since newtrails had to be created through theforest while causing minimaldisturbances to the key areas ofinterest. Some additionalinfrastructures were also installed forthe convenience of the visitors andtrekkers. There include two kiosks,one elevated platform to have a bird’seye view of the area and a boardwalk.


Nature walks for conservation andawareness in Mauritius

Author: Poojanraj Khurun

Above:

The Visitor

Centre from

the outside

Left:

Kiosk connected

by a boardwalk

Right:

Board walk

within the

Nature walk

Right:

Dombeya

acutangula var.

rosea in the

arboretum at

the Visitor

Centre


tourists and nature lovers. On anaverage the Monvert Nature Walkreceives around 40,000 visitorsannually. The recreation of the nativevegetation at Monvert Forest can besaid to have been successful up tonow. However the rehabilitation workcontinues as the recurrence of invasivealien species is constant. A team of 18labourers is attached to the NatureWalk to continue with weedingexercises as an ongoing process.

Critically Endangered and in need of exsitu conservation action. A list ofcritically endangered plants cultivatedin the arboretum is provided in Table 2.The fernery has a collection of nativespecies of ferns and orchids. It is theonly fernery on the island and here onecan view a collection of some 250species of ferns together with 86species of orchids, all in one place.Since its creation, the Monvert NatureWalk has welcomed many types ofvisitors, including students, families,

Coupled with this Nature Walk, theForestry Service also created a VisitorCentre with audiovisual facilities, andthis compound has been convertedinto an arboretum, with a fernery andan open-air lecture theatre. The VisitorCentre has a photographic collection ofnative flora and fauna with informationin a simple language emphasizing whyconservation is important. The audio-visual centre runs two tailor-madefilms, regarding conservation activities,the importance of mountains and theirrole as water-catchment areas and howto conserve nature. Two Forest Officersare attached to the Visitor Centre toassist visitors and to act as guides.The audio-visual room is also ameeting place where small workshopsand training courses in conservation,eco-tourism and awareness raising canbe held.

The compound of the Visitor Centrehas been landscaped exclusively withendemic/indigenous plants and all theplants have been properly labelled withtheir names and description. The plantspecies that were introduced into thearboretum were selected from a list ofplants that have been classified as

24

Scientific Name FamilyBarleria observatrix AcanthaceaeOchrosia borbonica ApocynaceaeHelichrysum yuccifolium AsteraceaeHelichrysum proteoides AsteraceaeSyzygium guehoi MyrtaceaeSideroxylon grandiflorum SapotaceaePandanus iceryi PandanaceaePandanus macrostigma PandanaceaeTrochetia parviflora MalvaceaeTrochetia boutoniana MalvaceaeTrochetia triflora MalvaceaeDombeya mauritiana MalvaceaeDombeya populnea MalvaceaeZanthoxyllum heterophyllum RutaceaeGastonia mauritiana AraliaceaeBegonia salaziensis BegoniaceaeSenecio lamarckianus AsteraceaeDiospyros egrettarum EbenaceaeDiospyros pterocalyx EbenaceaeDiospyros revaughanii EbenaceaeCoffea macrocarpa RubiaceaeLabourdonnaisia glauca Sapotaceae

Table 1. List of plant species used in enrichment planting at theMonvert Nature Walk

Species FamilyAcalypha integrifolia EuphorbiaceaePsiadia arguta AsteraceaeAphloia theiformis AphloiaceaeGaertnera spp. RubiaceaeDombeya acutangula MalvaceaeTrochetia blackburniana MalvaceaePandanus spp. PandanaceaeCoffea myrtifolia RubiaceaeDistephanus populifolius AsteraceaeDiospyros nodosa EbenaceaePittosporum senacioa PittosporaceaeOlea lancea OleaceaeSideroxylon cineeum Sapotaceae

Table 2. List of critically endangered plants cultivated in the VisitorCentre arboretum


Key references:

�Font, X. and Tribe, J. (Eds) 2000.Forest tourism and recreation.Case studies in environmentalmanagement. CAB InternationalUK.

