Winter Solstice

Galanthus elwesii var. monostictus

The sun has been shining in the garden today, seemingly in celebration of the date. It is the winter solstice and the days will begin to lengthen from this point on. Many plants have had the wisdom to retire beneath the ground for a few months but a few stalwarts are already emerging to sun themselves.

In keeping with our festive tradition, the Christmas tree is showing off its natural decorations, made by our visiting school groups, in the Conservatory. Across the garden you will find many plants that add their own, unique flavour to Christmas celebrations, from cinnamon plants in the Palm House to brussels sprouts on the vegetable plot.

Fern Gully

Catching some morning sun, whilst admiring Fern Gully

Despite the weather last week, the team has continued working hard, with Fern Gully being the focus of their efforts last Wednesday.  With Rich at the helm, he set about weeding, pruning and mulching Fern Gully, and as a result, it now looks fantastic. Whilst its covering in frost brought its own beauty and seasonal interest, this area will really come into its own come the spring! 

Welcome!

The Serpentine Ride

Welcome to the all new Harcourt Arboretum blog! As the blog develops, this will be the place to find out about the plants, people and exciting projects and more importantly, how you can get involved!

Japan Trip Update - Week Four

The Shinkansen

Our final week in Japan saw Ben and I travel from Kochi on the island of Shikoku back to the Kanto region on the main island of Honshu. This involved an eight hour train journey, including four hours on the Shinkansen (Bullet Train).

Our first stop was the University city of Tsukuba, one hour north of Tokyo. Here we were greeted by Dr. Tanaka, Senior Curator of Tsukuba Botanic Garden, and Mr. Suzuki. We travelled to Mt. Tsukuba, the only topographical feature on the otherwise flat plains of the Ibaraki Prefecture. The mountain is somewhat of a mainland island as a result of this geography and home to c. 1200 species, including several endemic species. At the foot of the mountain we met with Dr. Obata, Director of Botany at the Ibaraki Nature Museum, a specialist on the flora of Mt. Tsukuba. We spent the day botanising the mountain and positively identified 80 species.





We then travelled on to Nikko in the mountains of Tochigi Prefecture, 90 miles north of Tokyo. Our accommodation was a traditional Japanese guest house within Nikko Botanical Garden. The garden is owned and run by the University of Tokyo and houses an excellent collection of native plants and a research station for post graduate study. The temperature was much colder at this location, and the guest house without much in the way of heating, fortunately there was a hot spring public bath (Onsen) nearby to warm the cockles.

Final Feast with staff at Nikko Botanical Garden

Much to our delight we were joined in Nikko by Professor Murrata, Director of Koishikawa (Tokyo Botanical Garden). An entire day was spent botanising through the mountains of Nikko National Park, cloaked in snow but bathed in sunshine. This was to be our last day in the field before returning home to the UK, and what a fitting end. Spending a day with one Japan's most respected botanists, enjoying plants in the wild, was a true honour for Ben and I. To cap it all off Professor Murata cooked a feast to celebrate the end of our successful field trip. We were joined by the research team at Nikko Botanical Garden who made us so very welcome and made our stay unforgettable.







Having returned to the UK Ben and I are now able to reflect on what was an amazing trip. The successes far exceeded our expectations and we both feel so incredibly lucky to have been given the opportunity to experience it all. We would like to thank all those we met in Japan, who gave up their time to work with us and who so enthusiastically introduced us to some amazing sites, the exquisite native flora and a beautiful culture and country. Over 5000km travelled in country, seven botanic gardens visited, field sites from sea level to over 2000m, 11 hotel and guest houses and a mountain of business cards.

Nikko National Park

We would also like to say a huge thank you to the Friends of the Botanic Garden and Harcourt Arboretum for their financial support and especially the Impey family for their generous donation to the project.

Ben and I are now planning the next phase of this project. In autumn 2013 we will return to northern Japan to collect seed, herbarium voucher specimens and conduct botanical surveys to support research conducted by the Department of Plant Sciences at Oxford.




We hope this will be the beginning of a long term relationship with our colleagues in Japan. One that will contribute to achieving objectives across several institutions in our common goal to research, conserve and communicate global plant biodiversity.

Japan Trip Update - Week Three

Kyoto Botanic Garden

Ginkgo biloba at Kyoto Botanic Garden

Tom & Ben with staff from Kyoto BG

Makino Botanic Garden

Herbarium vouchers at Makino BG Herbarium

The view from Makino BG across to Kochi

Lagerstroemia subcostata

Kochi National Park

Our third week has seen Tom and I travel down to Kyoto, then onto Kochi, which is situated on the island of Shikoku.  At Kyoto, Mr. Nagasawa and his team met us, and had kindly put together an itinerary for the next couple of days. This allowed us to assess the collection sites for next year and establish some important contacts that will hopefully aid us in our permit applications.

