National Pinetum Tree News

 

by Chris Reynolds, Curator of the National Pinetum

Summer 2008

As Curator, I need to know exactly what I have in my collection. We have just completed a physical audit of all the living trees in the collection and the total number currently stands at 9194. Having a working list helps me to identify what species we are missing and increase the efficiency of any future collecting.

We have also nearly completed the mapping of the collection. The next task is to make sure all the trees are correctly labelled. By the autumn we should be able to integrate our Geographical Information System (GIS) with our database. Eventually, we hope to use the internet to locate every tree at Bedgebury.

As well as monitoring the existing collection, we have planted 813 new trees, most notably Rimu or Dacrydium cupressinum. A new species for Bedgebury, it normally grows in the warmer conditions of New Zealand. So we are trying it out in our climate as one of our growing list of 'experimental' trees.

After the Scouts' planting day last autumn, our Conifer Conservation Programme is entering its next phase. We have finalised the route round the geographical zones. Over the summer we will continue the preparation work; including thinning, putting in the access route, drainage, fencing, de-stumping and ground preparation.

Spring 2008

Spring is our first chance to see if all the trees planted last year have survived the winter. They receive lots of TLC in the nursery; being planted out and having to grow in often less than perfect conditions can come as a shock. But we don't lose many!

On average we plant around 550 trees per annum. Typically only 15 or so may not survive the first year. The main reasons for failure are heavy frosts, damage by animals and a few thefts. Sometimes they die for no obvious reason.

We are always experimenting with new plants and pushing the accepted boundaries for plant survival. Our goal is to grow all the conifer species that will survive in our climate. Climate change has meant that we are already seeing survival in trees that are classified as sub tropical.

Bedgebury is a test bed for new species. So keep your eyes open for some unique and wonderful new trees.

Winter 2007 

The Bedgebury Conifer Conservation Project

A new and exciting project to redevelop and replant the Plots Area of Bedgebury's National Pinetum is now underway. The old plots, near the Forestry Commission office, were badly damaged by the great storm of 1987 and many of the trials started there in the 1920s have now finished and the trees harvested.

The new plantings, which will be divided into six geographical areas (Europe & North Africa, Australasia, North, South and Central America and Asia), will reinforce Bedgebury's growing reputation in the international scientific field of plant conservation, particularly with the increasing threats posed by pollution, de-forestation and climate change.

The project will help forge even stronger links with other important UK botanic gardens as well as building on international relations fostered with China, Europe, Australia and the USA. The talk given earlier this year by curator Chris Reynolds at the Global Botanic Gardens Congress in Wuhan, China has given us access to many collections around the world.

Each species will be represented by between 250 and 500 trees of known origin. This will provide a wide pool of genetic material that will be available to other botanic gardens. Eventually the trees will be reintroduced to the wild.

Autumn 2007

Dan Luscombe, the National Pinetum's Propagator and Assistant Curator, has been on his travels again this autumn.

Bosnia & Serbia

In September he completed a six-day visit to Bosnia and Serbia to re-evaluate the conservation status of the threatened Serbian Spruce Picea omorika, using IUCN (World Conservation Union) conservation categories. With the recent unrest in former Yugoslavia, it has not been possible to access natural populations of this conifer species until now. As a result, its status may now be raised from vulnerable (facing a high risk of extinction in the wild) to critically endangered (facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild).

Whilst there, Dan made seed collections from this and other species, as September is normally the optimum time for seed collecting. As well as the National Arboreta (Bedgebury and Wetonbirt), these will go to the Millennium Seed Bank and Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.

West Coast USA

In October Dan repacked his bag and headed to the US West Coast with Pinetum Supervisor Julian Dormady to collect more tree seed. The trip to California and Oregon was a joint expedition with the Millennium Seed Bank (based at Wakehurst Place and managed by Kew).

This was the first time the National Arboreta had undertaken a field trip with other partners. Dan and Julian's role was to provide specialist conifer knowledge and tree climbing skills so that threatened conifer seed could be collected and banked at Wakehurst. Of course they have also brought back new material to enrich the botanical collections at Bedgebury, Westonbirt and a number of other FC Arboreta.

One of the National Pinetum’s main aims is to grow all the temperate conifer species from wild-collected plants. The US trip has filled important gaps in the collection, helping to deliver the accessions policy. It has also offered the chance to build a close working relationship with RBG Kew, develop new collecting techniques and protocols, study plant species in their natural habitat and raise the profile of the International Conifer Conservation Project at Begebury.

Dig, dig, dig! - Scouts’ Centenary planting at Bedgebury

Local Scouts, Cubs and Beavers teamed up with Bedgebury National Pinetum and the Woodland Trust, to plant two hundred endangered Chilean Plum Yews on Saturday 6^th October, to coincide with National Conifer Week.

This was part of a nation-wide ‘Scouts For Trees’ initiative launched by The Woodland Trust and The Scout Association to give the 400,000 Scouts in the UK the chance to plant a tree to mark the Centenary of Scouting in 2007.

Chris Reynolds, Curator of the National Pinetum explains; "These plantings mark the start of a long-term conifer conservation project to plant thousands of trees from all over the world in the Pinetum. This living gene bank will help ensure the long-term survival of endangered trees".

"The day focussed on planting the first trees in our South American area, " continues Chris. "First we showed each Scout group how we propagate the trees in our nursery. Then we took them up to the planting site and talked about why trees are threatened and why they need our help. Then finally they each helped to plant a tree. Every tree planter received a certificate with the name of the tree and its number, so that they can come back and see how it grows. It’s a great opportunity for young people to learn about and engage in woodland conservation."