�Government of Mauritius, 2006.National Biodiversity StrategicAction Plan 2006-2015. Available at:http://www.gov.mu/portal/site/moa.

�National Forest Policy. 2006.Available at: http://www.gov.mu/portal/site/forestry

�Rouillard, G. and Guého, J., 1985.Histoire des Plantes d’interetHorticole, Medicinal et Economiquea L’ile Maurice. Henry & Cie Ltée,Ile Maurice.

P Khurun,Acting Deputy Conservatorof Forests,Forestry Service Headquarters,Botanical Gardens Street,Curepipe, Mauritius.Email: [email protected]

where these values are instilled inyoung children for the development ofa more conservation-consciousgeneration. Normally the schoolcurriculum does promote conservationeducation. However having thesespecimens in the school backyard is anadded advantage for teachers. Thus awin-win situation arises for the both theForestry Service, with more sites for exsitu conservation and increased treecover and for school teachers who areable to conduct more lively classeswithout leaving the school compound.The role of the Forestry Service is acontinuous one as it provides adviceon aftercare management of thesenature corners.

The Forestry Service believes thatenvironmental education andconservation awareness programmesare vitally important and should start ata very tender age. The Forestry Servicebelieves in involving citizens in theconservation of their biodiversity andnatural resources. Encouragingchildren to take an interest in nature isan important part of this process. Likethe Monvert Nature Walk, two morenature walks have already beencreated in other distinct areas and afourth nature walk with a strongcomponent of fauna is presently beingestablished.

Nature Corner in Schools

In an attempt to promote ex situconservation in urban areas, theForestry Service has also launched avery challenging project to createnature corners in schools and colleges.Small areas, normally 20m x 20m areidentified within the school compound,the area is fenced and endemic plantsare introduced into these areas by thestudents themselves.

The Forestry Service provides plantingmaterials and fencing free of charge,including labour, to set up the naturecorners. Lectures and talks are alsodelivered in the schools by ForestOfficers. The topic of the lectures isalways focused on the conservation ofendemic plants.

This project has helped the in thecreation of new areas for:

• Ex situ conservation of endemicspecies

• Increased tree cover• Popularization of endemic species

as landscaping components

Up to now about 80 schools havebenefited from this programme.The Forestry Service believes thatconservation awareness and educationshould start from the Primary level,

25

Far left:

Dombeya

acutangular

var. rosea

Left: The fernery

with a vast

collection of

ferns and

orchids

Below: Nature

lovers in the

arboretum


Short communication

Propagation and cultivation of Sakura(Prunus sargentii) in the Main BotanicGardens, Russian Academy of Sciences

Author: Zarema Smirnova

Right:

Sakura in the

nursery of Main

Botanic Garden

RAS

Introduction

For the Japanese, Sakura is a sacredplant and when it blossoms, it is adelight to behold. In the spring over100,000 tourists come from everycorner of the world to admire thefamous cherry blossom. As Japan ismade up of a series of islands withdifferent climatic conditions, theflowering period for Sakura can last fortwo full months. The first flower budsbegin to open in the middle of Marchon the Southern part of Kyushu andthe last buds are finished by the middleof May on Hokkaido Island.Sakura is not a defined plant, nor evena particular species. It is an image.In Japan several species of endemiccherries, such as Prunus jamasakura,P. sargentii, P. incisa, P. vericunda,P. lannesiana var. speciosa, P.maximowiczii, P. nipponica, P. pendulaf. ascendens, P. apetala, P.buergeriana, and P. grayana, are allknown as ‘Sakura’.

Trees without flowers cannot be called‘Sakura’; and the 11 speciesmentioned above are only calledSakura during the days when they areblossoming. The most importantpurpose of Sakura in ancient times wasits honored function in relation to themoon calendar. Sakura in bloommeans it is time for planting rice.Sakura was also a symbol of puritybecause its petals fell not wilted, butfresh and tender.

Propagating and growingSakura

In the nursery of the Main BotanicGarden of the Russia Academy ofSciences (RAS), experience has beengained in propagating and growingPrunus sargentii.

