There was a decent SF story a few years back set in the the not-at-all distant future, about a botanist who travels, in his spare time, from office to office, looking at plants on windowsills to see if any extinct or as-yet-undiscovered plants might be surviving that way. Good story, with the caveat that the author was really, really obsessed with ABBA (yeah, you read right - they are mentioned over and over again by one of the characters, and yellow-flowered *Saintpaulia *is given the name "Dancing Queen.") A good story for the ecologically-minded. Sort of a happier version of "The Ugly Chickens." (A story that should be required reading in any Eco class). - Dave On Thu, Feb 24, 2011 at 7:55 PM, <pelarg@aol.com> wrote: > > I don't have the entire article, but from what I surmise from the > comments thus far, it sounds like another attack on those of us who like to > grow interesting plants and who actually care about their continued > survival. More important, from a conservation point of view, it makes no > sense. Evolution is not static, gene pools constantly shift, and if > anything the world has been very unstable in the last few million years--who > knows how many plant species were wiped out by the repeated Pleistocene > glaciations onm the northern hemisphere. Now that humans are here, there is > no going back, rather we need to think > about doing our best to preserve what diversity is left, and that means > growing them, setting up seedbanks, and in some cases moving species in > response to/ianticipation of global climate change. An argument could also > be made that while there may be short term, human induced, extinctions, the > movement of plants to new areas may actually enhance biodiversity in the far > future (assuming we manage not to wreck the planet first). > A Lilium species collection in the UK indeed may save some species, as > I imagine the rampant ecological destruction in Tibet, western/southwestern > China, Burma, and much of the rest of himalayan region (except perhaps > Bhutan) might very well drive some species of lilium to extinction. Such > efforts are both necessary and commendable. Though perhaps occasionally > common to the point of pesky in their new home, Gladiolus caryophyllaceus > and Morea aristata are far safer from extinction in Australia than in their > native South Africa. Deppea splendens survives only in cultivation, if Dr. > Breedlove had not been able to bring back live material to the US from > Mexico at the time, this magnificent shrub would be gone. Clearly humans > are not going to disappear or even voluntarily reduce their excessive > numbers, so there can be no real preservation of a status quo. Our world > ecosystems are constantly, and it seems with increasing speed, changing due > to our activities that is not > beneficial for the survival of many other plants and animals. > In the end, there is no perfect solution, and steps need to be taken by > interested and informed individuals, who can make a small difference in our > too short lifetimes. Relying on goverments that are hard pressed by other > concerns to protect plants with limited geographic ranges is bound to fail > in the long term, as funding for such programs will invariably be cut in > reponse to economic constraints. In areas of the world where biodiversity, > population growth, and poverty are all high, there is no real effort to > protect rare plants, so limiting their movement only seals their sad fate. > Having a doctorate myself, I can only imagine that the authors of this > article must possess a very narrow fact base in their actual knowledge of > rare plants. Its a common problem in academia, where the intense focus on > the tree obscures the view of the forest. I wonder, could they actually > grow a rare plant, and do they have years of practical experience observing > plant communities in various areas (not just the one field/species/ecosystem > or whatever they studied for their doctorates). > Just some of my thoughts on this complex issue, plus I have to admit, I > really liked the phrase "cretinous literary endeavours". I'll have to > remember that one next time I'm grading a student essay. > Ernie DeMarie > Tuckahoe, NY Z6/7 where a lone crocus is blooming in my > school garden, along with the first eranthis. > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > pbs mailing list > pbs@lists.ibiblio.org > http://pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php > http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/ > -- "I *hate* this place. This *zoo*. This *prison*...I can't stand it any longer. It's the smell...I feel saturated by it. I can taste your stink and every time I do, I fear that I've somehow been infected by it." - Agent Smith