Botanic Gardens and Conservation

Transcription

1 Botanic Gardens and Conservation Introduction The previous three seed lists featured short articles on subjects related to seed storage. These included: The History of the Seed Program at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden (2001), Seed Collecting Guidelines (2005) and Seed Storage Guidelines (2008). Provided here with this issue is an essay titled Botanic Gardens and Conservation. This short piece is in part a compilation of material and perspectives from previous talks given by the author. It is not intended to be authoritative but rather instructive and to provide some background perspective on this worthwhile topic. February 1, 2011 Michael Wall Curator and Seed Conservation Program Manager Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden Bouteloua gracilis Judy Hayami Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden 2009

2 Conservation noun 1. The act of conserving, guarding, or keeping with care; preservation from loss, decay, injury, or violation; the keeping of a thing in a safe and entire state.1 Botanic Gardens and Conservation The Botanic Garden of the University of Padua in northeastern Italy is considered the oldest University Botanic Garden in continuous operation. Established in 1545, it was founded as a medicinal garden to grow and display both native and exotic plants for scientific and teaching purposes. The Garden was used exclusively for medicinal plants; at the time, this was the primary use for most plant species.2 Botanic gardens gradually evolved and developed to a greater or lesser degree in response to the scientific and societal interests and needs prevalent during their time. From the 1889 Century Dictionary this 19th century definition of a botanic garden reflects a growing scientific and academic purpose: Botanic Garden noun 1. a garden devoted to the culture of plants collected for the purpose of illustrating the science of botany.3 In a paper on the role of botanical gardens, Ferdinand Mueller (director of the Royal Botanic Gardens in Melbourne, from 1852 to 1873), stated that "In all cases the objects [of a botanical garden] must be mainly scientific and predominantly instructive." He then listed the ʻobjectsʼ to give a sense of the scope of botanical gardens' activities at that time, and the ways in which they differed from parks or what he called "public pleasure gardens".4 Further emphasizing this golden age of discovery and scientific exploration, the Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium at Cornell University published the following definition of a botanic garden: "The botanic garden may be an independent institution, a governmental operation, or affiliated to a college or university. If a department of an educational institution, it may be related to a teaching program. In any case, it exists for scientific ends and is not to be restricted or diverted by other demands. It is not merely a landscaped or ornamental garden, although it may be artistic, nor is it an experiment station or yet a park with labels on the plants. The essential element is the intention of the enterprise, which is the acquisition and dissemination of botanical knowledge".5 1 The Century Dictionary: pg. 1206, accessed 2 October 2010, Wikipedia: accessed 2 October 2010, 3 The Century Dictionary: pg. 635, accessed 2 October 2010, 4 Wikipedia: accessed 9 September 2010, 5 Wordweb online: accessed 9 September 2010, 2

3 New directions The founding of the Center for Plant Conservation (CPC) in 1984 and Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) in 1987 represents a major shift in botanic garden mission and purpose. This change may be argued to have evolved in direct response to a growing societal awareness of the intrinsic value of non-domesticated plant and animal species and a growing interest in the protection of the habitats and associated species that support them. Botanic Gardens Conservation Internationalʼs definition of a botanic garden reflects this change: "Botanic gardens are institutions holding documented collections of living plants for the purposes of scientific research, conservation, display and education". 6 While the late 1900s witnessed a dynamic period of rapid development in plant conservation programs at botanic gardens, the early 1900s can be seen as the birth of this movement. In his First Fifty Years narrative on the founding of Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden and Susanna Bixby Bryantʼs dream of a wild California garden, Dr. Lee W. Lenz notes that: The first three decades of the twentieth century culminated in the establishment of three botanic gardens devoted entirely to the native plants of California. 7 These were The Blakesley Botanic Garden, 1926 (now the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden), the Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden,1927, and the Castle Lodge Naturalistic Botanical Gardens of California, The early 1900s was a period wherein the industrial revolution precipitated a great clamor of environmental concern, giving voice to such notable conservationists as John Muir, 9 Aldo Leopold, 10 Margaret Murie, 11 and Will Rogers, 12 among many others. Like so many during her time, Susanna Bixby Bryant was without doubt a sympathetic follower of these advocates of conservation and her concerns for the plight of her native flora were expressed in her original statement of purpose for her Garden at the Rancho Santa Ana. (b) To preserve the native California flora, try to replenish the depleted supply of some of the rarest plants which are rapidly being exterminated, and bring together in a comparatively small area as complete a collection of the rich store of California native plants as can be grown in the southern section of the state 13 6 Botanic Gardens Conservation International: accessed 9 September 2010, 7 Aliso, Journal of the Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden: Volume 9, Number 1, pg. 8 8 Aliso, Journal of the Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden: Volume 9, Number 1, pg God has cared for these trees, saved them from drought, disease, avalanches, and a thousand tempests and floods. But he cannot save them from fools. John Muir ( ) 10 We abuse land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect. Aldo Leopold ( ) 11 "I hope the United States of America is not so rich that she can afford to let these wildernesses pass by, or so poor she cannot afford to keep them." Margaret Murie ( ) 12 Our good fortune canʼt possibly last any longer than our natural resources. Will Rogers ( ) 13 Aliso, Journal of the Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden: Volume 9, Number 1, Appendix 1, pg. 132