In 1996, the Japanese Sakura Societypresented the Main Botanic Gardenwith 100 two-year old sprigs of Prunussargentii from Hokkaido Island. Someof those plants were planted in theJapanese Garden in the Main BotanicGarden RAS and others in the nurseryof the Department of Plant Propagationwith the purpose of studying thepropagation and cultivation of thisremarkable species under Russianclimatic conditions.

At the end of May, 2001, green cuttingsof Prunus sargentii were treated with astimulator of root formation (0.05%Cirkon) and planted into hotbeds forrooting. From 60 cuttings, 30 rooted;50% is a good rate for this species.

In the middle of July, 2004, 400 greencuttings were treated with a 0.005%solution of indolebutyric acid (IBA) for16 hours and then planted. Theresulting root formation was 13%.In 2005, 270 green cuttings were takenin the middle of June and treated with0.01% IBA for 6 hours. Good rootingwas shown in 15% of the cuttings.These experiments showed that it ispossible to obtain reasonable results ifselection, concentration and the periodof treatment of cuttings with rootformation stimulators is done carefully.

Seed propagation is however a morereliable method of propagation forSakura. Many years of observationshow that although Prunus sargentii inthe nursery of Main Botanic Gardenblooms yearly, it blooms eithersporadically or massively. In 2005, P.sargentii was exceptionally abundant inflowering and fruiting. Many fruits wereset and ripened. Within the onespecies, P. sargentii, a diversity of colorof fruits was noted: one tree producedreddish-brown fruits; the othersproduced fruits that were yellow andyellow-orange with red sides.

Seed were collected in two batches.The first was collected in the middle ofJune, 2005. The drupes were cleanedof fruit pulp and soaked in water fortwenty-four hours. On the next day theseeds were planted in the beds. Manyseedlings appeared in the spring of2006, between 20-25 April. Among the285 drupes planted, 188 sprouted: agermination rate of 66%.

The second batch of fruits wascollected 10 days later (24 June 2005),cleaned and immediately planted inbeds. Seedlings appeared on 4-6 May,2006. Among 136 seeds planted, 98sprouted. The germination rate was72%. Prunus sargentii thereforeshowed a high percentage ofgermination when freshly collectedseeds were planted without additionaltreatments.

During the period of vegetative growthin 2006, seedlings reached a height of20-25 cm and a root collar thickness of0.7 cm. Young plants demanded lightand even in light shadow, grew outtowards the light. Young plants passedthrough the winter successfully. Nodamaged sprouts and/or buds on livingplants were noted.

In May 2007, some one-year oldseedlings were planted in plasticcontainers for further observations ofgrowth and development. The otherseedlings remained in the beds in openground.

The height increase of second yearseedlings during one month was onaverage 15-25 cm. The secondarybranches were formed and the mainshoot was clearly defined. By thespring of 2008, the average height ofplants was 75-100 cm. and some ofthe plants were sold because theinterest and demand for this crop isvery high.

Conclusion

It is clear that Prunus sargentii grows,flowers and fruits well at the MainBotanic Garden RAS, and that thisspecies can be proposed for masspropagation. This species is thereforesuitable for enriching the assortment ofornamental woody plants in the centralpart of Russia.

Author’s details:Zarema Smirnova,Main Botanical Gardens,Russian Academy of Sciences,Botanicheskaya St. 4,Moscow 127276, Russia.Email: [email protected]



Resources

Books and journals

Viumbe hai: African Cities, Ecosystemsand BiodiversityThe various case studies presented in thispublication illustrate the importance andbenefits of ecosystems and biodiversity tothe overall well-being of city inhabitants.The value of biodiversity and ecosystems isanother irreplaceable service provided tohumankind and especially to urbandwellers. The case studies highlight theimportance of cities in the context ofregional and global efforts to protect andmanage vulnerable urban ecosystems andbiodiversity. Appropriately managed andconserved ecosystems provide cities witha variety of benefits, contribute towardscity and national economies, provide anopportunity to improve human well-beingand can play a key role in the reduction ofurban poverty. In contrast, poorly managedand degraded urban ecosystems can leadto air, water and soil pollution whichincreases input prices and operating costsfor industry as well as for the provision ofbasic urban services by local governments.Depleted natural resources in and around acity deter new investments, deteriorate thehealth of city residents and lead to incomelosses due to sick leave.

