In search of poppies and crocus: plant collecting in modern times

Call of the wild

Collections from the field are vital for research and to conserve species under threat in their native habitat, pending the development of appropriate re-introduction programmes. Some plants have survived only because of botanic garden collections. One of these, a grass known as interrupted brome (Bromus interruptus), used to be widespread in the arable fields of southern England, but improved seed cleaning and the use of herbicides led to its decline and final extinction in 1978. The last documented population was recorded in a field in Pampisford, near Cambridge. Thankfully, a plant survived in cultivation and CUBG was one of the few gardens that have ensured its survival. In a project led by the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, our Cambridge plants have now been propagated and re-introduced back into the wild in two locations.

To be of core value to the activities and purpose of a botanic garden, the plant collections should ideally be of documented wild origin. Because of this, expeditions to collect authentic material from the field have always played a vital role. As examples, CUBG collections of Alchemilla, Fritillaria, Geranium and Lavandula contain a very high proportion of wild-collected plants, making them a key research resource in unravelling the naming and relationships of the species.

The Cambridge collection of Lavandula, which is especially strong in wild-collected species from the Canary Islands and North Africa, enabled the definitive monograph of this genus to be published by Dr Tim Upson and Susyn Andrews in 2004. The collection also provided essential material for the beautiful botanical reference paintings of each species by Cambridge botanical artist Georita Harriott. The collection is now being used for further research into understanding the patterns and mechanisms of variation and speciation in the genus.

The way we go about collecting plant species in the wild became more complex following the 1992 Earth Summit, in which the sovereign right of a country over its genetic resources was recognised. Collecting material for potential commercial gain, such as prospecting for new medicinal compounds or ornamentals for the nursery market, now requires agreements to ensure financial benefits are fairly shared. Crucially, however, the Convention also recognised that maintaining access to wild material for the ‘common good’, such as education and research, is still important.

International collaboration is now prerequisite for undertaking a collecting expedition in the field. In recent years, CUBG has run two collaborative trips – to collect poppy and crocus species in particular – both of which have enhanced Cambridge collections and enabled the sharing of expertise, for mutual benefit.

Poppy project

Collaboration with the Institute of Botany in Yerevan, Armenia, was instrumental in setting up a plant-collecting trip to the country. Through a University College scholarship, Dr Anna Asatryan from the Institute spent six weeks at CUBG furthering her research on the oriental poppy, Papaver orientalis, an Armenian native. In September 2005, Dr Tim Upson and Sally Petitt joined her on a collecting trip around Armenia, where many ornamentals and important economic plants like wild wheats and apricots originated.

Armenia has only recently become accessible, so the wild collections made on this trip are probably the first for 60 years. It will be interesting to compare wild material of, for example, Achillea filipendulina, an imposing, architectural perennial, with cultivated material to see how the garden plant has changed over time. An exciting find was Clematis orientalis, which is widespread across Asia and bears attractive yellow flowers in summer. However, with its creamy petals spotted purple, the Armenian version was very different and we await its flowering here in Cambridge with anticipation.

Collecting crocus

CUBG has also been involved for several years in a collaborative project with the newly established Balkan Botanic Garden Kroussia (BBGK) in Greece. In October 2006, three members of staff participated in a collecting expedition with BBGK. The primary aim was to collect autumn-flowering Crocus hadriaticus and Crocus boryi on Kefalonia for the BBGK collection.

This highly rewarding expedition yielded not only both Crocus species on the wish-list, but also specimens of other Kefalonian endemics including Biarum tenuifolium and Colchicum parlatoris. CUBG staff also gained valuable field experience that enhanced understanding of habitats and growing conditions for application here, and specimens of the material collected in the field will soon augment the Balkan collection on the CUBG Rock Garden.

Sharing the collection

Although collecting wild plant material has greatly changed in recent times, continued access to plants growing in their native communities remains central to the CUBG mission to maintain and develop the plant collections for future generations, and to provide access to them for research, pleasure and learning. But today it is also about sharing, not just the plants, but also the enormous expertise and knowledge within the botanic garden community, for the benefit of all.

The expeditions to Armenia and Kefalonia were financed by the Anne and Philip Tallantire Expedition Fund. The Stanley Smith UK Horticultural Trust has also contributed vital support for the ongoing collaboration between CUBG and BBGK.