4 The modern botanic garden Today BGCI membership has grown to 88 U.S. gardens and more than 500 botanic gardens worldwide. More than half of this membership (260 gardens) are both BGCI member gardens and signatory institutions for the International Agenda for Botanic Gardens in Plant Conservation (25 U.S. gardens). The International Agenda signifies that member gardens have an active conservation program, operate within the guidelines of the Global Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and agree to report its conservation work so that BGCI can help monitor and evaluate the implementation of the International Agenda. The results are included in its report to the International Botanic Gardens Conservation Congress, which is held every three years. 14 The Center for Plant Conservation founded in 1984 to conserve and restore the imperiled native plants of the United States and to secure them from extinction 15 has a current membership of 36 gardens in 19 states. The germplasm collections in the CPC National Collection today represent more than 700 of the nationʼs rarest and most severely threatened plant species. While the CPCʼs original focus was on preventing extinction through the establishment of conservation collections, conservation work at the member gardens since the organizationʼs founding has grown exponentially with the contributions to plant conservation by botanic gardens today being numerous, varied, and not at all inconsequential. These contributions to conservation are often referred to as being either in situ or ex situ. The term in situ originates from Latin, 'in' its (original) place or position and ex situ from ex or 'out of' its (original) place or position. 16 Some common examples of in situ conservation activities conducted by botanic gardens are: 1. Floristic surveys; the field documentation of plant diversity and species presence. 2. Rare plant population monitoring; physically tracking the presence of individuals over time to answer specific biological or climatic questions. 3. Restoration and recovery; the collecting of seeds, cuttings, or plants; site selection, preparation, and out-planting of declining or extirpated plant populations. 4. Documentation and publication; the presentation and publication of field research, project status reports, and species management guidelines. Typical ex situ conservation programs at botanic gardens would be: 1. Collections; the acquisition, curation, and maintenance of living plant, seed bank, DNA, and herbarium collections, as well as research reference literature collections. 2. Horticulture; providing expertise and services in the propagation and production of native plants including cloning, tissue culture, micropropagation, and seed bulking. 14 Botanic Gardens Conservational International: accessed 11 October 2010, 15 Center for Plant Conservation: accessed 29 November 2010, 16 Online Etymology Dictionary: accessed 14 October 2010,

5 3. Population genetic analysis; the ability at a molecular level to quantify and predict the current health and future stability of rare plant populations. 4. Education; providing classes, programs, and collection interpretation to increase public interest and awareness and to provide educational opportunities for both the interested individual and for working professionals in the field of plant conservation. In addition to these services, botanic gardens, particularly those in large metropolitan areas, serve as critical islands of biodiversity providing much needed food and habitat for both local and migratory animal species. This is especially true for the less manicured garden, those that are physically connected with remnant natural areas, and gardens that maintain a high diversity of local native plants in their collections. This added diversity also increases the educational value of the collections by the increased learning opportunities associated with the botanic garden. The future Botanic gardens have always served as links between man and nature. Given that most people live in cities and only occasionally venture out into or have any significant interaction with the natural environment, botanic gardens play an important role in reconnecting their visitors with the natural world and to the important processes that support life on this planet. While wellcurated collections displaying the botanical wealth of the earth's biodiversity are wonders to experience, if these collections are displayed only as interesting and lovely botanical accessions, gardens are missing an opportunity to provide a much greater service. It is natural for modern botanic gardens to serve as local education centers for sustainable living and land stewardship, thus providing greater advocacy and support of conservation. In a democratic society conservation of the natural world is conditional upon the understanding and sympathies of the general public. 17 There is no place better suited to teach conservation and sustainable use of our natural resources than at a botanic garden. For it is at this particular type of garden where the visitor, being exposed to and inspired by the great diversity of life on our planet, is more open to being informed on the necessities of conservation and on a larger scale, of the value and the role of all living things. Well-developed education programs can be a garden's most effective contribution in furthering conservation. Through classes, symposia, and partnerships, botanic gardens provide invaluable expertise in the fields of plant taxonomy, native plant horticulture, field collection, and monitoring that enhance the abilities of hundreds, if not thousands, of conservation professionals working outside the institution. 18 Botanic Gardens are also irreplaceable storehouses of data whose reference collections, e.g., herbariums, libraries, and living collections, further support conservation work outside the botanic institution. 17 "In the end we will conserve only what we love. We love only what we understand. We will understand only what we are taught." Baba Dioum 1968, accessed 15 December 2010, 18 "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." Lao Tzu. The Quotation Page: accessed 15 December 2010,

6 Value and accessibility of collections There are currently over 2,700 botanic gardens and arboreta in existence in 180 countries around the world. Collectively, they cultivate nearly 200,000 taxa, representing around 93,000 species (almost one-third of all known plant species). 19 Despite progress made over the recent decade, there remains a great deal of work to be done in making the existence, quality, and associated data of these ex situ collections better known, more useful, and more readily accessible to research scientists, land managers, natural resource regulatory agencies, and native plant conservation organizations. In their targets for 2010, BGCI presents a comprehensive list of goals that can be useful to gardens that wish to increase their contributions to conservation. 20 In building new conservation programs or strengthening existing ones, botanic gardens can and should strive to serve an ever more focused and prominent role in keeping our planet in a safe and entire state. 19 Botanic Gardens Conservation International: International Agenda draft second edition, pg. 9, accessed 1 October 2011, 20 Botanic Gardens Conservation International: accessed 11 October 2010,

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