With growing urbanization in Africa, citiesneed to mainstream biodiversitymanagement into city planning. Africancities are leading by example: Cape Town,

Accra, Nairobi,eThekwini, Dar esSalaam, and Walvis Bayare showing us howcities can reap social,economic andenvironmental benefitsfrom functioning andintegrated urbanecosystems andbiodiversity.

Available for download from:http://www.unhabitat.org/pmss/getPage.asp?page=bookView&book=2485

Ecology, Planning and Management ofUrban ForestsUrban forests play a fundamentallyimportant role in building ecological cities.They improve the environmental quality ofthe urban environment and the aestheticsof urban landscapes, and in manydeveloped and developing countries,the evolution of urban forestry has been

recognized as anessential means ofmaintaining urbanecosystem health,improving humanliving conditions,fostering aharmonious human-nature relationship,and ultimatelyachieving urban sustainability.

Ecology, Planning and Management ofUrban Forests contains studies andperspectives on urban forests from a broadarray of basic and applied scientificdisciplines including ecosystem ecology,biogeochemistry, landscape ecology, plantcommunity ecology, geography, and socialscience. The book contains contributionsfrom experts in Asia, Europe, and NorthAmerica, allowing the reader to evaluatemethods and management that areappropriate for particular geographic,environmental, and socio-political contexts.Urban forests are also approached onregional and landscape scales toencompass more natural environments inand around cities, rather than withinarbitrary municipal boundaries. The studiesprovided are intended to motivatescientists, planners, and managers to worktogether and to adopt a broader landscapeecology approach to urban forestry, and inso doing, better address the pressingneeds for improving the quality of life inurban environments.

Edited by: Margaret M. Carreiro, Yong-Chang Song and Jianguo WuPublished by Springer: Series onEnvironmental Management. 2007.ISBN: 978-0-387-71424-0

Making Contracts Work for Wildlife: howto encourage biodiversity in urban parksToday, more than ever before, weunderstand that promoting biodiversity inour parks is not something that we can justleave to chance. Rather than letting naturetake its course,parks need carefulday-to-daymanagement todeliver environmentswhere nature canflourish. MakingContracts Work forWildlife advisesgreen spaceprofessionals on

how to make the most of the potential forbiodiversity in our urban parks. And itshows how the commitment of individualsand employers can make the differencebetween failure and inspiring success.

Published by the Commission forArchitecture and the Built Environment(CABE)White Oak Press, 2006, 63 pp.ISBN: 1-84633-007-6

Guide to city greeningRecuperando o verde para as cidades: aexperiência dos jardins botânicosbrasileiros / organizadores.This publication provides a series of casestudies and guidelines for city greeningprogrammes, based on the experiences ofBrazilian botanic gardens. The publicationincludes sections on: creating and

managing a seednursery; therestoration ofdegraded areas; therescue of threatenedspecies; educationfor conservation;using native speciesin amenity planting;and urban parks forconservation.

Edited by: Tânia Sampaio Pereira, MariaLúcia Nova de Costa and Peter WyseJackson, Rio de Janeiro: Rede Brasileirade Jardins Botânicos; Instituto dePesquisas Jardim Botânico do Rio deJaneiro, BGCI 2007. 208p.ISBN 978-85-98262-07-9.Copies of the publication are available fromTânia Sampaio Pereira, Jardim Botânico doRio de Janeiro. In Portuguese.

Urban Forests and Trees:A Reference BookThis book covers all aspects of planning,designing, establishing and managingforests and trees and forests in and nearurban areas. The disciplinary backgroundof the authors is varied, ranging fromforestry and horticulture to landscapeecology, landscape architecture and evenplant pathology.

