Speaking of trees

Fight to save dying plant species

A botanist from Kew Gardens is fighting to save one of the rarest plant species in the world, the Bastard Gumwood tree.

The last tree of this species is found on the tiny South Atlantic island of St Helena, and it is dying.

Only 1 in 10,000 pollen grains have a genetic mutation that allows self-pollination to take place. The tree is covered with netting to prevent cross-pollination with a related species. And a few people go out every day to use paintbrushes to collect pollen grains and pollinate the flowers. The only way to tell if the seeds are fertile is to plant them. I wish them success.

The island of Saint Helena was once covered with unique plant species, but much has been supplanted by introduced species, and then there was the introduction of goats, which eat all sorts of vegetation.