Sibbaldia - the Journal of Botanic Garden Horticulture (Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh Journals)
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Harcourt Arboretum
Get PDFHarcourt Arboretum has been managed by the University of Oxford Botanic Garden since 1963. The year 2013 will be the 50th anniversary of this union and improvements to the visitor facilities which will provide increased educational opportunities are planned as part of these celebrations. Details of the history, management and developments are provided along with images of the Arboretum
Horticultural Protocols to Aid the Conservation of Melampyrum sylvaticum, Orobanchaceae (Small Cow-Wheat), an Endangered Hemiparasitic Plant
Get PDFSmall cow-wheat is an annual, hemiparasitic plant that is endangered in the UK. Attempts at restoration have been hampered by a lack of species-specific horticultural knowledge. This paper outlines the methods used to collect, store and germinate small cow-wheat seed, and to cultivate the plant at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. The germination rates achieved using two different approaches are reported and the factors potentially influencing germination and establishment success are discussed
Onset of Flowering in Biennial and Perennial Garden Plants: Association with Variable Weather and Changing Climate Between 1978 and 2007
Get PDFObservations were made weekly over a period of 30 years of 208 species (trees, shrubs, herbaceous plants and geophytes) from more than 1,000 growing in a garden located 18km east of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE), Scotland (lat. 55º 56ʹN: long. 3º 09ʹW). Of these species, 27 were British native or naturalised.The First Flowering Dates (FFD) of 67 species were without significant temperature association with variable weather; the FFDs of the other 141 species reflected, in contrast, the net outcome of ‘major’ associations with late winter/spring temperatures and smaller impacts of autumn/early winter temperatures. Increases in late winter and spring temperatures advanced the onset of flowering in the current year; in contrast, increases in autumn and early winter temperatures tended to be associated with delayed flowering in the following year.With stepwise regression, penalised signal regression and thermal-time models, it was possible to identify species with ‘strong’ associations with both air and soil temperatures and species with ‘weak’ associations with either air or soil temperatures.Thermal-time models for each of 120 species, whose FFDs were associated with temperature, enabled the characterisation of (1) base temperatures, Tb(°C), at, and above which, development towards open flowers is possible; and (2) thermal constants (degree days accumulated between the start of development and the onset of flowering). Together these attributes suggested that each base temperature cohort has species with widely different degree-day requirements. Between 1978 and 2007 mean air temperatures significantly increased by 0.080°C, 0.044°C and 0.026°C yrˉ¹ in the first, second and third quarters; soil temperatures increased by 0.060ºCyrˉ¹in the first quarter. Over the 30-year period, the trends in flowering showed the early (February/March) flowering species flowering c. 24 days sooner; the later flowering species (April/May) advanced by only c. 12 days
Observations made while recreating a native Hawaiian forest
Get PDFSince 2007 staff at Limahuli Preserve have been developing practices to effectively reintroduce native plants into a highly degraded environment, creating a forest high in diversity and a safe habitat for some of the rarest plant species on the planet. Initial efforts were focused on the Limahuli Valley and limited progress was made because of the exposed conditions and prevalence of weed species. Relocation of the project to areas with tree cover has resulted in greater success. These successes have been built on to extend the project to the reintroduction of rare and endangered species. The methods used to transform a habitat where non-native and weed species dominate to one in which native, including endangered, species thrive is described. The value of staff with horticultural knowledge and experience of the habitat and climate is stated and ideas for the future of the habitat at Limahuli Preserve are given
Biodiversity Recording at Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh
Get PDFThe results of recording wildlife at the Edinburgh site of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) are presented in partial fulfilment of the Garden’s obligation to deliver the Scottish Biodiversity Duty. So far, 383 animal species (94 birds, 6 mammals, 3 amphibians, 15 butterflies, 79 moths, 48 hymenopterans, 52 hoverflies, 7 dragonflies and damselflies, 48 other insects, 5 spiders, 8 gall-forming mites, 12 rotifers, 5 cladocerans and 1 copepod) have been recorded. Tables giving lists of the various animal groups are presented. Half of the 103 vertebrates are listed in national Red Lists, the Scottish Biodiversity List or the Edinburgh Local Biodiversity Action PlanList of Notable Species
Prairie Gardening: Popular style, ambiguous terminology?
Get PDFThe paper attempts to unpick the real meaning of the term ‘prairie gardening’ and to explore its popularity in a European context. Establishment and maintenance techniques are also considered. The term is, however, applied without discrimination to a wide range of styles, from large-scale traditional prairie restoration or re-creation projects through to highly stylised prairie interpretations. Research included a literature review to assess the main ecological features of, and threats to, native North American Prairie and an examination of the origins of contemporary ‘prairie gardening’ in both the USA and Europe. Primary data was gathered from eight UK gardens associated with this planting style. The evidence suggests that the spectrum of styles encompassed by this term is broad even within the UK, a clear indication that its usage is over-simplistic and potentially ambiguous. The author offers her own classification of the genre under the umbrella term ‘prairie-style gardening’ in the hope of further clarification. The paper is a summary of a project which was carried out as part of the second-year project of the HND in Horticulture with Plantsmanship at Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh
Dimorphanthera (F. Muell, Ex Drude) F. Muell.: Ericaceous Gems from New Guinea at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh
Get PDFThe Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) holds major collections of plants from the family Ericaceae. One of the smaller genera within the collections in the glasshouses at Edinburgh is Dimorphanthera (F.Muell. ex Drude) F.Muell. A brief introduction and history is given for the genus Dimorphanthera along with an outline of the literature, a summary of its distribution, an overview and history of the collections at RBGE and cultivation notes
Establishing Ex Situ Conservation Methods for Dactylorhiza ebudensis and D. traunsteinerioides, a Combination of In Situ Turf Removal and In Vitro Germinations
Get PDFOrchidaceae is one of the most diverse flowering plant families in the world, occupying a diverse range of habitats from epiphytes to terrestrial forms. It is also one of the most vulnerable to changes in land use because of its complex ecological requirements. In nature, orchid seed will only grow if infected with a compatible fungus which provides all the carbohydrates and nutrients needed for its development. This mycotrophic mode of nourishment can persist underground for years in some orchids, which makes them difficult to observe in the wild. Understanding their behaviour is essential for their successful propagation and conservation. In an investigation looking into conservation and propagation, turves were lifted from wild populations of two rare Scottish orchid species in order to ensure the best possible association between these species and their growing environment. A combined in vitro experiment was set up for the wild harvested seeds under different media to compare their effects. Two different successful ex situ conservation methods for Dactylorhiza ebudensis and D. traunsteinerioides are presented