The first part of the book deals with theconcept, history, form, function andbenefits of urban forests and urban trees.These are followed by the chapters in thesecond part that focus on the morestrategic aspects of accommodating the

demands of the urban population,including policies, design, publicparticipation and partnerships. In the thirdpart the main emphasis is on theestablishment and selection of trees forurban uses, as well as information ongrowing conditions specific for urbanareas. Part four deals with themanagement of urban forests and trees,including the use of information inmanagement and includes a chaptergiving an overview of arboriculturalpractices. Finally the book concludes withthree chapters that provide an overview ofresearch and education in the field as wellas shedding some light on the futureperspectives for planning and managingurban forests and trees.

Edited by: C.C. Konijnendijk,K. Nilsson, Th.B. Randrup andJ. Schipperijn.Published by Springer. 2005. 516 p.ISBN: 978-3-540-25126-2

The Ecological City: Preserving andRestoring Urban BiodiversityThis book is based largely around paperspresented at the symposium “SustainableCities – Preserving and Restoring UrbanBiodiversity” which was held in Chicago in1990. The symposium focused on threekey areas: the functions of biodiversitywithin urban areas; the impact ofurbanization upon biodiversity; and waysto design cities compatible with theirecological contexts. The book isinterdisciplinary in content, and thecollection of essays it includes look at theecology of urban communities, exploringissues of geography, ecology, landscapearchitecture, urban forestry, law andenvironmental education. Broad overviewsof common problems are accompanied byspecific case studies. Part 1 of the bookcomprises a trio of overview papers by ageographer, a landscape architect and awetlands ecologist. The next two partsaddress biodiversity issues – relatingrespectively to urban aquatic ecosystemsand terrestrial ecosystems, includingurban forests, meadows and arid biomes.

Edited by: Rutherford H. Platt, Rowan A.Rowntree, and Pamela C. Muick.Published by: University of MassachusettsPress. 1994. 336p.ISBN: 978-0870238840

Landscape and Urban PlanningAn international journal of landscapeecology, planning and design

Landscape and Urban Planning isconcerned with conceptual, scientific, anddesign approaches to land use. Itemphasizes ecological understanding anda multi-disciplinary approach to analysis,

planning and design. The journal attemptsto draw attention to the interrelated natureof problems posed by nature and humanuse of land. Papers deal with ecologicalprocesses interacting within urban areas,and between these areas and thesurrounding natural systems whichsupport them.

Published by ElsevierISSN: 0169-2046

Web resources

Liveable Cities: The Benefits of UrbanEnvironmental PlanningFrom the use of horse-drawn carriages tosolve public transport shortage inBayamo, Cuba to an emissions tradingscheme in Taiyuan, China, cities aroundthe world are providing inspiring examplesin the global quest for sustainability andthe fight against climate change. Thereport “Liveable Cities: The Benefits ofUrban Environmental Planning”, publishedby UNEP, Cities Alliance and ICLEI,showcases 12 examples of cities aroundthe world. It explores various options forsustainable urban development rangingfrom practical tools and comprehensivepolicies to innovative market mechanisms,and makes a strong case for theenvironment as the key asset for cities.

The Cities Alliance, 2007http://www.citiesalliance.org/index.html

UN-HabitatThe United Nations Human SettlementsProgramme, UN-HABITAT, is the UnitedNations agency for human settlements. Itis mandated by the UN General Assemblyto promote socially and environmentallysustainable towns and cities with the goalof providing adequate shelter for all. Themain documents outlining the mandate ofthe organization are the VancouverDeclaration on Human Settlements,Habitat Agenda, Istanbul Declaration onHuman Settlements, the Declaration onCities and Other Human Settlements inthe New Millennium, and Resolution56/206.

UN-Habitat’s Urban Environment Sectionhelps cities get the most out of their vitalrole in social and economic developmentby promoting better environmentalpolicies and programmes and improvingurban environmental management.www.unhabitat.org

Nature in the cityThe mission of Nature in the City is toconserve and restore the nature andbiodiversity of San Francisco and connectpeople with nature where they live.