The Botanic Garden was established in 1924, and despite a period of disuse between 1946 & 1962, showcases an impressive collection of plants, with almost 12,000 species.

Out in the field, it was great to have the support of Mr.Nagasawa and his team guiding us through some fascinating sites and assisting with the identification of some of the local flora.

For the next leg after Kyoto, we visitied Kochi, home to Makino Botanic Gardens. This visit was greatly anticipated as everywhere visited previously, had commented on how this was the best Botanic Garden in Japan.

Named after the eminent Japanese botanist Dr. Tomitaro Makino, the Garden was opened to the public in 1958. Within the 6 hectares, over 3,000 species of plant are on display, one of the reasons the Ministry of Education, Culture & Science recognized the Garden as a statutory Research Institute in 2003.

Dr. Tanaka kindly gave up his weekend to show Tom and I around the locality, where we visited a range of flora from sea level to almost 2,000m. The Sunday was slightly hampered by 4 hours of incredibly heavy rain, but this did not deter our enthusiasm!

Japan Trip Update - Week Two

Our second week has seen Ben and I travel from Hokkaido to Honshu and the city of Niigata on the western seaboard. Here we were greeted by Dr. Kurashige, Deputy Director of the Niigata Prefectural Botanic Garden. Three days were spent botaninsing the flora of the Niigata region in some breathtaking locations. The most exciting and memorable being a trek to find the most northerly population of Sciadopitys verticillata in Japan (the Japanese Umbrella Pine). It was a wet day with the mountain cloaked in mist, making it difficult to navigate and assess our progress. Finally however, at 700m we came across a single mature specimen of Sciadopitys, clinging to the steep slope just below the mountain summit. What made it all the more exciting was that it was displaying ripe cones full of seed. On closer inspection, five other semi mature specimens were seen, as well as a small number of juvenile saplings.

Taiga Kuhara - Guide Extrordinaire

Ben Jones next to Sciadopitys verticillata 

Tom, Ben & Sciadopitys - Mission Accomplished!

This species is endemic to Japan, and listed as threatened on the IUCN Red List. Seeing it in the wild was an experience that neither Ben or I will ever forget. Taiga Kuhara, of Niigata Prefectural Botanic Garden, was our guide and made each day an adventure.

Tom & Taiga heading through the forest

We then travelled on to Toyama, further south on the western seaboard, where we were welcomed by Dr. Godo and Mr. Shiuchi. Further field sites were visited including a trek through high altitude Faguscrenata forest. Bells were worn by all to alert our presence to any bears that may have been lurking nearby! Fortunately, none were encountered.

Ben with bells on!

Some of the other forest inhabitants

Our final evening was spent with the Toyama BG management team discussing our plans for next year over traditional Japanese fayre, including sashimi, black squid and some other 'unmentionable' dishes. The project is generating wide interest and support across Japan. Ben and I have been overwhelmed by the hospitality received and with the eagerness to collaborate.

Evening meal with Toyama BG Staff

One of many amazing plants at Toyama BG

Our journey now continues to Kyoto in southern Honshu, Kochi on the island of Shikoku and finally Tokyo and the Kanto region.

Japan Trip Update, Week One

Meeting with project partners at Koishikawa Botanic Garden of Tokyo University

Gingko biloba 

Our first full week has seen visits to Koishikawa Botanic Garden of Tokyo University, Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden, followed by a flight up to Sapporo where we visited Hokkaido University Botanic Garden and Tokyo University Forest, Hokkaido.  The visit to Koishikawa Botanic Garden gave Tom and I a chance to meet with other project partners, representing the Ministry of the Environment, Niigata Prefectural Botanic Garden, Tokyo University Botanic Garden and the University of Bonn Botanic Garden.




 Of the plants encountered so far, two stand out in particular. Kalopanax pictus and Tilia japonica. Kalopanax pictus is grown as an important timber tree along with Betula ermanii and seeing it as a large tree, growing in a stand of Picea jezoensis and Abies sachalinensis was quite a sight!

L-R Tom Price, Hirofumi Stubano, Dr. Daisuke Sakue & Ben Jones

The second, Tilia japonica was encountered in a less obvious location – a local noodle bar! The seats were made from this tree, which we hope to encounter in its more usual context as we travel across Japan.

Kalopanax pictus

Bench in noodle bar made from Tilia japonica

At the meeting with other project partners, we gave a presentation, detailing the aims and objectives of the trip over the next two years, and where the outcomes of the project help us deliver the core activities of the University, Garden and Arboretum. The response was very positive with offers of support in the form of guides to accompany us in the field, permit applications, collaborative collecting trips into the field and other logistics. 

View from University of Tokyo Forest, Hokkaido