230 Scouts from thirteen packs across Sussex and Kent took part in the plantings.

Autumn in the Pinetum

Another important theatre of operations is the roadside area of Churchill Wood. This clearance work has two main purposes. On the one hand, the removal of invasive Rhododendron ponticum, birch and laurel will allow new planting of groups and single specimens over the next twelve to eighteen months, to create a shop window for the national conifer collection. It will also improve visibility, and therefore road safety, on the B2079.

Summer 2007

National Pinetum Curator Chris Reynolds has recently returned from the third Global Botanic Gardens Congress in Wuhan, China. At the invitation of the organisers (Botanic Gardens Conservation International), Chris and Hugh Angus (the National Arboreta’s Head of Collections based at Westonbirt) gave two papers at the conference. The first was on the Conifer Conservation Plots Project at Bedgebury. The second examined findings from a joint project between the NA, BGCI & Flora and Fauna International (FFI), looking at the conservation work being undertaken on the forty five most threatened conifers in China. They also facilitated a meeting of the Global Trees Campaign.

"The world’s major botanic collections are members of BGCI and assist in putting together international polices;" explains Chris. "The BGCI document of International importance is the ‘Global Strategy for Plant Conservation’. This has become a key document in establishing our management policies within the National Arboreta."

Chris and Hugh also took part in a number of field trips with Chinese colleagues, to discuss the potential for seed supply and plan a possible collecting trip in 2008.

"Direct observation of Chinese plants growing in the wild will help us to propagate these plants in our own collections. It will also identify the conservation actions required for the long-term survival of these plants," says Chris.

Spring 2007

Spring is the time of year when everything comes back to life, the transition from dormancy to new flush. If 2007 reflects the previous spring the absence of late frosts will mean an abundance of berries and blossoms.

It is a time to study the fine detail around the Pinetum. Conifers produce very colourful male and female cones/flowers, especially the Spruce. Rhododendrons start to burst into life, alongside anemones, sorrel, daffodils, and bluebells. The dabchicks return to the lake, insects and birds start to fill the air with song.

At this time of year the Tree Team start to plant out the more tender species, particularly from the Southern Hemisphere. The fruits of seed collecting trips to New Zealand, Tasmania and Chile, these include Eucalyptus, dacrocarpus, afrotaxus, Vietnamese Golden Cypress and Monkey puzzle. They will be planting out several Mexican Pines that have been growing in the nursery. The climate may be too harsh but it is worth experimenting.

Clearing the non-native and very invasive Rhododendron Ponticum has revealed several hidden gems. "The Pinetum is never static." Says Chris Reynolds. "Plants are moved to better locations. It ‘s gardening on a large and long-term scale."

Winter 2006/7

One of the most important aspects of managing the National Pinetum at Bedgebury is the acquisition of new species and the replacement of old or non-verified specimens. With this in mind, and following in the footsteps of the great plant hunters of yesteryear, Curator Chris Reynolds and Propagator Dan Luscombe have just returned from a rigorous but fascinating month in the eastern states of America.

In the course of 30 days Chris and Dan covered 4,500 miles, visited nine states and collected tens of thousands of seeds from 230 different species. One to two thousand plants will end up in the Pinetum and seed collected on the trip has also been donated to several other collections; notably Kew, Westonbirt, Hilliers Arboretum and the Millenium Seedbank at Wakehurst Place.

Autumn 2006

National Pinetum Curator Chris Reynolds and Propagator Dan Luscombe are currently on a month-long plant hunting trip to eastern USA. They will be collecting wild-sourced material from known provenance. "We are collecting material from areas that match the environmental conditions at Bedgebury;" says Chris. "Concentrating on species that are at present poorly represented in the Pinetum." Dan will also be speaking at a conference in Ohio.

Meanwhile, the Tree Team will be carrying out a major planting programme this autumn throughout the Pinetum - mostly conifers, but also broadleaves to add colour and structure and to increase the collection’s age diversity. They will also be clearing areas and removing obsolete trees to give more important specimens the chance to thrive.

Summer 2006

The Tree Team is currently focusing on future sites for planting, clearing Rhododendrons and opening up new ground, particularly in the spruce area round Dallimore Valley. They are also in the middle of a major tree audit, using the GPS to plot trees in the Pinetum against the existing database. This will eventually tell us the exact number and location of all the trees in the collection. As well as being an important academic resource, this will play a key role in future planting and landscaping plans. The audit should be finished by the end of summer and the mapping by March 2007. Results will ultimately be available to the general public via the internet.

Winter 2005

The Tree Team are currently concentrating on caring for five to ten year old trees; re-caging, re-mulching and weeding. Most of the pre-Christmas planting schedule is now complete. The next batch of planting will take place in the Spring, including horticultural experimentation with several non-hardy varieties. In the meantime, the team will be fully occupied with the new project; fencing, sign-posting and soft landscaping around the visitor centre, car park and new entrance. 

After a successful collecting trip to Sicily in September, our globe-trotting Assistant Curator Dan Luscombe has just returned from 23 days in Turkey with staff from RBG Edinburgh and Westonbirt, where he advised Nezahat Gokyigit Botanic Gardens on collecting and propagating techniques. Together they collected over 200 items of conifer, oak and rhododendron, including rare Juniper and Cedar of Lebanon seeds and herbarium specimens. He then flew to Oregon, to lecture to the American Conifer Society on ‘Conifers of the Southern Hemisphere’ and, on his return, spoke on the same topic to the Kew Mutual improvement Society - comprising over 100 Friends, staff and students.