Ecological restoration and long-termecological sustainability depend uponpeople and institutions changing how theyinteract with their local naturalenvironment. In San Francisco, a newculture of local community ecologicalstewardship is emerging.

While Nature in the City focuses oninspiring wonder, knowledge, celebrationand respect for the San Franciscanbioregion and restoring urban people’ssense of place and interconnectednesswith their local biodiversity, the websitealso provides a wide selection of urbannature and biodiversity links.www.natureinthecity.org

Biocity – Centre for Urban habitatsAdelaide, established in Australia 1836,led the world in environmental planninginnovation. Since then the community hasmaintained an active interest in theprotection, enhancement and enrichmentof the urban environment. BioCity: TheCentre for Urban Habitats has beenestablished to further promote urbanenvironmental awareness throughenvironmental research, communicationand education programmes.

BioCity is a partnership between theleading ecological and environmentalinstitutions in the State including local andstate governments, industry and thecommunity. The Centre is hosted by theDiscipline of Environmental Biology,School of Earth and EnvironmentalSciences at the University of Adelaide.http://biocity.edu.au/

The Centre for Urban EcologyThe Center for Urban Ecology (CUE)identifies and responds to the naturalresource needs of the National CapitalRegion (NCR), located in the Washington,D.C. metropolitan area.http://www.nps.gov/cue/index.htm

Conferences

International Conference on UrbanBiodiversity - 2008Biodiversity in the city: reality or utopia?On September 26, 2008 the ObservatoireDépartemental de la Biodiversité Urbainede Seine-Saint-Denis (the Seine-Saint-Denis Departmental Observatory onUrban Biodiversity), in association with theNational Natural History Museum, ishosting a conference on the theme:“Dealing with biodiversity in the city: anew challenge?”.

Further information: www.biodiv93.org/



Formal Board Resolution or other form of approval Please Tickfrom relevant governing bodies (e.g. universityauthorities, local, regional or national government

Informal E.g. by Director/Senior staff.

International Agenda for Botanic Gardens in ConservationRegistration Form

Please register your contributions to the International Agenda for Botanic Gardens in Conservation

Name of Institution

Name of responsibleperson

Position

Date ofRegistration

Date

Address

Type of Registration

BGCI would welcome copies of any formal resolution, motion or other form of endorsement.

Declaration

This institution welcomes the International Agenda for Botanic Gardens in Conservation as a global framework for thedevelopment of institutional policies and programmes in plant conservation for botanic gardens.

Without imposing any obligations or restrictions (legal or otherwise) on the policies or activities of thisinstitution/organisation, we commit ourselves to working to achieve the objectives and targets of theInternational Agenda for Botanic Gardens in Conservation.

Please sign and detach this registration form and send it to The Secretary General, Botanic Gardens ConservationInternational, Descanso House, 199 Kew Road, Richmond, Surrey TW9 3BW, U.K.

Thank you for registering with the International Agenda for Botanic Gardens in Conservation.

Please keep a duplicate copy of this form for your records.

Email

Signed

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The mission of BGCI is to mobilisebotanic gardens and engagepartners in securing plant diversityfor the well-being of people and theplanet. It was founded in 1987 andnow includes over 525 memberinstitutions in 115 countries.

Institutions can join BGCI for the following benefits:• Membership of the worldwide plant conservation network• Botanic Garden Management Resource Pack (upon joining)*• Regular publications:

- the regular newsletter, Cuttings- BGjournal – an international journal for botanic gardens (2 per year)- Roots - environmental education review (2 per year)- A wide range of new publications

• Invitations to BGCI congresses and discounts on registration fees• BGCI technical support and advisory services

• Regular publications:- the regular newsletter, Cuttings- BGjournal - an international journal for botanic gardens (2 per year)- Roots - Environmental Education Review (2 per year)

• Invitations to BGCI congress and discounts on registration fees

J Conservation donor (BGjournal, Roots and Cuttings plus more) 250 500 350K Associate member (Cuttings and BGjournal) 40 80 60L Associate member (Cuttings and Roots) 40 80 60M Friend (Cuttings) available through online subscription only (www.bgci.org) 10 20 15

