Tropical Botanic Garden and Research Institute (TBGRI), set up in 1979, is situated as Palode in Thiruvananthapuram district. The Institute with its mandate for conservation and sustainable utilization of tropical plant diversity is also recognized as a National Centre of Excellence in ex situ conservation of tropical plants. TGBRI also functions as the National Gene Bank for medicinal and aromatic plants of peninsular India. The Centre is set up to carry out ex-situ conservation of country’s biodiversity and their sustainable utilization.
Research activities continued under 67 research projects, funded by International and National agencies and State Government Departments. Besides the externally funded projects, 50 in-house programmes/projects are also being implemented.
Over 200 accessions belonging to trees, medicinal plants, palms, bamboos, orchids, ferns etc. were introduced to the Garden during last year.
A conservatory for the arborescent wild crop relatives of Western Ghats was initiated. Species of Cinnamomum, Garcinia, Myristica and Syzygium were introduced for this purpose. A rare cycad, Cycas rumphii with a full grown cone is a prized possession at the conservatory of TBGRI.
The conservation education programmes of the Medicinal plant cultivation and practices were boosted by undertaking the new project ‘Establishment of a Milieu based Sanctuary and Conservation – Education Centre of Medicinal Plants of the Western Ghats’. One genus and 53 species of fungi and four species of flowering plants were described as new to science.
Macro proliferation trials were conducted in nine species and 12,000 saplings were produced and given to Forest Department, NGO’s and interested public. Twenty-five species of orchids were added to the collection from Munnar and Wayanad. Other important additions to the orchid collection were 12 species from Andaman Islands.
Interesting new accessions introduced to the Arboretum include rare and endemic species of the Western Ghats like Vateria macrocarpa, Cassine kedarnathi and Semicarpus kathalekanensis. Propagation trials turned successful in Humboldtia decurrens and Buchanania barberi.
Four accessions of wild Piper spp. were newly added. This takes the cryobank holdings to twenty-four accessions. Cryopreservation protocol was also established for zygotic embryos of Nothapodytes nimmoniana.
Database of endemic flowering plants of the Western Ghats with preliminary data of 1272 species, 50 sacred Grooves of Ghrissur district, Kerala, 300 wild ornamentals of Western Ghats, and fungal database comprising 380 species of Meliolales were developed. Database on Kerala flora was completed. The database depicts the 4500 flowering plant species of Kerala, in 1278 genera and 207 families.
About 13,000 specimens were collected as a part of floristic studies of Kerala for herbarium and documentation. Rescue and restoration of medicinal plants was launched for 15 rare medicinal plants and standardized conventional propagation techniques.
Protocols were developed for the mass multiplication of two rattan palm species using zygotic embryo cultures.
Research activities continued under 67 research projects, funded by International and National agencies and State Government Departments. Besides the externally funded projects, 50 in-house programmes/projects are also being implemented.
Over 200 accessions belonging to trees, medicinal plants, palms, bamboos, orchids, ferns etc. were introduced to the Garden during last year.
A conservatory for the arborescent wild crop relatives of Western Ghats was initiated. Species of Cinnamomum, Garcinia, Myristica and Syzygium were introduced for this purpose. A rare cycad, Cycas rumphii with a full grown cone is a prized possession at the conservatory of TBGRI.
The conservation education programmes of the Medicinal plant cultivation and practices were boosted by undertaking the new project ‘Establishment of a Milieu based Sanctuary and Conservation – Education Centre of Medicinal Plants of the Western Ghats’. One genus and 53 species of fungi and four species of flowering plants were described as new to science.
Macro proliferation trials were conducted in nine species and 12,000 saplings were produced and given to Forest Department, NGO’s and interested public. Twenty-five species of orchids were added to the collection from Munnar and Wayanad. Other important additions to the orchid collection were 12 species from Andaman Islands.
Interesting new accessions introduced to the Arboretum include rare and endemic species of the Western Ghats like Vateria macrocarpa, Cassine kedarnathi and Semicarpus kathalekanensis. Propagation trials turned successful in Humboldtia decurrens and Buchanania barberi.
Four accessions of wild Piper spp. were newly added. This takes the cryobank holdings to twenty-four accessions. Cryopreservation protocol was also established for zygotic embryos of Nothapodytes nimmoniana.
Database of endemic flowering plants of the Western Ghats with preliminary data of 1272 species, 50 sacred Grooves of Ghrissur district, Kerala, 300 wild ornamentals of Western Ghats, and fungal database comprising 380 species of Meliolales were developed. Database on Kerala flora was completed. The database depicts the 4500 flowering plant species of Kerala, in 1278 genera and 207 families.
About 13,000 specimens were collected as a part of floristic studies of Kerala for herbarium and documentation. Rescue and restoration of medicinal plants was launched for 15 rare medicinal plants and standardized conventional propagation techniques.
Protocols were developed for the mass multiplication of two rattan palm species using zygotic embryo cultures.
No comments:
Post a Comment