Author: Max ColemanPage 1 of 10

Elm in its place

A story that is told in pictures alone is somehow very satisfying. Nobody needs to be a wordsmith to get the message across. When Chris Puddephatt sent me…

Translocating resilience

Assisting the migration of plants is something that has already been carried out in a limited way to help them respond to climate change. The concern is that…

Scottish Plant Recovery updates

Monthly updates on the progress being made to restore the fortunes of some Scotland’s most threatened plants are now available online. The updates, produced by the Garden’s Scottish…

Scottish Plant Recovery: August 2024 update

The seed harvest of the annual hemiparasite small cow-wheat (Melampyrum sylvaticum) has produced 50,000 seeds. To read the full monthly update click the ‘download’ button below.

Scottish Plant Recovery: July 2024 update

The marsh saxifrage (Saxifraga hirculus) is beginning its second season of flowering and is thriving in the ‘Cascade’ created to provide optimal conditions for its cultivation. Water temperature…

Scottish Plant Recovery: June 2024 update

Trial translocations of alpine blue-sow-thistle (Cicerbita alpina) at Mar Lodge Estate are thriving with over 80 per cent survival three years after planting. To read the full monthly…

Scottish Plant Recovery: May 2024 update

A trial translocation of blaeberry (Vaccinium myrtillus) plants with small cow-wheat (Melampyrum sylvaticum) seeds was carried out at RBGE. The purpose of the trial was to test whether…

Scottish Plant Recovery: April 2024 update

The Last Ent of Affric was voted Scotland’s Tree of the Year in 2019. This isolated ancient wych elm (Ulmus glabra) now has a new generation of young…

Scottish Plant Recovery: March 2024 update

Good germination of the native crab apple (Malus sylvestris) underway in the nursery at RBGE. To read the full monthly update click the ‘download’ button below.

Scottish Plant Recovery: February 2024 update

Aline and Martine visited Balmoral Estate to explore the potential for species translocation to the estate. To read the full monthly update click the ‘download’ button below.

Scottish Plant Recovery: January 2024 update

Max joined a community celebration event organised by the Assynt community and planted the very first plant in a wild site on land adjacent to the Little Assynt…

Scottish Plant Recovery: December 2023 update

DNA extraction and genotyping of wych elm (Ulmus glabra) is producing the first data on genetic diversity in this species that has been decimated by Dutch elm disease…

Scottish Plant Recovery: November 2023 update

The Scottish Plant Recovery work was presented at the BSBI conference on 4 November to around 200 delegates. To read the full monthly update click the ‘download’ button…

Scottish Plant Recovery: October 2023 update

The Scottish Plant Recovery project now has a new shade tunnel at the RBGE nursery. This will provide valuable space for growing plants on prior to translocation to…

Scottish Plant Recovery: September 2023 update

A fieldtrip to Holy Island collected seed of the Arran whitebeams (Hedlundia species). These apomictic trees can be challenging to grow from seed due to low viability, so…

Scottish Plant Recovery: August 2023 update

Trial crossbreeding carried out between large surviving wych elm (Ulmus glabra) has resulted in about 250 seedlings that will be planted at translocation sites in spring 2024. These…

Scottish Plant Recovery: July 2023 update

The Scottish Plant Recovery Team visited Loch Arkaig to study one of the few wild populations of small cow-wheat (Melampyrum sylvaticum) that survives in Scotland. To read the…

Scottish Plant Recovery: June 2023 update

The construction of a facility called the ‘Cascade’ provides the very specific environmental requirements for marsh saxifrage (Saxifraga hirculus). This species has never before been kept alive in…

Scottish Plant Recovery: May 2023 update

Alistair Whyte of Plantlife visited the RBGE nursery to discuss the recovery work on marsh saxifrage (Saxifraga hirculus). To read the full monthly update click the ‘download’ button…

Scottish Plant Recovery: April 2023 update

Simon Milne, Regius Keeper, welcomes the newly appointed staff to RBGE who will be working on Scottish Plant Recovery funded by a three-year grant from NatureScot. To read…