Institution Membership £ Stlg US $ € Euros

Individual Membership £ Stlg US $ € Euros

How to join Botanic Gardens Conservation International

Other Membership Categories:

Membership benefits depend oncategory - see below. These caninclude:

*Contents of the Botanic Garden Management Resource Pack: The Darwin Technical Manual for Botanic Gardens, A CITES Manual for Botanic Gardens,A Handbook for Botanic Gardens on the Reintroduction of Plants to the Wild, BGjournal - an international journal for botanic gardens (2 past issues),Roots - environmental education review (2 past issues), The International Agenda for Botanic Gardens in Conservation, Global Strategy for PlantConservation, Environmental Education in Botanic Gardens, BG-Recorder (a computer software package for plant records).

A BGCI Patron Institution 5000 8000 7500B Institution member (budget more than US$2,250,000) 750 1500 1000C Institution member (budget US$ 1,500,000 - 2,250,000) 500 1000 720D Institution member (budget US$ 750,000 - 1,500,000) 350 700 500E Institution member (budget US$ 100,000 - 750,000) 185 370 265F Institution member (budget below US$100,000)* 85 170 125

*Generally applies to institutions in less developed countries

Payment may be made by cheque payable to Botanic Gardens Conservation International, or online at www.bgci.org or by VISA/Mastercardsent to BGCI, Descanso House, 199 Kew Road, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 3BW, U.K or Fax: +44 (0) 20 8332 5956.

� I wish to apply for membership of Botanic Gardens Conservation International.

Name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Telephone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Address . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Fax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

E-mail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Internet site . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Membership category . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Annual rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

VISA/Mastercard number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Credit card expiry date . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Signature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Print name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

� I would like to make a donation to BGCI. Amount . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Please clearly state your name (or the name of your institution) on all documentation. Please contact [email protected] for further information.

Botanic GardensConservation International

Descanso House, 199 Kew Road,Richmond, Surrey, TW9 3BW, U.K.

Tel: +44 (0)20 8332 5953Fax: +44 (0)20 8332 5956E-mail: [email protected]: www.bgci.org

Printed on 100% recycled paper ISSN 1811-8712

Plants and climate change:which future?

BGCI’s latest report details how plants and climate change areintimately connected, and explains why it is crucially important forus to act now to save the world’s plants.

The report provides referenced information and case studies that:• Examine the effects of climate change on plants (from individualcellular responses to entire ecosystem changes)

• Describe how the impact of climate change on plants will affect theanimals and humans who depend upon them

• Explain which species are most at risk of extinction• Recommend actions needed to ensure a future for the world’s plants

Copies are available to BGCI members at the discounted price of£10.00 (UK/Europe), £13.00 Rest of World including postage andpackaging. (Non members £12.50/£15.50).

To order ONLINE visit http://www.bgci.org/worldwide/2069/

To order by MAIL please complete the form below and send toSue Malin, Botanic Gardens Conservation International,199 Kew Road, Richmond Surrey, TW9 3BW.

This publication is supported by theRufford Maurice Laing Foundation

ORDER FORM for BGCI’s report on Plants and climate change: which future?

Name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Address . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Post code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Phone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . E-mail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Are you a BGCI member? Y / N (circle one) Membership type: Individual / Institutional / Conservation Donor

Institution Name (if applicable) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Payment Pricing

Circle one: Visa MasterCard Cheque enclosed Number of copies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Credit Card No: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . x £10.00/£13.00 (BGCI member) . . . . . . . . . .

Expiry date: . . / . . . . Security code (3 digits on back of card): . . . . . x £12.50/£15.50 ( non member) . . . . . . . . . . .

Signature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Total cost . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

� Please tick to receive future updates on BGCI’s plant conservation work around the world.

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Transcript of Botanic gardens and urban biodiversity...02 04 08 11 15 19 23 26 28 31 32 Contents Editors: Suzanne...