Fight to save dying tree species
By Simon Hancock
BBC News, St Helena A botanist from Kew Gardens is fighting to save one of the rarest plant species in the world, the Bastard Gumwood tree. The last tree of this species is found on the tiny South Atlantic island of St Helena, and it is dying. To keep the Bastard Gumwood in existence, it needs to be pollinated so it will produce a fertile seed from which to grow new seedlings. Obtaining a pure seed from the tree is no easy task. The tree (Commidendrum rotundifolium) is enclosed in netting to prevent insects cross-pollinating with its near neighbour, the False Gumwood. But even then because there are no other individuals in existence, the tree must self-pollinate, which it stubbornly resists. And so it needs some help. Every day, botanist Phil Lambdon visits the site along with local conservationists. The team delicately uses small paint brushes to collect pollen grains, which they spread from one flower to another. But the odds are still against the Bastard Gumwood. “The tree just doesn’t want to pollinate itself,” said Dr Lambdon, the botanist visiting from Kew Gardens who is in charge of the effort.” …
