Plants in the News

[David Pilling]

Alan Titchmarsh brings audience to tears with stunning performance on All Star Musicals

"The Classic FM presenter earned a standing ovation on last night's All Star Musicals, following his beautiful performance of 'Some Enchanted Evening'.

Alan Titchmarsh, a Classic FM presenter and Britain's favourite gardener, stunned viewers on ITV's new show All Star Musicals."

https://www.classicfm.com/music-news/videos/alan-titchmarsh-all-star-musicals-performance/

[David Pilling]

Gardener shares £1.50 plant that 'small pests' hate to repel them from shrubs

"As well as being a flavour booster in Italian cooking, the fragrant natural oils in basil can also trick insects. It contains a chemical called methyl eugenol, which masks the attractive odours of food that bugs flock to by blocking their sensory receptors."

https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/lifestyle/gardener-shares-150-plant-small-30675060

[David Pilling]

Lahaina's Banyan Tree Stands Yet Much Hawaiian History Is Gone

"The historic Hawaiian port town's massive Banyan tree — standing over 60 feet tall with a canopy that has grown to cover more than half an acre — has been the backdrop for endless selfies. "

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/14/opinion/maui-fire-lahaina-banyan-tree.html

[David Pilling]

TREE OF THE YEAR 2023

"Vote for your favourite tree to help us crown this year's Tree of the Year.

Our amazing shortlist was handpicked by our expert panel, along with one People's Choice tree chosen from public nominations on social media. Now is your chance to vote for your favourite urban contender and help us crown a Tree of the Year 2023 champion. The winner will represent the UK in the European Tree of the Year competition!"

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/british-trees/tree-of-the-year/

[David Pilling]

Photosynthesis photography: Making images with living plant leaves

"How to make photographs using plant leaves: the technique, examples, f/0.5 camera lens construction, and tips & tricks that I learned along the way."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-qETedzsFIE

[ksayce]

Huntington Gardens's corpse flower is starting to open-this is the live stream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eP62Xh_12z0 
Here's the main page: https://huntington.org/corpse-flower , which also has a time lapse video from 2022.

[David Pilling]

Warning over Christmas gnomes being left in people's gardens - as police reveal sinister motive

"North Wales Police said it was aware of gnomes being left in people's front gardens in the Broughton area of Flintshire.

If the gnome is not collected by the resident, the property is likely to be empty and burglars could view it as an easy target."

https://news.sky.com/story/christmas-gnomes-are-being-left-in-peoples-gardens-and-theres-a-sinister-motive-12955389

(the old reverse Trojan horse ploy).

[David Pilling]

The turbo-charged plants that could boost farm output

"One aspect of plant growth that hasn't seen significant improvement is conversion efficiency - how effectively a plant converts solar radiation to biomass through photosynthesis.

Prof Long says that photosynthesis in current varieties of crops, like wheat and soybeans, has barely improved in decades.

He is principal investigator and director of a project called Realizing Increased Photosynthetic Efficiency (Ripe), which aims to genetically tweak plants to increase their yields by improving their ability to photosynthesise.

Prof Long and his team have used powerful computers to build a digital twin of the photosynthesis process. It can tweak that process in millions of ways.

From those millions of options the software can identify those that will make the biggest improvements."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-66798680

[David Pilling]

Devious parasitic plant convinces host to grow into its own flesh

"These mushroom-like flowers shed significant amounts of their core genes, including those related to photosynthesis, in order to achieve better synchronisation with its host plants."

https://news.sky.com/story/devious-parasitic-plant-convinces-host-to-grow-into-its-own-flesh-12966128

[Judy Glattstein]

Not bulbs, however these fascinating plants with gigantic flowers are now declared at risk of extinction.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/world-s-largest-flower-is-in-danger-of-extinction-scientists-warn/ar-AA1h6xzo?cvid=a6971990ed3d479e885ae1be40ef6f63&ei=19