New Member with plant availability
Paul Licht (Mon, 15 Dec 2008 14:34:23 PST)

By way of introduction as a new member, after using and enjoying the PBS
wiki for quite some time, I decided that I should 'pay my dues'. As
Director of the Univ. California Botanical Garden at Berkeley, I enjoy
an incredible array of geophytes from around the word (e.g., about 250
Amaryllidaceae and 300 Iridaceae species) and most notably, a large
South African collection. Our collection is data-driven and the vast
majority is wild collected of known provenance. I am also personally
passionate about these plants and have my own collection, with an
emphasis on the S. African bulbs and aroids. While it may sound like I
should be an expert, I can only wish I were: I've already learned a
great deal from the PBS listserve. Incidentally, I am not a botanist by
background but perhaps it is relevant that much of my research was on
the endocrinology of African hyenas.

I have started adding images to the wiki from our collection and may be
able to provide information on cultivation of some lesser known
species. The Garden propagates a large number of geophytes (among
other plants) for sale to the public; I would love to give them away or
trade but cannot do this routinely because the funds are essential to
help maintain the Garden. If you are interested, you can view a partial
availability list on our website
(http://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu/shop/…).
You can email me if you have questions. The Garden continues to seek
new material (legally collected) with data and would greatly appreciate
if you can help in this way.

Paul